The Anti-Resort Group (Hurrah~!~?)

The battle lines are forming...

Reports the Daily Freeman:

The group calls itself the Highmount Preservation Association and says it has 56 member households, many of which appear to be near the building site....

"The development would create the largest population center between Woodstock and Delhi.... Those towns grew organically in suitable locations with adequate resources; this resort 'city' ... would be artificially forced upon an unsuitable site and an unwilling community."

At least We Got Some VALUE!

Just got the November issue of Ski. It is the annual reader resort survey issue. Belleayre shows up in one list, on page 14E (that is the eastern edition of the mag). It is ranked #4 in the list "Value". The issue has a big story about NY state owned ski areas, but focuses on the Adirondacks and never mentions Belleayre.

Some Clues on the Resort Development Process

I am not a person who has a lot of knowledge about the construction of buildings, houses, real estate, zoning. There is an article today that sheds some light on the process that will be taking place as the Belleayre Resort construction plays out. The LA Group of Saratoga, NY will be the designer of the resort. Their web site seems to be down, but according to the article, and by the looks of the extent of their web site in a Google search (you might be able view cached versions of their pages here), they have a lot of experience developing projects in New York state.

According to Kevin Goodwin of The Saratogian:

Next is getting local permits, filling out state, federal and New York City applications. Not to mention, the resort is being built on a mountain, not flat land, which poses its own variety of challenges.

This is one of the larger projects the LA group has been involved in, though the firm has contributed to the Gore Mountain Ski Resort, the Adirondack Club and Resort at Big Tupper Ski Area and Whiteface Mountain Ski Area. Anthony said they've been working with Gore Mountain since 1984.

I am glad this will take a while. My family and I - and probably most of the people I ski with at Belleayre - are not ready for big changes because we like it as it is. We like the lack of development and lack of crowds. We don't need great expensive restaurants and lodging, because we have houses (mostly rented, but some friends own) and home cooking. It is great that most of the skers at Belleayre are not the 4-ski-days/year types. Those things will change in the coming years.

Vail in December

Like last year, I am going to Vail the first week of December with the Gentlemen's Ski Club. And today's Vail Gallery is showing the first snow this season at Vail!

Balanced Review by Freeman

The Daily Freeman's Editorial about the Resort Deal is sounding very balanced and reasonable. Here is a snip:

...What the governor appears to have delivered is a mix of classic political compromise of contesting values along with the sensible and creative mobilization of government resources in a partnership of public, private and not-for-profit interests.

Greasing the way in this deal will be the $14 million purchase of land for which developers paid $6 million.

Under the plan, the Trust for Public Land will purchase 1,216 acres of Crossroads Ventures' holdings on the eastern side of the Belleayre Mountain Ski Center and 78 acres on the western side - the majority of the former Highmount Ski Center - for $14 million. Most of that land then will be transferred to the state and added to the surrounding Catskill Forest Preserve as "forever wild." The 78 acres on the western side will be added to the state-owned Belleayre Mountain Ski Center, which will be upgraded....

Here is one perspective on the Resort Deal

Dave Channon posted on Congressmen Hinchey's Website:

This agreement is full of loopholes. The "organic" golf course will be allowed to use pesticides if necessary. Casinos WILL be allowed. The large hotel will be on a 35% slope, not adhering to the 15% or under guidelines now in place, and very few portions of the plan will be held to under 20%. The build-out is 85% the size of the original proposal, just crammed into a smaller footprint. The west side is actually 40% larger than the original plan called for. The jobs start at $9.50 per hour and about 400 of them go no higher than $12-$15 per hour. This is poverty wage, about 400 employees would immediately be eligible for social services... in a town of about 3500 that has only a dozen on social services now, a huge taxpayer rip-off.....

There is more here.

The Resort is a GO

Reports yesterday and today say the Belleayre Resort is approved for construction, and will take 8 years to complete. All the reports emphasize that it is "scaled back" from its original proposal. Some of the reports cover the opposition to the resort. The reports say that the state will acquire the closed Highmount ski area, and reopen it to connect Belleayre to the new resort. Spitzer and other supporters, say the resort will bring jobs, economic development and revitalization to the region. Opponents say the resort has major environmental and aesthetic drawbacks. Local competitors Hunter, Wyndam and Plattekill have a problem with what they believe is an unfair fiscal advantage enjoyed by Belleayre. Bellayre does not pay taxes, and now they will acquire more runs "free" with a connection to Highmount, even though it connects to a private venture.

