Big Burke announcement

[thetrailboss]

I think one of those in the QBunker just posted on the Friends FB page:

I just bought my next year's season passes today just now !!!! Show your support for the mountain !!! Buy then now while you can at last year's prices only $549 for an adult pass they are only 5 million away to getting the hotel up and going buy passes and he lp fund raise so all the jobs can come back and get up and running faster !!!

She is slowly getting picked to death by folks pointing out how naive she is about the situation.

 

[VTKilarney]

Got it.

Well, I can tell you exactly when the "denial" stage should have ended even for the most hopeful believers.

The day when it became known that the guy who brands everything with his name, even organic farm stands, opened a nondescript shell company called GSI (i.e. not Quiros Real Estate Ventures) and bought land for $3M, then sold it back to his EB-5 group for $6M about a year later.

Slight correction. According to VTDigger, GSI bought 25 acres for $3.1 million and sold a mere seven acres for $6 million.

Good work if you can get it.

 

[from_the_NEK]

Got it.

Well, I can tell you exactly when the "denial" stage should have ended even for the most hopeful believers.

The day when it became known that the guy who brands everything with his name, even organic farm stands, opened a nondescript shell company called GSI (i.e. not Quiros Real Estate Ventures) and bought land for $3M, then sold it back to his EB-5 group for $6M about a year later.

The "bringing hope and opportunity" to the NEK story should have ended for all that day.

Yep...

 

[VTKilarney]

One other correction. I'm not certain that the land sale went through. The state asked for an independent valuation, and I have not heard anything since. Stenger has been quoted in the media saying that construction is about to start on AnC Bio, so one would think that the land has been secured. But if it has, I haven't heard whether or not the price was adjusted based on the independent valuation.

What we do know is that there was a purchase and sale agreement that appeared to give VERY favorable terms to Mr. Quiros.

 

[from_the_NEK]

I think one of those in the QBunker just posted on the Friends FB page:

She is slowly getting picked to death by folks pointing out how naive she is about the situation.

If it weren't for some of her posts about her daughter and son working there and that she has been a electrician or something for 15 years, I would swear she was a 14yo based on her posts...

Anyway this is not a post looking g for a fight or a argument do what you want I stand with my decision and opinion and I support this mountain!!! I want it to Re open period so I will continue to support so I bought my season family passes !!!! I believe in the mountain that I have skied on since I am 20 years old so for 23 years now and this is the mountain I want to continue to ski on so I put my money where my mouth is !!!! Drop the mic !!! Bam

 

[thetrailboss]

Here's the article:

BURKE — Ary Quiros Jr. paid the Burke Select Board a visit on Monday night to answer
questions about the completed, but still not open, $50 million hotel and conference
center at Q Burke Mountain Resort.
Disputes are ongoing between the owners, the general contractor, the Vermont Agency
of Commerce and Community Development and the Department of Financial
Regulation over the use of EB-5 escrow funds to pay outstanding bills related to the
hotel.
The contractor has placed a $5.4 million lien on the new hotel, and the state has frozen
the escrow account until more information about the project is provided to the state.
Quiros was not listed on the agenda for the meeting, but accepted an invitation from
selectman Sam Sanderson to speak.
Sanderson welcomed Quiros’s visit, and said he believed more communication with Q
Burke was a good idea.
“I know a lot of people are angry,” said Quiros. “I know there are a lot of questions.”
Quiros said the fact the hotel has not been able to open has led to a lot of bad feelings.
A new Facebook page - “Friends of Burke Mountain” - has garnered nearly 3,000
members and highlights tensions between mountain fans and ownership. In one post a
Q Burke sign is burned in effigy. Another shows a person urinating on a Q Burke sign.
The resort, Quiros says, is catching its breath, trying to pay bills, and hoping for
community support.
“It’s like beating a dead horse right now, we’re on the ground,” said Quiros. “Just give us
time to get out of it… We’re not going to give up.”
Quiros, in an interview at the newspaper on Tuesday, said ownership will open the
mountain bike park soon. Next season, Quiros insists, they will open for skiing and will
get the new hotel up and running - though an opening date is still not known.
“Our family has invested millions of dollars these past three years,” Quiros explains.
“We bought it, expected to build the hotel right off, and hopefully recover the losses,”
said Quiros. The ski operation, unfortunately, “has failed for so many years.”
Quiros said his community outreach is intended to calm emotions, and to explain the
situation. Quiros plans to attend Burke and Lyndon Chamber of Commerce meetings for
the foreseeable future, he said Tuesday.
Money Pit
Delays have plagued the hoped-for opening of the new hotel - even before construction
began.
Quiros said he takes responsibility for hiring the hotel staff to be in place for the
originally promised mid-December, 2015 opening.
In recent weeks, the resort laid off 180 workers, 45 of them full-time hotel staff who
spent four months working at the new hotel and conference center in the hope that the
state and the developers could resolve their differences over spending.
That situation created bad blood, acknowledged Quiros. He said the jobs will come, and
the hotel will open. But he understands that the community has lost faith and it will take
time for Q Burke to rebuild trust and support.
Quiros says he made a costly mistake by maintaining a full-time hotel staff for four
months without income. “I should have stopped. I just never thought that it was going to
be delayed until now… In an area that’s so poor, the necessity of economic life that
we’re going to create for the area to help everybody, it just never dawned on me… I
made the mistake on hiring the staff and delaying it little by little instead of just canceling
everything.”
He understands the frustration. “It’s a very emotional time for a lot of people…
everybody was just let down, people are angry,” he said.
Quiros said the lack of snow hurt ridership and retail sales. “It was the perfect storm,”
Quiros said. “You can imagine how much revenue we’ve lost.” He points to $2.5 million
made in snowmaking upgrades and the hotel construction as proof that investors are
committed to the success of the mountain and the community.
The resort’s priority now is to pay off vendors and creditors, Quiros said.
“That’s where we’re at,” said Quiros. “Little by little we are finding the funds to pay off
our vendors - retail vendors, my engineers, Lyndonville Electric, water, fuel, they are all
asking for their money… That’s the first priority… the second priority is to make sure we
get the bike park open.”
The Future
Quiros says he’s confident the resort will pull through.
“We’re not bankrupt,” Quiros says. “If we were, I would be selling my assets right now.”
Plans are still on track to add additional development at Q Burke, including a tennis
center, an aquatic center, and two more hotels. Creating a four-season destination that
trains and creates champion athletes - skiers, bi-athletes, tennis players, swimmers and
divers - remains the long-term goal.
Those plans will create jobs and growth, he insists. “The community can choose to
support us choose to go against us, it’s understandable either way,” Quiros says. “But It
would benefit all of us if we work together as a team. We need to attract destination
guests, we can’t survive just on local community members. We need to work together to
show the world what a beautiful place this is.”
At least one employee still believes. Sarah Benedict, director of hotel operations,
penned a letter posted this week on the Q Burke resort website. ““We all have seen the
demise of the mountain, time and again,” writes Benedict. “The ‘Q’ wants success. The
‘Q’ wants the mountain to be everybody’s mountain by reaching farther than the
continental Northeast…. We are simply approximately $5 million dollars away from
opening our doors.

