Jay Peak bombshell

[cdskier]

This is a rather bizarre discussion. The whole point of VT requiring a quarantine is so that you don't infect other people you come into contact with in case you are sick. If you go only to your own private residence and nowhere else, there's really no point in forcing you to stay there for 14 days before subsequently leaving the state. It is quite different from someone going to VT only for a day trip to ski where they are obviously out in public.

VT does address this specific point in their FAQ:

If I am staying in Vermont for less than the minimum quarantine time, may I still come to Vermont?

Yes, but only if you are in full quarantine at the lodging establishment or private residence in which you are staying while in Vermont. Quarantine means you do not leave the room or house in which you are staying and make no trips to the grocery store, restaurants or any other places where you will come in contact with others. Using lodging property amenities such as pools, spas, gyms, recreation equipment or other general use facilities is also not permitted.

So if someone goes to only their own residence to clean it out and does not come into contact with others, there's absolutely no requirement to stay "in quarantine" for 14 days before leaving VT. VT point blank says so.

 

[fbrissette]

Curious why you chose Tremblant vs say Sutton or Orford? Wouldn't those areas offer a more Jay like experience than Tremblant?

I haven't skied any of them. I've just always been under the impression that Tremblant is something similar to say Stratton where as the Laurentians have more of the ungroomed and tree skiing experience Jay is known for.

Sent from my moto g power using AlpineZone mobile app

Your correct in your assessment of Orford and especially Sutton. Picked Tremblant because I have friends up there and because I'm going to BC for a week of backcountry skiing in February and before that I'll ski Sunshine, Lake louise and revelstoke, which are all on the Ikon pass. In addition, Tremblant will be less busy with winter because of travel restrictions.

 

[deadheadskier]

Your correct in your assessment of Orford and especially Sutton. Picked Tremblant because I have friends up there and because I'm going to BC for a week of backcountry skiing in February and before that I'll ski Sunshine, Lake louise and revelstoke, which are all on the Ikon pass. In addition, Tremblant will be less busy with winter because of travel restrictions.

Domestic or International?

I know quite a few people who have skied Tremblant, but it's like a once every ten year thing just to check it out. I didn't think a vast amount of Americans made up the crazy crowds I read about there.

Either way, I hope you manage a great season given the circumstances. Hopefully all is reasonably back to normal at Jay for you next season.

Sent from my moto g power using AlpineZone mobile app

 

[fbrissette]

Domestic or International?

I know quite a few people who have skied Tremblant, but it's like a once every ten year thing just to check it out. I didn't think a vast amount of Americans made up the crazy crowds I read about there.

Either way, I hope you manage a great season given the circumstances. Hopefully all is reasonably back to normal at Jay for you next season.

Sent from my moto g power using AlpineZone mobile app

I assume more domestic traffic this year, but no internationals at all. This is quite puzzling to me, but there is a large number of Europeans who ski Tremblant and also a relatively large number of US skiers during the usual big holiday periods.

 

[thetrailboss]

A must read:

A ski resort, a dream and greed: How a $350M fraud happened in Vermont’s poorest region

Former Jay Peak President Bill Stenger was sentenced last week to 18 months in prison. Here's our in-depth piece on how it all began.

www.burlingtonfreepress.com

 

[KustyTheKlown]

A must read:

A ski resort, a dream and greed: How a $350M fraud happened in Vermont’s poorest region

Former Jay Peak President Bill Stenger was sentenced last week to 18 months in prison. Here's our in-depth piece on how it all began.

www.burlingtonfreepress.com

thanks for sharing. very interesting, but parts 2-4 are behind a paywall. cheapskate request to copy/paste the article? thanks

 

[thetrailboss]

thanks for sharing. very interesting, but parts 2-4 are behind a paywall. cheapskate request to copy/paste the article? thanks

I don’t have access either...

 

[Harvey]

Honor the paywall.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

Honor the paywall.

i pay for a lot of media that i consume regu;arly, but the burlington free press isnt one of them.

 

[cdskier]

i pay for a lot of media that i consume regu;arly, but the burlington free press isnt one of them.

The name of the Burlington Free Press is a bit ironic...

 

[NYDB]

Kinda funny Q was only worth 4mil at the beginning of this fiasco and that was mostly just real estate equity.

Total con man.

 

[dblskifanatic]

So digital access is $3 for three months - here is the catch by most of these types of digital newspapers - it goes into automatic renewal until you cancel it. So unless to cancel after the story is read ot mark your calendar, you could be on the hook for more than $3 without even realizing it! They even put the paragraph in light gray and smaller font.

 

[thetrailboss]

Kinda funny Q was only worth 4mil at the beginning of this fiasco and that was mostly just real estate equity.

Total con man.

I could not believe that one either.

I laughed at his Jeep video idea. Completely narcissistic. And the Q mirror?!

 

[thetrailboss]

This continues. Some of the lines in here are pure gold. Obvious conflicts of interest. Trying to make the fifth floor of a hotel a separate project in order to backfill shortfalls in other projects (said floor was already built and paid for by previous investors!). And once again makes VT officials look like Keystone Cops on the very least and fraudsters at most.

