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brad
Admin Staff
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 1843
Location: Denver, CO
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 Posted: Wed Jan 31, 2007 10:21 am Post subject: ECLIPSE DECISION 1/31/07 |
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from 9news.com
| Quote: | GEORGETOWN – The push to bring a new ski park back to a small mountain community succeeded Wednesday, despite the opposition.
Clear Creek County made the final decision on whether to approve zoning the property near St. Mary’s Glacier, approving the plan by a two-to-one vote.
The county changed the zoning from mining and residential to commercial and recreational.
Supporters of the plan say it is the biggest and closest terrain to Denver.
“We really would enjoy it. I think most of the people up here would,” said Phillip Frazier, a St. Mary’s resident.
Others say they fear what the new development will mean for their quiet town.
“The change that will occur probably when this is developed is water quality, air quality, noise and traffic, and safety,” said Clyde Andreson, an Idaho Springs resident.
Pete Coors’ nephew, Michael, bought the property last summer with plans to turn it into a ski and snowboard area. The Coors name has some people in the area feeling uneasy.
“It’s going to be an economic benefit perhaps to Mr. Coors and his associates but it will not be necessarily to our county, at least until several years and then it’s very questionable if it will even make it,” said Marion Anderson, another Idaho Springs resident.
The county says it’s a good opportunity to attract tourism to a ski area that will be less than an hour from Denver.
“I think it’s really important for our community to keep the dollars here, instead of going through the Tunnel or over Berthoud Pass,” said Sally Kennerson with Clear Creek County Chamber and Tourism.
The new park will be about the size of Arapahoe Basin and backers hope to have it open for next ski season. However, the environmental concerns will still be a part of the debate in the developmental process. |
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Lost Resorts Ranger
LR Poster Author
Joined: 12 Jul 2006
Posts: 33
Location: Wheat Ridge, Colorado
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 10:29 am Post subject: |
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Good for them! This should be up and running for my daughter's free-ski year in the Fifth-Grade Passport program. Did you go to the meeting, Brad?
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brad
Admin Staff
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 1843
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 10:36 am Post subject: |
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no, just heard it through the grape vine! I'm excited to see their construction plans.
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ColoradoSkiHistory.com |
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trooper1556
Ski Patroller
Joined: 20 Sep 2005
Posts: 447
Location: Steamboat Springs, CO
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 10:44 am Post subject: |
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Schweet! i'll be curious to see how much terrain they will open with - i'm wondering if they will put the main lift in as high as they have it pictured below. Coors plan for the area is much larger than the old st. mary's ski area - it's run cuts are visable below the midway unload on the main lift
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trooper1556
Ski Patroller
Joined: 20 Sep 2005
Posts: 447
Location: Steamboat Springs, CO
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 10:55 am Post subject: |
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another article:
| Quote: | Proposed ski area step closer to carving its own terrain
February 1, 2007
Echo Mountain Park is the new kid on the block in the state's expanding ski industry. That could change if a plan to build another winter playground nearby keeps gaining momentum.
Clear Creek County commissioners voted 2-1 Wednesday night to grant a Coors Brewing Co. heir's request to rezone land for a ski area near St. Mary's Glacier.
The Eclipse Snow Park needs to clear more county planning hurdles and approvals before Michael Coors, 25, can move forward with construction of a ski area northwest of Idaho Springs.
On the other side of Interstate 70, Echo Mountain Park officials fret about whether there's enough room in the vicinity for two upstart ski areas.
"We have nothing against them," said Echo General Manager Doug Donovan. "But if you add another competitor, it's just going to make it more difficult for us. I wish we had a few years under our belt."
The proposed Eclipse sees little overlap between the two areas.
"It's a totally different business model," said Coors' attorney, Hogan & Hartson partner Andy Spielman. "We wish them luck, but we're doing something else."
Spielman said Eclipse has modeled itself more after nearby Loveland Ski Area, one of the state's oldest venues. The new area is backed by the great-great-grandson of brewing magnate Adolph Coors and two other investors, including Michael Coors' father, John K. Coors.
