More than 30 officials showed up last night for a closed-door summit to help map the future of Whitehorse's struggling Mount Sima.

Dubbed the Sima Summit, the meeting included both territorial government and municipal city councillors, as well as the ski hill's volunteer board. It is the first of two meetings scheduled for this month.

Last night's gathering was billed as an information session for stakeholders. A second meeting next week is planned to come up with solutions.

News of the multimillion-dollar ski hill's financial foes first garnered major public attention in March. That's when the Great Northern Ski Society appeared before city council and asked for $400,000 in immediate funding to keep its doors open.

This is in addition to core funding that was estimated at the time to be another $400,000 a year.

Society director Patti Balsillie said today there are a number of misconceptions the board has been fighting against ever since.

"There's a funny path that people think we're on, that it's ‘just put more money into the existing model and just keep going with our eyes closed and just keep funding that,'” she said.

"That's not at all where anybody wants to be, we need to find out what the new path looks like and how to figure out the expense side, new partnership models, new ways to build new fans...”

Balsillie called next Thursday's second meeting "a whiteboard moment” to brainstorm all sorts of idea.

The public is also mistaken to think "That we are still waiting for the city of Whitehorse to write us a cheque for $400,000 and that we advocate for taxes to go up to help pay our accounts payable. That is so wrong,” she said.

Balsillie said that once the group's "drop dead Charlie date” for the initial $400,000 came and went on March 31, they worked to find other solutions.

"We're past that, it didn't come, we've let go of all of our staff. If there isn't a community driven approach, there will be no GNSS and the assets will be broken down and sold or whatever they decide to do with the assets, they belong to the city.”

Five employees were let go. Now the facility is left with only three people, two to maintain the equipment and one to handle day-to-day activities like lodge bookings.

"I'm not sure the ask today is more public funding,” Balsillie said.

"I think the ask today is that everyone has to have a shared role in whatever the solution is. In a perfect world, in three to five years we are independent and self sustaining because we've figured out new operational models.”

As for what that model could look like, that will be the focus of next weeks meeting.

Territorial cabinet spokesperson Matthew Grant said today the government is interested in taking part in conversations surrounding Sima. However, it will not be providing any "ongoing operation funding for a municipal project.”

Grant said the government has provided money to the ski hill over the years through multiple programs that are accessible to all similar groups in the territory.

Meanwhile, Mayor Dan Curtis, who attended the meeting, did not provide any details about what he thinks the solution would be.

Today, Curtis reiterated that whatever the answer is, it needs to be a "community solution.

"Community is not the City of Whitehorse...it has to be all the stakeholders coming up with a well-rounded solution,” he told the Star.

Curtis said he is looking forward to next week's meeting to hear "everyone's suggestions.”

Balsillie said she stands by the decision to hold the meetings in private.

"If we had 90 people in the room last night, and media people wanting to ask questions, that would take us down and be negative; it would have been very, very unconstructive.

"We would have left yesterday in the same place we were three months ago.”

At the meeting, the group heard from Kevin Grogan, general manager of Vista Ridge ski hill in Fort McMurray, Alta., a park that itself once struggled financially.

"I don't envy anyone's task,” he said today. "I don't envy the councillors' task; they're the ones that are there front and centre, and I don't envy the board's tasks either because it's going to be hard work.

"But I think it's an important facility for the community.”

Grogan said he believes some sort of funding help will be needed.

"I don't think any small community area in the country makes money. But, with a small subsidy, it would make it a relevant and important part of recreation,” he said.

"Forty-two per cent of ski hills are not self-sustaining and have some degree of municipal or government support, be it subsidy or creative partnerships,” Balsillie said.

"That's what we need.”

Meanwhile, summer activities will include Wildplay's Monkido Aerial Adventure and high-speed ZOOM zip lines.

Wildplay's Chief Experience Officer Tom Benson says his company will be taking a more hands-on approach to the park this year, bringing in trainers from Victoria to teach local staff.

Benson said the six-week season last year was not enough to gain any real momentum or judge the project's success.

Balsillie said Holland America has expressed an interest in the park's summer activities.

"They want to come up and see, for their leisure groups and tour itineraries, if the experiences of Zoom and Monkido meet with that audience. If we can do that kind of business well, this is a whole new segment.”