Big Burke announcement

[thetrailboss]

It sounds to me like there is no general manager.

I think it's likely they took the unorthodox move of firing someone without having a replacement at the ready, but with the ski season about to start they don't want to admit that that's the case.

Exactly. I'd say that q is the GM. He's gone through two since June.


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[VTKilarney]

I'd prefer we talk about the issues instead of the individuals heree

You have a very good point, and I will try to be much better about that. IMHO it's fair to call someone out for a bad leadership decision, but I definitely have not limited my criticisms to that. I've removed the memes that crossed that line.

 

[VTKilarney]

Hotel is still on schedule to open December 2015.

Care to make a friendly bet on the accuracy of your statement?

 

[thetrailboss]

Perhaps AZ should ask Burke to take our AlpineZone Challenge and to directly speak with folks here since we have some feedback.


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[Masskier]

Hire a GM from another resort?

Sorry, it's just the most bizarre thing to hire a Fastenal guy, fire him, say you have a new GM, but you won't announce who it is for a few months.

Is he/she going to go around and greet guests with a bag over their head to conceal their identity?

LOL, No, the newspaper article wasn't clear. Yes, a new GM has been hired. However he isn't schedule to start for several weeks. At that time I'm sure his name will be announced.

 

[Masskier]

Care to make a friendly bet on the accuracy of your statement?

You and I went through this back in May. When you swore up and down that you had a reliable source, and you had connected all the dots, and there was no money to start the new hotel. You took victory laps multiple times, patting yourself on the back on how smart your were and even questioned my integrity and motivation. You agreed to make a statement on June 22nd as to who had correct information and more reliable sources. And you never did. Well the site work for the hotel started in mid May, They are now ahead of schedule and have already spent millions of dollars.
As I told you back then I don't gamble, But if I did why would I bet with you?

 

[VTKilarney]

As I told you back then I don't gamble, But if I did why would I bet with you?

Because at this point the worst you could do is break even had you had any strength in your beliefs.

LOL, No, the newspaper article wasn't clear. Yes, a new GM has been hired. However he isn't schedule to start for several weeks. At that time I'm sure his name will be announced.

Translation: It will take a few weeks to find a new General Manager.

If, Masker, what you said is true, I am even more concerned than I was previously. Why? a) Why would Ary accept a new manager who could not start until well into the ski season? b) Why is Ary so inarticulate when talking to the media? (e.g., saying a "few months" rather than "a few weeks") The article was clear. They quoted Ary directly. It was Ary who was not clear, apparently. This is extremely troubling.

It is reasonable to conclude that he lied to the media when he said that the resort was fully staffed. This is based on the fact that his own website tells a very different story. The natural and probable consequence of these shenanigans is that people will not trust or believe you. Have you spoken to Ary about the need to learn how to handle public relations better?

You also keep dodging my third question: Have any subcontractors on the hotel project failed to be paid in a timely manner?

 

[VTKilarney]

It's nice to see that Ary said that there is "plenty" of money to finish the hotel construction. There has been a lot of concern over ongoing EB-5 projects, and I trust that Ary would not be so bold as to deceive the community about this important matter. (A simple "The project continues to proceed as planned and we have every intention of seeing it through" would have been the responsible answer if there were problems envisioned down the road.) It would be unconscionably insulting and dishonorable if his statement was untrue, and for as much as I have been critical of him I cannot imagine that he would ever stoop so low - not so long as he has any value for one's character. As a member of the military, I cannot for a second believe that he does not value character. So good news, indeed.

 

[Masskier]

Yes. They pump water from the Passumpsic to that pond. Northern Star added that line and infrastructure from the river in the late 1990's. HUGE improvement.


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Also, as you may know, Burke has access to more water than they probably will ever need for snow making.

 

[Big Wave Dave]

hello all

been away for awhile because i dont think of skiing in the summer! but was over in East Burke last weekend so poked around a bit and here I am

the hotel is, from what I can tell, a game changer for burke. I feel that some of the negative folks on this site seem to be missing the forest through the tree's- the one thing that everyone has always agreed on Burkes viability is it needed more on site lodging- well its coming, thanks to Team Q and EB 5 money. I thought we had already determined it was fully funded too? Even if they are idiots, which they seem to be, they deserve credit for this. The building itself is imposing, and the view it will control 9the notch, doesnt get much better) will IMHO be enough to put it on the map and keep it there. When i was there they were installing the outer panels (skin) so it looked to me like work was progressing. Lots of people on the site. Nothing to compare to but it looked to me like a bustling work site.

I dont understand what work is being done below the hotel though, above and around alpine road, grassy surfaces surrounded by fencing. looks like they cleared additional land for more trails, but I dont think this is part of the plan? Anyone got details? maybe a leach field?

And something else- its been a long time since I drove the roads between lower and upper mountain- looks like alot of big money (for the NEK) has gone into houses on burke in the last few years- great sign that people are voting with their wallets. Same with what appears to be a town house "community" at the entrance to the base lodge. Good signs, as well as the continued development of Bear Path.

