Two separate groups have emerged in the effort to ensure that local ski hill Shames Mountain stays open.

Shames Mountain Co-op, spearheaded by avid American skiers Jamie Schectman and Shanie Matthews, is a business model that would see local and international snow enthusiasts “work together to build an outdoor playground” that works for the community, environment and guests.

The couple moved to Patagonia from Lake Tahoe to ski and came up with the co-op idea after a disappointing stay at a resort. They subsequently found Shames Mountain for sale online and started researching the idea.

Friends of Shames, a steering committee made up of nine people from Terrace, Prince Rupert and Kitimat, formed to find a way to keep the mountain open and cites the role Shames plays in the local economy and quality of life.

It is currently researching non-profit, co-op and not-for-profit co-op models to see which model would fit best for Shames, and is gathering information and ideas from the community and stakeholders to do this.

The group plans to have a business model decided upon by the end of 2009 that will give it access to money and keep he mountain under local control.

There has been some confusion about the two groups, with some people believing that they are working together, but Schectman said that is not the case.

“There's two different entities...there's Friends of Shames, and there's Shames Mountain Co-op,” Schectman said, explaining that there are two different groups looking at the future of Shames, but they are not the same.

“Perhaps there was some confusion,” he said. “I all along have been the Shames Mountain Co-op....I guess the Friends of Shames is thinking of other options.”

The confusion could come from Schectman being introduced as a Friends of Shames member at the townhall meeting here in late October; while Schectman has his bio in under the steering committee, he later realized the two groups have different mission statements.

“We'll be working with people who share the same vision as the co-op movement as dictated on the website,” Schectman said. He highlighted some differences as equality between global and local director representation and some members of the Friends of Shames committee having reservations about a co-op business model.

Friends of Shames spokesperson Mary Bartlett said the mandate of Friends of Shames is to pursue the best and most sustainable business model for future operations of Shames Mountain, and work continues to pursue those options.

“Those options are not limited to the co-op model, but could include other ways of creating a sustainable future for the mountain such as a non-profit society or a for-profit business model,” she said.

“We're putting together an analysis, pros and cons of the various different models, and we'll come out with the best business case,” said Friends of Shames committee member Sam Harling, who is also the economic development officer for the Terrace Economic Development Authority.

He stressed that the committee is looking for the best avenue for a sustainable future for Shames that has the greatest access to grants and funding.

“We're trying to exhaust all possibilities and see what is best for Shames,” he said.

Schectman said it doesn't matter what direction Friends of Shames is going because they are going forward with the co-op.

“I don't need to wait for (the Friends of Shames') endorsement because it's been overwhelming supportive,” Schectman said of support for the co-op model. He said he doesn't think the Friends of Shames is a large part of the local feel based on talks with other people in the local community and messages on the co-op website.

“We're going to work with the local community, for sure. It's all about the local community. The global community is already on board,” Schectman said. “We are absolutely going to work with the community and the people who share the same vision as us.”

“The reason why I don't feel like we need to wait for the Friends of Shames....is because we believe in it, we have momentum,” he continued, adding that he hasn't been in contact with the group for a while and doesn't know what they're up to. “Why should we wait?”

“It's crystal clear that a co-op model is the way to go,” Schectman said, explaining that the website outlines why this model is best.

“Based upon the overwhelming response we've gotten both locally and globally, we've decided to continue on with the (co-op) movement,” he said. He has updated the website with new core values, mission statement, and a code of ethics which define the Shames Mountain Co-op overall movement.

“I was, am, and will be representing the Shames Mtn. Co-op...along with Shanie, we're the founding directors,” he said, adding that it's an idea they've been thinking about for years.

The next step for Schectman is to choose two local founding directors for the co-op; Schectman and Matthews are the two global representatives, and together with the local directors will be writing the bylaws for the co-op.

“We believe in equality all the way around,” Schectman said of having two global and two local founding directors.

There is criteria for local directors, which can be found on the co-op's website.

“Shanie and I are going to review local candidates and pick based on what we think is the best representation,” Schectman said.

“It's going to be dictated on who shares the same vision of the movement,” he said, explaining that the website is crystal clear on the product. “We're looking for the two local founding (members) that share our agreement with the vision that we've set out in the form of mission statement, code of ethics and core values.”

He's working with co-op consulting company Devco, which will be paid for out of the pockets of the founding directors, then reimbursed for equal share value later on.

Schectman said once everything is established, the co-op will put in an offer, and hopefully the current Shames Mountain owners will consider it.

“We're going to put down a business plan that's going to provide a long term sustainable future for Shames,” Schectman said, explaining that the concept is good for Terrace and the environment. He said the co-op will “raise the bar and the standard of how a ski area is run”, boasting that the co-op would make the hill “skier owned and operated.”

The hill is currently owned by eight local shareholders who have been putting their own money into the hill for the last 20 years to keep it running. Over the years, the Shames Mountain Corporation board has repeatedly said it would like to hand the ownership reigns over to another group who would continue to run Shames for the community. The hill is listed on Colliers for $1.5 million.

The Friends of Shames website is under construction; in the meantime, people can contribute ideas or contact the group at info@friendsofshames.com. For more information on Shames Mountain Co-op, visit www.shamesmtncoop.com