Big Burke announcement

[Smellytele]

new GM set out to prove he could out douche-bag Q on Saturday morning. He was meeting and greeting at the bottom of MBE. His idea of meeting and greeting involved hand checking passes against people's faces. No pass, NO ENTRY. Watched him do this to 2 female BMA coaches who each had groups of kids with them. These are coaches the lift staff know well, they were wearing the full BMA coaching attire. He made them march up the hill to get passes. I have skied around the world and never seen this level of small minded behavior and pure stupidity. I have seen many, many occasions of "do not come back to lift w/o a pass", "hey Durwood, does xxx coach here?", etc- but to make coaches separate from kids they are in charge of, and/or force entire group to hike up the hill? I never cease to be amazed.

Why didn't they have their passes to begin with?

 

[oldtimer]

I suspect, that like most of the rest of us, they are human. Perhaps and in changing into their spring attire they left the pass behind (as I did the week before) or in rounding up kids it did not rise to the level of importance as, say, making sure the kids are zipped etc. FWIW, I have stood in that very line and heard the last GM say "ooooops, I left my pass in my other jacket down in the base lodge". Stuff happens,it is how we react to stuff happening that defines who we are.

Why didn't they have their passes to begin with?

 

[Smellytele]

I suspect, that like most of the rest of us, they are human. Perhaps and in changing into their spring attire they left the pass behind (as I did the week before) or in rounding up kids it did not rise to the level of importance as, say, making sure the kids are zipped etc. FWIW, I have stood in that very line and heard the last GM say "ooooops, I left my pass in my other jacket down in the base lodge". Stuff happens,it is how we react to stuff happening that defines who we are.

And yes every time I have forgotten my pass I was made to either go get it or get a daily ticket. Glad racers are treated equally

 

[VTKilarney]

If you don't like the new general manager, and history is any indication, just wait a couple of months.

 

[thetrailboss]

new GM set out to prove he could out douche-bag Q on Saturday morning. He was meeting and greeting at the bottom of MBE. His idea of meeting and greeting involved hand checking passes against people's faces. No pass, NO ENTRY. Watched him do this to 2 female BMA coaches who each had groups of kids with them. These are coaches the lift staff know well, they were wearing the full BMA coaching attire. He made them march up the hill to get passes. I have skied around the world and never seen this level of small minded behavior and pure stupidity. I have seen many, many occasions of "do not come back to lift w/o a pass", "hey Durwood, does xxx coach here?", etc- but to make coaches separate from kids they are in charge of, and/or force entire group to hike up the hill? I never cease to be amazed.

Well, we now know what qualities Q is looking for in a manager.

And I'm sure that Saturday was a day in which MANY people were trying to poach the lifts without passes at Burke. :roll:

I also generally agree that it is a good idea to always check to be sure that you do have your pass on you before you head to the lift. Perhaps this shows that they were not regularly checking passes enough before and these folks got used to it. I know that there is a "right" way to handle this situation--and that is scanning each pass and saying, "Thank you for visiting today, [First Name]." They do this at Snowbird and Sugarbush and it is a nice touch. You don't need to stare at a pass for minutes to discern if that is the right person...unless it is obvious that someone is not the passholder. As to these folks if it was a race program then maybe have them go up and then get their pass for the next run.

 

[VTKilarney]

I'm conflicted about this. One the one hand, people should make sure to wear their passes. It's not asking too much. On the other hand, this isn't Killington on President's Day weekend. And these people were clearly part of the coaching staff. A simple, "Be sure to put on your pass before you get on the lift again," would have worked.

 

[the original trailboss]

In pre-Q years the standard for lifties (particularly for customers you knew) was to say exactly that: "Please have your pass for the next run"

 

[crank]

Anyone else catch the 22 News report on Friday night with the QHotel and how it isn't going to be open until at least June 1st?

For the folks here it was a "no shit" moment as it wasn't anything new. But They were onsite and it looks nice etc. and some woman (forgot her name sorry) was speaking on behalf of the Qhotel and the message was "just wait and give us a chance....."

Maybe we will check it out for NEMBAfest... if they have a really good discount offer.

 

[thetrailboss]

Here's the Channel 22 story:

http://www.mychamplainvalley.com/news/delayed-hotel-opening-at-q-burke

 

[halfpintvt]

Here's the Channel 22 story:

http://www.mychamplainvalley.com/news/delayed-hotel-opening-at-q-burke

If the hotel does not open until after June 1st then I expect the Mountain will appeal their property value again. Something along the line of "The hotel is not yet open and producing income therefore it should have no value for property tax purposes."
They need to save $$ any way they can!

 

[thetrailboss]

If the hotel does not open until after June 1st then I expect the Mountain will appeal their property value again. Something along the line of "The hotel is not yet open and producing income therefore it should have no value for property tax purposes."
They need to save $$ any way they can!

