By Curtis Galbraith

Community

Nitehawk looking to hire 50 more people

Nov 16, 2022 | 6:00 AM

Nitehawk Adventure Park officials say the hill is short of staff to open the season up later this month.

General Manager Johnathan Clarkson says they have hired 60 of the 110 people needed so far and are hiring for all positions.

“The main one is actually snow makers… that is the first, immediate need. Then of course, (with) the re-opening of the restaurant… we are looking for bartenders and servers for that part of the business as well.”

“Obviously, daytime staff with students and everything is another area. We’ve got lift operating, rental shop, ticket sales, ski and snowboard instructing.”

Clarkson says they have been able to put aside some money to be able to open the restaurant. That came from its Comedy Night fundraisers.

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“We’ve put some money into renovating the lounge; the Snowmaker’s Lounge. The last time it was updated I think, was 15 years ago when my dad and I replaced tile and put some new paint on the wall.”

He adds cutting back hours if there isn’t enough staff is the last thing he would want to do.

“I will probably volunteer my own hours if I have to to make that not happen. Certainly, that is a reality that we all have to face. It’s a conversation we have to have.”

“I’m really hopeful that we don’t have to do that, and we can move forward with regular operating hours, which will be Wednesday and Friday evenings and then Saturdays and Sundays during the day. We’ll have our club evenings for our partner groups on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”

Clarkson spoke to city council Monday ahead of city budget talks.

Nitehawk has asked the city to increase its capital funding by $19,000. That budget would include things like staff accommodations, snowmaking upgrades, and erosion control.

Clarkson says they have also added upgrading rental equipment to the capital budget, something that was only done through fund-raising previously. They also asked for an increase of $1815 in operating funds to help cover increased fuel costs.

The targeted opening date for skiing and snowboarding is November 26. He says about one-fifth of the hill will be unavailable this year compared to half in the last two years as the hill had a landslide in May 2020.

Anyone interested in applying for a job can email employment@gonitehawk.com