Tag: Jan Systad

Whistler’s First ElectionWhistler’s First Election

September 16, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

On September 6, 1976, Whistler residents got to vote in their first municipal election and choose their first council representatives. The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) Act, which created Whistler as a resort municipality, was passed by the provincial government in June 1975 and a cabinet order in July set September 6 as the day that the Act came into effect. However, some sections of the Act, specifically those that allowed for the preparation for an election, came into effect earlier.

Campaigning began in August with posters, buttons, and campaign platforms published in the Squamish Times. Four people offered their name for the position of mayor: Paul Burrows, Roy Calder, Pat Carleton, and Roger Lampitt. Though each of the four had their own views on the challenges and unknowns facing the new municipality, all promised that they would dedicate themselves and work hard if chosen. In his campaign, Carleton told voters, “I cannot promise miracles, I can only promise to do the best job possible.”

Whistler’s first council, 1975 – 1976. Watson Collection.

The three positions on council (at the time called aldermen) had seven prospects: Bob Bishop, Jack Bright, Frans Carpay, Julianna Heine, John Hetherington, Jan Systad, and Garry Watson. Whistler residents had three chances to cast their votes with two days of advanced polling leading up to the election. It was reported that around 80% of eligible voters took part in the election and a total of 347 votes were cast. All voting took place at the Highland Lodge and the results were quickly reported in order to be ready for the swearing in of council the following day. In what became a very close race for council seats, Pat Carleton, Bob Bishop, John Hetherington, and Garry Watson were voted into office.

Whistler’s first council was officially sworn in on Sunday, September 7 by Judge Walker of the Squamish Provincial Court. Along with those who were elected, Jim Lorimer, the Minister of Municipal Affairs, announced Al Raine as the provincial appointee to council, bringing the total number of council members to five. During the ceremony, Carleton was presented with a gavel from the Squamish Lillooet Regional District (the area had previously been under the jurisdiction of the SLRD) along with a set of Lismore crystal glasses and an inscribed silver tray from Minister Lorimer.

Minister Jim Lorimer speaks at the swearing in ceremony of Whistler’s first council on September 7, 1975. Love Morrison Collection

Unfortunately for Paul and Jane Burrows, they missed the entire ceremony. The original plan was for the ceremony to take place in the Roundhouse at the top of Whistler Mountain and the lift company was going to provide free rides for attendees on the gondola and and Red Chair. The location was switched on short notice to the base of Whistler Mountain (today’s Creekside area), after the Burrows had already started hiking up the mountain with their dog. They only learned of the change when they reached the top and, as their dog was not allowed to tide the chairlift, were unable to make it back down before the ceremony concluded.

Whistler’s second council, 1976 – 1978. Watson Collection

The first council had a lot to get started on, including hiring their first staff members, developing an official community plan, beginning work on a municipal sewer system and treatment centre, drafting bylaws and having them approved by the province, finding more sustainable long-term waste solutions, and much more. They also had only fourteen months before the next municipal election. While most municipal office terms at the time were two years, the Minister of Municipal Affairs dictated the length of Whistler’s first municipal council. Another election took place on November 20, 1976, though the second council looked very similar to the first. All of the incumbents who chose to run again were re-elected and only one new face, that of Frans Carpay, joined Whistler’s council.

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Building a Fortress: Part IIBuilding a Fortress: Part II

July 22, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 0 Comments

When Lynn and Dave Mathews and Hugh Smythe arrived at Snowridge in September 1974, the Albertan ski area was not in the best shape (find out more about how they ended up there here). The lifts had stopped operating following the 1970/71 ski season and the lodge building was described as “just a total disaster.” The three were there to reopen the ski area and make it saleable, which meant that they had until the beginning of the ski season in December to turn it into a going concern.

There was a lot to get done in a short amount of time and in an oral history interview Hugh looked back at this time as “drinking from a fire hose, to say the least.” The trio were taking on all of the operations of the ski area, including the lifts, ski school, retail, hotel, restaurant, and more. According to Hugh, this experience was where he got his “MBA in ski management by trial by fire.”

The 7th Heaven T-bar installed on Blackcomb Mountain in 1985 was originally a lift from Fortress Mountain. Greg Griffith Collection.

The cable of the chairlift at Snowridge had been blown off the tower and chairs were lying on the ground. Doppelmayr took on the refurbishment of the lift and Snowridge’s two T-bars (they were, after all, Doppelmayr lifts), marking the beginning of a long relationship between Doppelmayr and Hugh.

Birds had been searching for larva in the wooden siding of the lodge and other animals had been making themselves at home inside. Designed by Calgary architect Joseph K. English, guest services, retail and rental space, hotel accommodations, and food services were all included in one unique building. According to Lynn, it featured a “big copper fireplace going up three floors” and had a confusing layout. She recalled at one point seeing Hugh on the second floor and asking, “How did you get there?” His reply was, “I don’t know.” Though Dave referred to the building as a “Monument to Insanity,” they soon learned their way around.

In 2023, someone filmed their walk-through of the abandoned lodge and included some historical images of it in its heyday. The lodge is no longer accessible and is reportedly slated for demolition.