The plan is to offer ski runs and terrain park features on 300 acres the Coors' group bought for about $1.65 million.
Area residents have a mixed reaction. Some hope the park will help the economy, but others fear it will spoil their peace and quiet.
At the county commissioners meeting, officials voiced lingering concerns about whether the narrow road to St. Mary's can handle the amount of traffic a ski area could produce. But the issue will have to wait until what's known as the development review process.
After the hearing, Echo Mountain Park's Donovan said he was encouraged by suggestions that road issues remain a potential obstacle to the rival ski area plan.
Echo burst onto the scene last spring as the state's only snowsports venue devoted to terrain park fanatics, who have energized the ski industry in recent years.
The fledgling park sits in Clear Creek County along a winding highway that leads from Evergreen to Echo Lake and the junction of the road to Mount Evans.
Echo aims to attract 12-to- 29-year-olds. So far, it's met its mark, for those who have discovered it.
"They're very happy with what we have done because they really feel like it's for them," Donovan says of Echo's fans.
But getting enough people to visit has been a challenge, even though the park is located just 35 miles from downtown Denver.
The area attracts about 250 to 300 people on a busy day, from across the Front Range.
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looks like coors has his work cut out for him if he wants to open for next season... i'll bet he's got a lot of lawyer buddies that'll help him out though!  |
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boardski
Expert
Joined: 22 Sep 2005
Posts: 158
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 12:30 pm Post subject: |
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| Any ideas on what type of lifts they are considering for the area? I thought maybe the current Exhibition FGT at A- Basin might go there when it is replaced but I think A Basin is building the new lift on the backside first. Maybe they'll surprise everyone with brand-new lifts. It will be interesting. They should get one of Beaver Creek's Dopps if they remove one. |
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trooper1556
Ski Patroller
Joined: 20 Sep 2005
Posts: 447
Location: Steamboat Springs, CO
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 12:51 pm Post subject: |
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| boardski wrote: | | Any ideas on what type of lifts they are considering for the area? I thought maybe the current Exhibition FGT at A- Basin might go there when it is replaced but I think A Basin is building the new lift on the backside first. Maybe they'll surprise everyone with brand-new lifts. It will be interesting. They should get one of Beaver Creek's Dopps if they remove one. |
All they have said is that they are planning one chairlift & one surface lift -(according to eclipse's website: http://www.eclipsesnow.com/mtn/mtn_info.htm)
i'll bet they could pick up a cheap used one of each - like echo did by buying Heavenly's old powderbowl tripple |
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brad
Admin Staff
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 1843
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2007 1:36 pm Post subject: |
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according to the last time I talked with coors, it will be a used one.
their lodge will also be one of those 'sprung' structures (see ad in SAM). those are temp lodges, like the one tamarak had its first year or the temp replacement when two elk burnt down
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trooper1556
Ski Patroller
Joined: 20 Sep 2005
Posts: 447
Location: Steamboat Springs, CO
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| Posted: Wed Feb 07, 2007 6:05 pm Post subject: |
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from today's (2/7/07) Denver post:
http://www.denverpost.com/skiing/ci_5171877
| Quote: | Entrepreneur looks to build Clear Creek snowpark
With his plan for Eclipse Snow Park in Clear Creek County, Michael Coors would tap a different Rockies than his beer kin
By Julie Dunn,
Denver Post Staff Writer
Article Launched: 02/07/2007 01:00:00 AM MST
At age 25, Coors is spearheading plans to develop a new ski area near St. Mary's Glacier. His father, John K. Coors, paid $1.65 million for the 284-acre Clear Creek County site in late 2005.
An avid skier and mountain climber, Coors - a direct descendent of Golden Brewery founder Adolph Coors - said he was never interested in entering the beer business.
He was actively looking for a new opportunity when he stumbled on the dormant ski area. He immediately brought the idea for Eclipse Snow Park to his father, chief executive of CoorsTek.
