Snowbowl won't perform work until suits settled That accord was struck Wednesday during a federal court hearing in Prescott seeking a preliminary injunction against the construction before U.S. District Judge Paul Rosenblatt. Rosenblatt also scheduled a tentative court date for mid-October and consolidated the four suits into one filed by northern Arizona tribes and environmentalists against the U.S. Department of the Interior. "The most important issue for us is the future of the ski area and that depends on being able to make snow," said J.R. Murray, general manager of the Snowbowl. "We are pleased the court has agreed to schedule the trial this October. We look forward to getting the litigation behind us." Valley attorney Howard Shanker, who represents, among others, the Navajo Nation and Sierra Club in the proceedings, said the issue most paramount was getting a delay in the construction. The Snowbowl had been scheduled to start cutting trees this month. "The judge (Rosenblatt) asked if Snowbowl should be allowed to begin at its own risk and I said it was unacceptable because they would be cutting a thousand trees and doing a lot of grading," Shanker said. Those opposed to the Snowbowl improvements say that further development on the San Francisco Peaks decreases the religious powers of the mountains, which are sacred to tribes in the Southwest. But Snowbowl officials say that snowmaking is essential for the economic well-being of the ski area and to Flagstaff businesses during the winter. The Snowbowl has been in dire financial straits in recent years because of the state's ongoing drought.
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