And one other ramble- I also feel like they are slowly, slowly backing away from the Q Burke name. The 2014/2015 Jay glossy mag has a couple segments on Burke, and its always referred to as Burke, or Ski Burke. Seen this in some other on line advertising also. The Q Team does seem pretty tone deaf and totally unable to issue mea culpa's, but maybe the future is to keep the Q/Bear logo (which I like, as long as you ignore the Q) and move to a label such as Q Resort at Burke Mountain. Nothing too definitive on my part to speculate here but just a sense I am getting.

and I did not read Ary's quote saying they are not going to make snow before 12/22. if so, I dont know how they would plan to open on 12/16- I saw that as a general statement that offering full mountain operations before christmas at burke simply is not economically viable- active daily snowmaking at many resorts is a means of surface improvement, which if you have limited skiing isnt needed. THAT BEING SAID... if they dont blow snow until December 22nd, it would be incredibly stupid. Pretty sure its also pretty stupid I pay $180 a year for online access to the Cal Record

 

[from_the_NEK]

Also, as you may know, Burke has access to more water than they probably will ever need for snow making.

Depending on water levels in the East Branch of the Passumpsic. Depending on flow rate, they can only withdraw so much water. This gets trickier later in the winter if there are no thaws and the ice gets thick.

 

[thetrailboss]

Depending on water levels in the East Branch of the Passumpsic. Depending on flow rate, they can only withdraw so much water. This gets trickier later in the winter if there are no thaws and the ice gets thick.

Exactly.

 

[from_the_NEK]

I dont understand what work is being done below the hotel though, above and around alpine road, grassy surfaces surrounded by fencing. looks like they cleared additional land for more trails, but I dont think this is part of the plan? Anyone got details? maybe a leach field?

The work below the hotel includes building up a huge area of fill immediately below the hotel that will be part of the driveway approach. Then below that, is the infrastructure to capture runoff. The blue area on the left of this picture is the drainage area down to the retention basin.

And one other ramble- I also feel like they are slowly, slowly backing away from the Q Burke name. The 2014/2015 Jay glossy mag has a couple segments on Burke, and its always referred to as Burke, or Ski Burke. Seen this in some other on line advertising also. The Q Team does seem pretty tone deaf and totally unable to issue mea culpa's, but maybe the future is to keep the Q/Bear logo (which I like, as long as you ignore the Q) and move to a label such as Q Resort at Burke Mountain. Nothing too definitive on my part to speculate here but just a sense I am getting.

That would make too much sense. Your hopeful logic does not belong here. :wink::-D

 

[from_the_NEK]

In other news (that had been hinted in someones earlier post), the Pub Outback is closing at the end of this week. :sad:

 

[Masskier]

In other news (that had been hinted in someones earlier post), the Pub Outback is closing at the end of this week. :sad:

Only to reopen with a new owner.

 

[from_the_NEK]

Only to reopen with a new owner.

Rumor is some renovations will occur in the downtime and likely a new name.

My theory, based on who the the new operators of the establishment will be, is that we will see a brew pub.

 

[thetrailboss]

hello all

I also feel like they are slowly, slowly backing away from the Q Burke name. The 2014/2015 Jay glossy mag has a couple segments on Burke, and its always referred to as Burke, or Ski Burke. Seen this in some other on line advertising also. The Q Team does seem pretty tone deaf and totally unable to issue mea culpa's, but maybe the future is to keep the Q/Bear logo (which I like, as long as you ignore the Q) and move to a label such as Q Resort at Burke Mountain. Nothing too definitive on my part to speculate here but just a sense I am getting.

Man, I really hope so, but I doubt it. I think there is a major split of opinion on that. I know that the folks who do the marketing at JPR would privately concede that the Q thing is incredibly dumb for all the aforementioned reasons on here. These folks, of course, did that magazine.

The split is that q is not giving in and seems to be doubling down. As I mentioned here, a couple local merchants told me that he is insisting that all merchandise that refers to the mountain needs to be "Q Burke" and he even tried to get the official geographic name changed to Q Burke Mountain. If you read Ski Vermont Magazine you see that it refers to it as Q Burke.

But no harm in hoping that someone has seen the light...

 

[Masskier]

Exactly.

IIRC Back in 2006-07 Burke did a study to determined how much water they would need at full build out for snow making and whether or not the river could provide it. I'm not sure if they used 20 yr flows and level's or how they calculated it, but it was concluded that there was more than enough water for snow making at full build out. Back then they were estimating at peak they would need 3-4k gallons per minute.

 

[thetrailboss]

In other news (that had been hinted in someones earlier post), the Pub Outback is closing at the end of this week. :sad:

As much as I love the Pub, I can honestly say now that the place was hit or miss at best lately. Last summer they served us water that was so terrible it would make you vomit and our food was terrible. A couple weeks ago it was very good overall. Sad to see it go, happy to hear the prospect of a new person at the helm.

 

[thetrailboss]

IIRC Back in 2006-07 Burke did a study to determined how much water they would need at full build out for snow making and whether or not the river could provide it. I'm not sure if they used 20 yr flows and level's or how they calculated it, but it was concluded that there was more than enough water for snow making at full build out. Back then they were estimating at peak they would need 3-4k gallons per minute.

Well, again, it all depends on how the level of the river and the conditions that VT imposed on them. I'm not saying that they need more water.