"He was a little critical until we looked at the economics," he said. "Then we both agreed that this one could really make some money."
John Coors declined to comment for this story.
"I have no idea how to run a ski area, but my dad has pretty good business experience," Coors said. "It has been great to bounce financial things off him."
Coors believes that the project has garnered extra attention - and some public opposition - because of his family name, which he calls "a blessing and a curse."
"People keeping bringing that up, saying, 'The only reason you can do this project is because you are who you are,"' he said. "But I've grown up with that, so I'm used to it."
A start in window-washing
The younger Coors stresses that while this is certainly his most ambitious business endeavor, it isn't his first.
To help cover part of his tuition at the Colorado School of Mines - he graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering in 2005 - Coors started a window-washing business. It eventually grew to include 50 residential clients and a 700-window office building.
He then moved on to real estate, getting his broker's license and going to work for Kitz & Pike Real Estate in Lakewood at age 22.
"He works hard for what he gets," broker/owner Greg Kitzmiller said. "His dad doesn't give him any freebies. He doesn't tap into the name to take him to a different level."
Coors said that real estate experience led him to the St. Mary's ski area, located just northwest of Idaho Springs off Fall River Road, which had been closed since 1984.
"Skiing is blowing up again in Colorado," he said. "Last year (the state) added 700,000 new skiers, and 80 percent of those were from the Front Range. We think we can find a little market niche in there."
His plans for Eclipse have angered some locals who have concerns about traffic and noise, along with water runoff and waste issues.
And nearby Echo Mountain Park, which opened last spring, has complained that there isn't enough demand for two small ski resorts in the area.
"There are lots of negatives," said Steve Schultz, a critic and a member of Clear Creek County's planning commission. "There is no direct evidence to show that county government will realize anywhere near the economic benefits in the form of taxes that will offset the increased cost of maintenance on that road."
Coors counters that he has agreed to pay a percentage of Eclipse's lift ticket sales toward county road and emergency services, saying "the county will draw revenue."
He overcame a major hurdle last week when he won rezoning approval from the county's board of commissioners.
Eclipse still needs design and development approval from the county; a final decision is expected this spring.
"Get our feet wet slowly"
Coors has skied the area more than 30 times and hopes to open Eclipse by next winter. He estimates it will take at least $1.9 million to get the ski area up and running.
"We're going to start small enough that it shouldn't be too crazy," said Coors. "We want to get our feet wet slowly."
The SE Group of Frisco is busy working on the design of the ski area.
"I think his age is one of his strengths," SE Group principal Kent Sharp said of Coors. "He's got good business acumen, and he understands the younger demographic. He's passionate about it."
Coors and his wife currently live in Arvada but plan to relocate to Clear Creek County.
"My wife is a nurse, and I'm not making any money right now working at Eclipse, so we need her income; that's why we live down here," said Coors. "But we love it up there."
Staff writer Julie Dunn can be reached at 303-954-1592 or jdunn@denverpost.com.
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Michael Coors file
What he's doing now: President, Eclipse Snow Park, planned northwest of Idaho Springs
Born: Nov. 20, 1981, Wheat Ridge
Education: D'Evelyn High School, Golden; Colorado School of Mines (B.S. in mechanical engineering, December 2005)
Hobby: Mountain climbing; has climbed 48 of Colorado's 54 fourteeners
Preferred ski brand: K2
Pets: Two golden retrievers
Favorite book: "A Brief History of Nearly Everything," by Bill Bryson |
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RokstarBoarder
Beginner
Joined: 30 Dec 2007
Posts: 12
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| Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2009 4:25 pm Post subject: |
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| Any new news on Eclipse?? After all the hype..it seems to have just died off. |
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brad
Admin Staff
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 1843
Location: Denver, CO
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| Posted: Sat Oct 17, 2009 5:24 pm Post subject: |
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they've been keeping things below the radar but the process continues. you can follow progress more closely here: www.timberlinetalk.com
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-Brad
ColoradoSkiHistory.com |
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