<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN"> <HTML> <HEAD> <META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=us-ascii"> <META NAME="Generator" CONTENT="MS Exchange Server version 6.0.6603.0"> <TITLE>Xanterra wins YNP contract</TITLE> </HEAD> <BODY>  Okay, you can all breath a sigh of relief that Delaware North didn't win.  However, I doubt lodging and food prices will become less costly any time soon.  From today's Billings Gazette: Xanterra awarded park concessions deal By MIKE STARK Of The Gazette Staff Xanterra Parks and Resorts has been awarded the largest concessions contract in Yellowstone National Park. The five-year contract, which begins Nov. 1, includes lodging, restaurants, transportation, marina services and several other duties. Xanterra, based in Greenwood Village, Colo., has operated in Yellowstone since 1995, when it purchased TW Recreational Services. The contract is worth an estimated $50 million a year. Because of the size and the complexity of the contract, only two companies applied: Xanterra and Delaware North Parks Services of Buffalo, N.Y., which operates stores and other facilities in Yellowstone and at other national parks. This was the first time that the Yellowstone lodging and restaurant contract has been considered under laws passed in 1998 intended to make the process more competitive. An old rule allowed the existing contract holder to match the highest bidder. The proposals this year were scored on factors that included experience, financial capabilities and percentage of gross receipts that the company would give to the National Park Service. Judy Jennings, head of concessions at Yellowstone, wouldn't specify why Xanterra was chosen except to say that "they responded to the five principal factors better." Jennings said the prospectus required the company to set aside at least 2 percent as a franchise fee to the Park Service, 11.5 percent for maintenance and, over five years, $4.9 million to renovate 80 cabins at Canyon. In the past, Xanterra has put about 20 percent of its receipts into capital improvement accounts for maintenance and improvement projects in Yellowstone, Jennings said. The company's latest proposal focused on guest and interpretive services, environmental programs and overseeing the maintenance and preservation of more than 800 buildings in Yellowstone, according to park officials. "We are gratified the National Park Service has selected us to continue to offer services to the people who come from all over the world to visit one of the most fascinating and beautiful places on Earth," Andrew Todd, president of Xanterra, said in a statement. One change will be the addition of eight touring buses that were used to transport visitors in Yellowstone for about 20 years, starting in 1936. The 14-passenger buses were sold and dispersed around the country before the Skagway Streetcar Co. bought them for its own fleet, according to company officials. The vehicles were returned to Yellowstone in 2001 and are being restored. Xanterra also operates in Bryce Canyon, Crater Lake, Death Valley, Everglades and Grand Canyon national parks. 45 more days and counting … Udo Freund </BODY> </HTML>