Ski lodge renovation gets $20,000 grant

SISTERS (AP) - A couple hoping to restore a dilapidated ski lodge west of Sisters in Central Oregon has received a $20,000 state grant to launch the effort.

The Bulletin reports in a story on Friday that Friends of Santiam Pass Ski Lodge received the grant from the State Historic Preservation Office.

Salem couple Dwight and Susan Sheets founded Friends of Santiam Pass Ski Lodge.

They're relying on grants and private donations to raise the $2 to $3 million to renovate the historic lodge.

They signed a five-year permit from the U.S. Forest Service in May to begin work on the lodge that's on Forest Service land. The lodge first opened in 1940.

The Sheets hope to have the lodge available for daytime visits within five years.