LOGAN — The owners of Powder Mountain ski area are calling off their lawyers — for now.

At a Cache County Council meeting Tuesday night, County Attorney George Daines circulated a memorandum that said Powder Mountain officials have asked their attorneys not to pursue a lawsuit against the county.

Daines' memo said Powder Mountain representatives responded at a meeting with county officials last week to many of the county's concerns about plans to expand the resort.

As a result of the meeting, Powder Mountain representative Paul Morris sent a memo to the county.

"After our meeting and, as we discussed, I have communicated with the litigation counsel and asked them to step down," Morris' memo said.

County officials are worried about whether the owner of resort, Great American Holdings, has enough money to follow through with the expansion and whether the property to be developed is encumbered by liens. They are also concerned about whether Powder Mountain has arranged for water, sewer, fire, police and other services, most of which will be provided by Weber County agencies.

Powder Mountain, about 20 miles northeast of Ogden, straddles the Cache-Weber county line. The resort's owners are also seeking to rezone 4,400 acres in Weber County.

Powder Mountain's owners want to turn the 5,500-acre ski area into an 8,000-acre resort with two golf courses, houses, condominiums, shops, hotels, restaurants and hiking, biking and horse trails. After submitting a proposed development agreement last year, Powder Mountain received a six-month extension in April.

The County Council said it would not grant further extensions, but the council gave Powder Mountain another six-month extension in October, against Daines' advice.

After county officials said they had not received adequate responses to their concerns, a Salt Lake City law firm sent a letter to Cache County in October saying Powder Mountain's owners planned to sue in federal and state courts. But Lyle Hillyard, a lawyer representing Powder Mountain, said any legal action is on hold.

"I think they met and cleared the air," said Hillyard, who is also a state senator. "It was just a matter of miscommunication."

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E-mail: mikewennergren@yahoo.com