Cranmore Breaks Ground On New 20 Million Dollar Base Lodge

Cranmore Mountain Resort has officially unveiled Fairbank Lodge, the next phase of its base area redevelopment. With construction projected to begin on April 5, Fairbank Lodge will replace Cranmore’s existing base lodge and will include 30,000 square feet of new day lodge facility space, along with 15 residential condominiums. 

Named to recognize Cranmore’s current owner Brian Fairbank, who was recently inducted into the U.S. Ski Hall of Fame, the new lodge will include a new food pavilion, slope-side bar, day and season-long lockers, restrooms, a café, and ski accessories shop.  Cranmore’s rich history will be incorporated into the interior design of the building, including large wall murals located throughout the first two floors. 

The two-story condominiums on the third and fourth floors of the building have been designed with an open-concept floor plan that includes a master suite bedroom and bath, spacious kitchen and dining area, and living room with large windows that span across Cranmore’s South and North Slope or feature sunset views over the resort’s village complex. The units, all of which are currently under contract, will range in size from 1,419 to 1,933 square feet for 2- to 3-bedroom homes and 2,360 square feet for the 4-bedroom penthouse.

The first floor of the Fairbank Lodge is projected to be operational for the start of the 2022-2023 ski season, with the second floor and entire Fairbank Lodge slated to be completed prior to the start of the 2023-24 winter season.

“The Fairbank Lodge will replace Cranmore’s aging facilities with a state-of-the-art ski lodge and progressive residential condominiums that will meet the needs of today’s day and overnight visitor to the resort,” commented Cranmore President and GM Ben Wilcox. 

Atlantic Construction Group, the contractor who completed Building 2 of Kearsarge Brook Condominiums at Cranmore last year, and most recently the new Artist Falls Lodge, will be the general contractor for the new project. 

“We are thrilled to be part of this next chapter for Cranmore,” said Todd Niemaszyk, owner of Atlantic Construction Group.  “This is an exciting time for them, as they morph further into becoming one of the leading year-round resorts in New England.”

Conceptual base area designs were produced by Bull Stockwell Allen, based in San Francisco, California, and SE Group, based in Burlington, VT.  The architect of record for the Fairbank Lodge is Archetype Architects based in Portland, ME, and the planning and civil engineering work was completed by HEB Engineers based in North Conway, NH.    Archetype and HEB Engineers were also involved with the design and development of the new Artist Falls Lodge and Kearsarge Brook Condominiums at Cranmore building.

Cranmore continues its partnership with Badger, Peabody & Smith Realty, which secured purchase and sale agreements for all 15 condominium residences within a month of receiving the NH Attorney General’s approval.

The Fairbank Lodge is a continuation of resort improvements that started in 2010 when Cranmore was purchased by the father and son team of Brian and Tyler Fairbank of The Fairbank Group, and Joseph O’Donnell.  When complete, the $60 million base area redevelopment, which is based on the highly successful development at Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in the Berkshire’s of MA, will double the size of the area’s day-visit facilities and introduce 98 condominium residences to the resort.

Another notable development at Cranmore Mountain Resort includes the addition of a new Fairfield Marriott Hotel, currently under construction.  The new hotel will be owned and operated by Lafrance Hospitality, a proven operator who owns hotels from Florida to the Coast of Maine.  The 89-room hotel, located next to the Artist Falls Lodge, is projected to open in November of 2022.    

Since The Fairbank Group’s acquisition of Cranmore in 2010, it invested over $25 million in improvements and development into the resort, upgrading mountain infrastructure and snowmaking technologies, adding four new lifts, enhancing family ski learning programs, adding a full summer park attraction, and recently introducing a lift-serviced downhill mountain bike park.