Editing Whistler Blackcomb (section)

===Whistler Village===
In 1974, the provincial [[New Democratic Party of British Columbia]] was interested in developing tourism and took a number of steps affecting Whistler. At the time, the Alta Lake area was overdeveloped, so the government instituted a development freeze while they studied the problem. The only solution was to continue development in another location. They quickly decided to focus on the table between Whistler and Blackcomb, about 4&nbsp;km to the north of the existing facilities on Alta Lake. At that time this was the site of the Alta Lake dump, and the remains of a [[Vw camper van|Volkswagen Van]] are still buried under the modern village.<ref name=walk/>

In 1975, the [[Resort Municipality of Whistler]] (RMOW) was formed, the first<!--only??--> Resort Municipality in Canada and also the first place in British Columbia since Canadian [[prohibition]] where bars were allowed to be open on Sunday. The act also created the Whistler Village Land Company who would oversee all development of the new Whistler Village.<!--and the Whistler Resort Association also, no?--> In 1977 the provincial government named [[Al Raine]] the Provincial Ski Area Co-ordinator, in charge of expanding BC's skiing capabilities. Raine was previously National Coach for the Canadian Women's Ski Team, and was married to famous Canadian skier [[Nancy Greene]]. Raine saw the potential in developing [[Blackcomb Mountain]], then part of the [[Garibaldi Provincial Park]], and joined the Whistler city council. The Blackcomb area was currently zoned for logging, but Raine and Greene successfully lobbied the government to remove the zoning and allow development as a ski area.<ref name=walk/>

In 1977, the Municipality hired Sutcliffe Griggs Moodie Development Consultants to design a layout for [[Whistler, British Columbia|Whistler Village's]] development. However, their design was considered too conventional and allowed too much car traffic. Raine recommended Eldon Beck, who had been the primary designer at [[Vail]], celebrated for its layout. Beck's designs included a pedestrian Main Street Village Stroll and an elevated covered walkway system, limiting all vehicles to the outside of the developed area. To this day the village retains this basic design in spite of dramatic expansions, and has won worldwide acclaim in architecture circles.<ref name=walk/>

In January 1978, {{convert|53|acre|m2}} of [[crown land]] were given to the Whistler municipality to develop the town centre. The first sod for the village was turned on August 18, 1978, by first Mayor Pat Carleton. By 1979, many amenities were in place, including Municipal Hall, Fire Hall, Health Care Centre, and Elementary School. Phase 1 expansion included 11 parcels in the modern Village Square area, including the Whistler Conference Centre, a variety of hotels, restaurants, grocery store, hardware store, etc. An enormous underground garage was built to support all of the buildings in the area, completed before any construction could start above it.<ref name=walk/> The first hotel, the Blackcomb Lodge, anchors the Village Square area to this day.