I'm still not buying it. Very concerning that they have other creditors now.

 

[VTKilarney]

Very concerning that they have other creditors now.

+1

 

[thetrailboss]

A major red flag will be if Q does not pay its Burke property taxes. Locals know that this has been the final nail in the coffin for previous failed regimes.

 

[VTKilarney]

A major red flag will be if Q does not pay its Burke property taxes. Locals know that this has been the final nail in the coffin for previous failed regimes.

Do you know when they are due?

 

[thetrailboss]

Do you know when they are due?

Soon! I also know that they are (or at least were) fighting over the taxes for the QHotel.

 

[VTKilarney]

Soon! I also know that they are (or at least were) fighting over the taxes for the QHotel.

According to the town's website taxes are due November 1st.

http://www.burkevermont.org/faq.php

 

[thetrailboss]

And is Q current?

 

[BenedictGomez]

“Our family has invested millions of dollars these past three years,” Quiros explains.
“We bought it, expected to build the hotel right off, and hopefully recover the losses,”
said Quiros.

What is he talking about?

LOL.

I have no reason to believe that, regardless of operational losses related to the resort, this entire enterprise has been nothing but a money-making boondoggle for Clan Quiros.

 

[thetrailboss]

What is he talking about?

LOL.

I have no reason to believe that, regardless of operational losses related to the resort, this entire enterprise has been nothing but a money-making boondoggle for Clan Quiros.

I agree. He's invested a lot of other people's money in the area.

 

[halfpintvt]

And is Q current?

The Mountain paid all of their 2015 property taxes on time. They are appealing the 2015 value of the parcel that contains most of their land and the hotel. Burke did a statistical reappraisal in 2015 (the first since 2005) and many property values changed. Burke 2000's value before the reappraisal and the partial completion of the hotel was $11,239,400 minus land use and special exemptions totaling $5,594,000. They paid taxes on $5,645,400. In 2015 their value was $17,371,700 minus land use and special exemptions totaling $6,951,000. They paid taxes on $ 10,420,700. I would expect their value to increase quite a bit this year with the completion of the hotel. Taxes are due on Nov. 4, 2016 this year.

 

[mbedle]

I hate to say it, but I think he came off as sounding very sincere and overall concerned with how things are standing at the hotel and what ramifications that has on the local community. Based on other quotes that have been presented in this forum, Almost seems like a different person and somewhat beaten.

 

[VTKilarney]

Agreed. I still think that's Ary's PR tour is a good first step.

 

[yeggous]

Yes, the article definitely evoked sympathy.

 

[River19]

While the article seemed sincere, the actions of this group have been their calling card.......180 people......all the lifties.....alienating anyone and everyone.......those are the things that will speak much louder than any words the CR can print.

I have always liked the idea of having beds on the mountain......I also think you need a great product on the mountain before or CONCURRENTLY to put asses in said beds on the mountain. Otherwise the hotel provides a service no one is requesting......

The hotel was built when it was built and how it was built entirely because it was an EB-5 funded. Why anyone spending their OWN money ever build a $50M hotel on that mountain? Makes zero sense.

Ariel is the money man? Evidently not as much money as people think, can't pony up single digit Millions to fund the hotel and hasn't really stuck any serious capital into the ski resort. It has been incredibly obvious to all of us who have been following this, where they can place EB-5 money, things are funded....sort of. Anywhere EB-5 money is off limits......it is expense-cut city. F&B? They took the Tamarack (which used to be pretty decent) from "meh/good" to multiple incarnations of Ary's warped fantasy......haven't been up there on purpose in a long time now.

They seem to have even screwed up the Bear Den......that place literally runs itself......keep the power on, the beer truck coming and staff a bartender.....book a few acoustic acts Thursday - Sundays..........we're not launching the space shuttle here.....this shit is easy.

I don't care who Jr appeals to at this point in town meetings, papers, etc. way too little way too late.

 

[from_the_NEK]

On a completely different note....
I have two kids 4 and 6 years old and the LOVE the show Kratt's Creatures. I had no idea the brothers grew up skiing Burke and Jay. 8)

http://vtskiandride.com/chriskratt/