When 2017 began, Blue Mountain Ski Area was working hard to get municipal approvals for its plans for the Vista Lodge at the top of the mountain next to Summit Lodge.

As the new year begins, the resort is in a holding pattern that could all go away in an instance, depending on what Judge Joseph J. Matika decides.

Matika has to decide whether or not the Appalachian Trail Conservancy has standing in an appeal.

Attorney James Nanovic, the solicitor for the Lower Towamensing Township Board of Supervisors, said if Matika decides that the conservancy does have standing to bring the appeal, then the argument will be heard in early 2018.

But if he decides the conservancy does not have standing, then its appeal is struck down and the case is over.

In the meantime, the Vista Lodge Development Corp. waits.

What’s the beef?

In April 2017, the Vista Lodge Development Corp., created by the Tuthill Corp. that owns the Blue Mountain Ski Area, went before the Lower Towamensing Township Zoning Hearing Board seeking seven variances and a special exception in order to build the 85-foot-tall hotel and condominium complex.

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy was there and spoke out against the project, saying the structure was too close to the Appalachian Trail, and the height of the building would interfere with the scenic views from the trail.

The plans for the lodge showed that one corner the lodge would be 12 feet from the easement for the Appalachian Trail. The actual trail is another 400 feet into the woods.

The Lower Towamensing Township Zoning Hearing Board decided that the conservancy didn’t have standing to be a party in the hearing because they don’t own the land.

The trail is owned by the National Park Service, and the park service has an agreement with the conservancy to oversee the care of the trail in that section of the trail.

When the zoning hearing board approved six of the seven variances and the special exception, the conservancy filed an appeal with the Carbon County Court of Common Pleas on June 26 to recind the approval.

The next day, the Vista Lodge Development Corp. filed an appeal to have the one variance not granted to them reviewed and granted by the court.

Not too long after that though, it withdrew the appeal, Nanovic said. Instead, it filed a request to have the court rule on whether or not the conservancy has standing to file an appeal of the zoning hearing board’s decision.

“We hope he issues it before the argument happens,” he said, but there is no timeline for that.

Barbara Green, president of the Tuthill Corp., said that while they wait, they “are still working on our architectural and engineering drawings for submittal to the township planning commission.”

She doesn’t expect the drawings to be completed until next fall. But once they have the approval from the Lower Towamensing Township’s Planning Commission, she hopes construction of the Vista Lodge is not far behind.

“Additional lodging in Carbon County will only enhance the outdoor recreation experience that the county is known for,” Green said.