Indoor snow dome for Hemel Hempstead

Source/Contact: Sports Management, 02/05/2008

Construction firm Sir Robert McAlpine is converting the dry slopes at Hemel Ski Centre in Bennetts End, Hertfordshire, into a ₤23m hub for indoor skiing and snowboarding.  Called The Snow Centre, it will boast a 160m indoor ski slope – graded for all levels of experience, a 100m nursery slope, large video screens that show winter sports, two drag lifts and a rope tow on the trainer slope.  The centre will also house retail store Snow & Rock, a restaurant overlooking the slopes, bars, coffee shops and meeting rooms.  It will also have a grass roof that covers the length of the slope so to blend the centre into its natural landscape.  The project is being backed by NatWest bank and has taken two years to plan.  It will open in April 2009.