NORTH CREEK -- A $200 million development proposed for the North Creek Ski Bowl cleared a major hurdle Thursday when the Adirondack Park Agency approved a plan to reopen the dormant Ski Bowl and link it to Gore's trails.
     But the plan, which would feed future Ski Bowl tourists and homeowners to Gore via a new ski lift and gondola, has no financial backing or timetable for construction.
     Regardless, the developer of "Ski Bowl Village" will pursue APA approval for his massive project by the end of this summer.
      The Adirondack Park Agency on Thursday approved the Gore Mountain expansion plan, which in addition to the new ski lift and gondola includes building upgrades, expansion of the state Education Foundation's junior racing program and an event parking lot for up to 30 buses, said APA spokesman Keith McKeever.
      The expansion plan's approval paves the way for developer Mac Crikelair of Front Street Development to transform the Ski Bowl into a $200 million resort complete with 175 townhouses, 20 single-family homes, two inns, a member-exclusive lodge, an equestrian center, a golf course and a restaurant.
      But neither the APA nor the Olympic Regional Development Authority, which operates Gore Mountain, could specify a total cost for the expansion, and had no timeline for when any money would come through.

      "The primary hurdle has been cleared and now it's a question of funding," said ORDA spokesman Sandy Caligiore. "Until that's identified, we'll just keep plugging away and fighting the good fight to get that funding."
      The Ski Bowl project would likely fold without completion of the new ski lift and gondola, since both would allow those living and visiting the Ski Bowl to a direct downhill ski path from the top of Gore Mountain into the hamlet of North Creek.
     That concept could generate up to $45 million for the region's now struggling economy, studies showed.
      Johnsburg Town Supervisor William Thomas believed the APA approval "puts us in really good shape" and predicted a funding source for the expansion plans would be found by the summer.
      Crikelair could not be reached for comment Friday.
      The town of Johnsburg has already secured about $800,000 in federal funding to renovate a ski hut on the Ski Bowl property and has also applied for a $520,000 grant from the state Office of Small Cities to build a triple-chair lift.
      U.S. Rep. John Sweeney, R-Clifton Park, secured $250,000 in federal funds for the Gore expansion in 2004.
      Both the APA and ORDA steered clear of putting a price tag on the expansion plans.
      "Can we get it all at once? Can we get it over time? These are things that are undetermined at this point," Cagiliore said. "In terms of the bottom line, I'm not going to pin us into a corner on a number."