In order to open a ski area in three months, Lynn, Dave and Hugh did not come along and some familiar faces from Whistler Mountain came to work with them at Snowridge. Little Mary, who had been known for her cinnamon buns at Whistler, joined them in the cafeteria. Roger and Jan Systad, who had both worked at the Cheakamus Inn, came as well, Roger as the restaurant’s chef and Jan to run some of the hotel operations. Rich Miller was their electrician and John Garrity was in charge of maintenance. Munro Pickering, who had been a lift operator for the Green Chair, was in charge of the lift crew. Though not from the Whistler area, Hugh’s high school friend Garry Davies was also hired to create the new trail signs.

Like many of those who went to Fortress, Rich Miller returned to Whistler in the 1970s. (L-R) Drew Meredith, Jack Greenwood and Rich Miller pose in the midst of official Chamber of Commerce business. Whistler Question Collection

With a lot of work and long days, the ski area was ready to open by December 1974. They renamed the operation Fortress Mountain and branded themselves as “Alberta’s Friendly Mountain.” To that end, they hired high school kids to work on the weekends who they bused in and would have stay at Fortress Friday and Saturday nights. Fortress also employed over 40 full-time staff who lived at the ski area. As the managers, one of Dave, Lynn or Hugh was always on duty. Looking back, Lynn recalled going to bed at 4 am and then getting back up to work at 11am, remembering “I have never worked so hard in my life.”

Fortress had turned around by the spring of 1975 and was operating successfully. All that was left for HUMAT Management and Consultants Ltd. was to sell the ski resort for the Federal Business Development Bank.

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The Inn CrowdThe Inn Crowd

April 29, 2025 Whistler MuseumWhistler Museum 2 Comments

It’s not uncommon when looking through newspapers to find letters responding to stories and events in previous issues. It is less common, however, for letters to be given a whole page, be accompanied by multiple photographs, and to be addressed to a building. In the April 16, 1981 edition of the Whistler Question, Jan Systad wrote a letter to the Cheakamus Inn after learning from the April 9 issue that the lodge she had worked at was going to be torn down.

The Cheakamus Inn, rebranded as the Whistler Vale after a change in ownership, though the restaurant retained the Cheakamus name. Whistler Resort Association Collection

The Cheakamus Inn was built for $300,000 in 1965 by Eric Beardmore, one of the founding directors of Garibaldi Lifts Ltd., and his business partner Frank Menendez. It had two dormitories (one for men, one for women) and 22 private rooms and could reportedly sleep up to fifty guests. The Cheakamus also had a dining room and bar. According to Ian Beardmore, the Cheakamus was modelled after the lodges at Alta, Utah, where his parents would often go for a week or two each ski season with the Wilhelmsens and the Woodwards (fellow directors of the Garibaldi Olympic Development Association and Garibaldi Lifts); Frank Menendez even worked at the Rustler Lodge in Alta for over a decade before coming up to Alta Lake.

Through the 1960s and into the 1970s, the Cheakamus served as a gathering place for guests and others around the ski hill. In 1967, Tony and Irene Lyttle held their wedding reception there following a ceremony at the Whistler Skiers’ Chapel and on Sundays the Cheakamus hosted General Information Night, where skiers at Whistler for the week could come see a slide show and ask questions of mountain representatives. Some winters also saw film nights at the lodge courtesy of Pacific Ski Air and the Cheakamus was known for events such as their annual New Year’s Eve masquerade party, which in 1970/71 was given a Disneyland theme.

Ted Pryce-Jones presents opening gifts to John (J.R.) Reynolds and Roland Kentel of Tapley’s Pub. Before opening Tapley’s, John Reynolds came to Whistler to run the bar at the Cheakamus Inn. Whistler Question Collection, 1981

The Cheakamus was also the site of some more unexpected events. In August 1970, according to Garibaldi’s Whistler News, the Cheakamus was the host of the Simon Fraser Solid State Physics School, a two week summer school that gathered scientists from around the world. The lodge was also the site of one of Dag Aabby’s more memorable stunts at Whistler when he jumped off the rood on his skis and landed in the parking lot below.

When looking back at the Cheakamus before its demolition, what Jan Systad remembered most were the people she had met and the friends she had made there, a sentiment reflected in most stories about the Cheakamus Inn. Providing room, board and a ski pass, the Cheakamus employed many long-time Whistler residents during their early years in the valley, including Colin Pitt-Taylor, Roger McCarthy, Bob Daniels, Connie Cathers, Charlie Davies, Roger Systad and more.

In 1965, John Reynolds, also known as J.R., came to the Cheakamus to work as a bartender and assistant manager under Frank Menendez, who filled both the chef and manager roles. According to Jan, under John the bar was “respected and cherished” and “your drink was poured as you came through the door and by the time you reached the bar it was waiting for you.” After leaving the Cheakamus and the Whistler area for a time, John returned to Whistler in the 1976/77 season to run the bar at JB’s and opened Tapley’s Pub in 1981.

The original Cheakamus Inn building was demolished in the summer of 1981 to make way for a larger building. Whistler Question Collection, 1981

The Cheakamus Inn changed hands in 1975 and by 1981 was operating under the name Whistler Vale. It was announced in April 1981 that the Whistler Vale would be torn down and a new, larger hotel would be built on the site, incorporating salvaged lumber and reusing part of the foundation. It was expected that the new hotel would be ready to open by December 1981. Although the building was demolished in June, construction did not got as planned and no hotel had arisen by the end of the year. For those who knew the Cheakamus Inn, however, Jan concluded that “the memories and friendships will never go.”

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