News Reports

State and Developer Finish Deal for Resort in Catskills
New York Times

...“In a perfect world, we wouldn’t have any construction on forested lands that drain into the nation’s largest unfiltered water supply,” he added. “This is not a perfect solution, but it’s a shot of adrenaline for watershed protection and smart growth.”

The project, called the Belleayre Resorts at Catskill Park, would be on the western edge of the state-run Belleayre Mountain Ski Center. The state has said it will expand and modernize the center, including restoring the adjacent Highmount ski area, which will be bought from Mr. Gitter.

Many local residents have opposed the huge project, fearing it would overwhelm the rural character of the region and its quiet hamlets. But many officials, like Robert G. Cross Jr., supervisor of Shandaken Town, where part of Belleayre would be built, have been vigorous supporters....

Environmentalists split over proposed $400M Belleayre Mountain ski resort
The Business Review - Albany, NY

...As part of the deal, the state will pay $6.5 million to buy the former Highmount Ski Center, which has been closed for about a decade. The space will be used to expand Belleayre Mountain Ski Center, which the state currently owns and operates.

That decision has further irritated private owners of area ski resorts, who have increasingly voiced complaints about the state's unfair advantages in the skiing business. Those issues include state-run facilities being exempt from paying taxes....

Despite agreement, opposition to resort still exists
Kingston Daily Freeman - Kingston,NY,USA

...Representatives of many groups that originally opposed developer Dean Gitter's plan stood shoulder to shoulder with Gitter and Gov. Eliot Spitzer on Wednesday at the Kingston Holiday Inn as the revised plan for the resort was unveiled.

But others - notably the Catskill Heritage Alliance, Friends of Catskill Park, the Pine Hill Water District Coalition and the Sierra Club - are standing firm in their opposition.....

Governor announces agreement on Belleayre Resort project
Capital News 9 - Albany, NY (with video)

...Along with 450 full-time jobs, it will open up another 1,800 construction jobs. Kingston Mayor James Sottile said, "It means a rebirth to add to the revitalization of Ulster County. It's going to mean jobs. It's going to mean economic development, it's going to mean sales tax. Really what it is, it's going to be a hub where people come to Ulster County and New York State to enjoy the beautiful scenery." More than 1,400 acres of land will be preserved under the agreement. The resort includes two hotels, some 250 lodging units and an organic golf course. The entire project is scheduled to take about eight years.

Revised Belleayre Resort Still Wrong for Catskill Park, Local Communities
New York Real Estate via PRNewswire

...“Scale remains the stumbling-block,” said Judith Wyman, Friends of Catskill Park Chair and one of CPC’s official negotiators. “This proposal is for a resort only slightly smaller than the outsized original. That’s not an acceptable compromise.”

“We local residents would still shoulder the adverse impacts of this unacceptable development: traffic, noise, disastrous flooding, the undermining of our way of life and our economy,” said Richard Schaedle, Chairman of Catskill Heritage Alliance, also one of CPC’s official negotiators. “This Agreement sets a terrible precedent for future growth in the Catskills.”

The negotiations did result in no build on the sensitive Big Indian plateau, improvements in monitoring, one 18-hole golf course instead of two with organic management, and some green building improvements — all with conditions.

But the revised plan merely places most of what was originally planned for both sides of the proposed Resort all onto the west, straddling Rt. 49A, a winding, mountain road. The massive scale of the project would dwarf the area villages causing severe socioeconomic displacement, in addition to environmental concerns due to the location.

It would include a completely new Highmount development with east and west lodges, a 120-room hotel, a spa, conference center and other amenities, and 120 detached housing units on steep mountain slopes, as high as 3000 feet and highly visible, even from Forest Preserve hiking trails.

“The stormwater protocol for Highmount is only conceptual,” said Michelle Wooten, President of the Pine Hill Water District Coalition. “And we’re still concerned about where they will get enough water for this project, since the well testing is incomplete. We’re asked to approve this MOA right now, with major issues unresolved."...

New $400M Resort Approved at Belleayre Mountain Ski Area
First Tracks Online Ski Magazine

...Half a million dollars in state funds will be allocated for local smart growth projects through a new Central Catskills Smart Growth Initiative. Funding is from the State's Environmental Protection Fund and will be administered by the Department of Environmental Conservation. Separate from this agreement, the state will begin a public collaborative process to explore scenic by-way designation for the Route 28 corridor...

...Annual property tax revenue of over $2 million is expected to be paid to the Town of Shandaken and Town of Middletown, local school districts and Ulster and Delaware counties. Annual sales tax revenue to the state and Ulster and Delaware counties generated by the resort is expected to be over $2 million...

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