Ski and Snowboard News, Deals, and Events

An Idaho town that once was a heavily polluted mining community has become one of the Northwest's vacation winners. How can you tell? Homes that sold for as little as $30,000 just five years ago are now selling for more than $800,000. Associated Press reports they are gone as soon as they hit the market. Jeld-Wen Communities, the real estate arm of Jeld-Wen wood products company, appears to be the catalyst. The area began to take off after the company bought Silver Mountain ski resort in 1996. The region is a Superfund clean-up site. Sales Director Stephen Lane had a good line. "Now, instead of Superfund, the emphasis is on super-fun," he told AP.