PARK CITY, Utah -- Workers at the Utah Olympic Park have begun renovation on the aerials training facility in Park City.
The $3 million plan includes replacing the original four ramps and installing seven news ones, including ramps for slopestyle and monguls.
“This is really going to change the setup here -- it's going to change the capacity that we have to bring more kids into the programs and it's going to expand the number of sports we can serve,” said Luke Bodensteiner, executive vice president of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association.
The upgrades are expected to make an already popular training facility and tourist destination, even more so.
“We have a capacity problem. Now we are absolutely jammed from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and we need to increase that capacity, add some new ramps and really just make the most state-of-the-art facility we can,” said Collin Hilton, president and CEO of Utah Olympic Legacy Foundation.
Out of all the Olympic facilities at the park the aerials training facility is used the most and it's starting to show.
The wood is starting to warp, paint is starting to peel and even the stairs leading up to the ramps are being worn down.
Officials hope the renovations will help future Olympians bring home more medals.
“This really gives us a competitive advantage we think we're going to train up to a dozen medals here in the next four years,” Bodensteiner said.
The renovation also lays the groundwork for Utah to host the winter games once again.
“This is really a statement about Utah’s desire to host the Olympics again. Everyone felt the benefits in 2002 -- we can have that back and that should be something people should care about,” Bodensteiner said.
The renovations are expected to be completed by June of next year.