That is assuming that DAVIS doesn't short sell it. He's threatening that now. What a mess. Could you imagine being one of the QHotel investors?


Sent from my iPhone using AlpineZone

 

[halfpintvt]

How could an investor prove that their investment created 10 jobs if the hotel is lost thru a bankruptcy filing? They would lose their collateral but Q Burke General Partners could keep their $50K buy-in fee. Depending on the number of investors that would be a tidy sum.

 

[thetrailboss]

How could an investor prove that their investment created 10 jobs if the hotel is lost thru a bankruptcy filing? They would lose their collateral but Q Burke General Partners could keep their $50K buy-in fee. Depending on the number of investors that would be a tidy sum.

Good point. I imagine that they would count the construction jobs as part of it.

 

[smac75]

Maybe we will check it out for NEMBAfest... if they have a really good discount offer.

Was thinking the same!

 

[DoublePlanker]

How could an investor prove that their investment created 10 jobs if the hotel is lost thru a bankruptcy filing? They would lose their collateral but Q Burke General Partners could keep their $50K buy-in fee. Depending on the number of investors that would be a tidy sum.

Why does the investor care so long as they get their green card?

This is not a risk free investment. In fact, its so risky that conventional financing is not available.

 

[thetrailboss]

Why does the investor care so long as they get their green card?

This is not a risk free investment. In fact, its so risky that conventional financing is not available.

We've heard this argument before in the general EB-5 discussions here and in the JPR thread. But this is not a legitimate argument because this was an investment project, akin to a private placement, that is subject to other regulations not the least of which being our standard for good faith and fair dealing. The fact that they got a green card does not excuse potential fraud and abuse. The issue here would be if the project managers knew that they did not have sufficient funds for the project but proceeded any way without any contingency plan thus putting all of the investors at unacceptable risk. This is a different situation than if they built it and revenue did not meet expectations. That is the risk that investors normally accept. This is a real mess. Hopefully this all ends soon and they get it open. I don't think any of us saw this turning out this way.

 

[burski]

Good point. I imagine that they would count the construction jobs as part of it.

This is an interesting point and maybe something the Feds are already considering on this project. In order for the investors to obtain their green cards I am pretty sure the project must create the required number of jobs for a period of 5 years. The initial construction jobs are counted but then the jobs created by the ongoing operation of the hotel are part of the equation. Since the site has been dead for 2-3? months now and looks to be dead for another 3-6? months can the project meet the requirements of creating the requisite number of jobs over the time period required? The investors may already be screwed and may never get their green cards. If this is the case, the Quiros / Stenger EB5 program is done, they will never attract another investor...

 

[thetrailboss]

This is an interesting point and maybe something the Feds are already considering on this project. In order for the investors to obtain their green cards I am pretty sure the project must create the required number of jobs for a period of 5 years. The initial construction jobs are counted but then the jobs created by the ongoing operation of the hotel are part of the equation. Since the site has been dead for 2-3? months now and looks to be dead for another 3-6? months can the project meet the requirements of creating the requisite number of jobs over the time period required? The investors may already be screwed and may never get their green cards. If this is the case, the Quiros / Stenger EB5 program is done, they will never attract another investor...

I wonder why VTDigger has gone silent on this mess.....they following the EB-5 projects and issues up until recently.

 

[DoublePlanker]

We've heard this argument before in the general EB-5 discussions here and in the JPR thread. But this is not a legitimate argument because this was an investment project, akin to a private placement, that is subject to other regulations not the least of which being our standard for good faith and fair dealing. The fact that they got a green card does not excuse potential fraud and abuse. The issue here would be if the project managers knew that they did not have sufficient funds for the project but proceeded any way without any contingency plan thus putting all of the investors at unacceptable risk. This is a different situation than if they built it and revenue did not meet expectations. That is the risk that investors normally accept. This is a real mess. Hopefully this all ends soon and they get it open. I don't think any of us saw this turning out this way.

I agree the the law must be followed. And if fraud and abuse were committed, then some kind of lawsuit would be the remedy. But any EB-5 is a risky investment and could fail. It has a higher chance to fail because conventional financing won't touch it. The investor needs to be wary that risk is higher in these cases.

 

[thetrailboss]

I agree the the law must be followed. And if fraud and abuse were committed, then some kind of lawsuit would be the remedy. But any EB-5 is a risky investment and could fail. It has a higher chance to fail because conventional financing won't touch it. The investor needs to be wary that risk is higher in these cases.

Right, but the fact that the project managers did not have sufficient funds to complete the project and represented to investors that they did, and had no contingency plan, is not one of these "risks" that investors are expected to assume.