Lookout Pass Ski Area is asking the U.S. Forest Service permission to build a half-pipe feature for snowboarding on the south side of Runt Mountain.

The location is inside the ski area. Snowboarders already use an old mining exploration ditch there as a slalom half-pipe.

Lookout wants to reconstruct 1,100 feet of the ditch and make it wider for snowboarding. The ski area also plans to construct a “ski-way,” to allow snowboarders to return to the base area.

For safety reasons, the plans call for trees to be cleared 20 feet on either side of the half-pipe. Less than five acres of trees would be removed to make room for both the half-pipe and the ski-way.

The public has until April 28 to comment on the proposal. For more information, contact Mike Leverick at the Wallace Ranger District, (208) 752-1221. , DataTimes