Receiver settles $8M case with lawyers close to Stenger in EB-5 fraud case

Ed Carroll and Mark Scribner simultaneously represented the interests of the Jay Peak corporation and immigrants seeking green cards. The attorneys allegedly aided Bill Stenger in duping investors.

vtdigger.org

 

[sull1102]

Just read updates in this whole debacle for the first time in a year or so, still too bizarre. Cannot believe this was going on while The Hermitage was at the southern end of the state with in some ways very similar problems just on a far different scale. Makes you think about both the State of VT and the ski industry as a whole in a different light.

 

[abc]

Just read updates in this whole debacle for the first time in a year or so, still too bizarre. Cannot believe this was going on while The Hermitage was at the southern end of the state with in some ways very similar problems just on a far different scale. Makes you think about both the State of VT and the ski industry as a whole in a different light.

Is it just the ski industry?

There used to be this company called Enron...

 

[O09]

It's easy for there to be moral hazard when there is all this no/low interest foreign Eb-5 loan money flowing in. That money then gets tied up for longer than the 5 year loan term because the visa quotas are capped and the program is oversubscribed. For example, say China is allowed 10,000 green cards per year for the program, but there are 50,000 investors that have put in their money into different projects. Investors get put in line to get their green card and that wait can be up to 15+ years long. The money, however, remains tied up for that 15 year period of time and doesn't get repaid until they get their visa. It becomes free money to the resorts or any development corporation using it through the United States.

When Vermont got their regional center shut down, Mount Snow then had to repay their 52 million dollar loan for Carinthia project at the end of the 5 year loan term since the "material change" (shut down of the Vermont Regional Center) altered the investors applications so that they wouldn't receive a green card. That money would have been due in 2021 had Peaks not sold the company beforehand, but the reality that all developers know about, is that the no interest money gets extended by up to a decade while the investors wait for the green card.

Another problem lies when a state regulators are allowed to get paid as a contractors/advisors for the developers. For example, the Newport airport runway expansion was essential to the bio-medical facility. You need to fly in scientists. The state of Vermont knows that there is a pool of Federal funds available for 5000 foot runway expansions and this in theory improves Vermont infrastructure and is something they want. So the Vtrans airport regulator makes relationships with the developers and smooths the process through the Act 250 process by writing official letters in support of the project, sidestepping environmental concerns, and also receiving outside payment for this official act. The fraud continues to looks legit, more money flows in, state is happy.

Barnes tried the same runway expansion trick at the Dover airport to keep his fraud going, but when it was found out that none of the planes they planned on flying in would need that long of a runway, the whole scam unraveled. Thank goodness too. Just look at Newport with the airport's one room terminal, 5000 foot runway, and giant hole in their downtown.

 

[eatskisleep]

Is it just the ski industry?

There used to be this company called Enron...

Don’t forget Theranos!

 

[thetrailboss]

Bump. Still going.

Attorney general slow-walks discovery of documents in EB-5 fraud case

The Vermont Attorney General's office has asked the court for permission to redact records and charge tens of thousands of dollars to produce them. The state also wants to stall depositions of state officials, including former Gov. Peter Shumlin.

vtdigger.org

And why is this such an important case? Here is the big concern in a nutshell:

Representations about state oversight were the No. 1 reason investors say they put their faith and $500,000 each into the Northeast Kingdom developments, according to Barr’s opposition to the state’s motion for a protective order. In one prime example, Shumlin claimed in a video translated into Chinese that the developments were audited by the state. In fact, the finances at Jay Peak were never audited.

One expert testified that, with fierce competition for EB-5 investors, “these auditing representations provided the pivotal sell point for the Jay Peak investments.”

The state’s self-described “partnership” with Jay Peak was established early on, according to court documents.

Instead of embracing an oversight role as required by law, the Vermont Regional Center and Stenger worked together to develop marketing strategies and materials, solicited investors overseas together and shared booth space at EB-5 conferences — with Jay Peak footing the bill for expenses.

 

[O09]

Bump. Still going.

Attorney general slow-walks discovery of documents in EB-5 fraud case

The Vermont Attorney General's office has asked the court for permission to redact records and charge tens of thousands of dollars to produce them. The state also wants to stall depositions of state officials, including former Gov. Peter Shumlin.

vtdigger.org

And why is this such an important case? Here is the big concern in a nutshell:

"Deputy Secretary Moulton said in an email obtained by VTDigger that the idea of pressuring Rapid came from Stenger, who suggested that they make surrendering the URL a condition of the state’s approval of Mount Snow’s memorandum of understanding. Moulton “endorsed” the idea in an internal email in January 2013. Miller wrote in response: “…I like it…tough to hold Mount Snow ‘hostage’ but Hulme should snap in line versus lose that client…” Six months later, Raymond took that approach a step further. “I’d like to discuss methods to ensure no approval of the Mount Snow project is granted as long as Rapid Visa is a representative associated in any way with their private offering,” he wrote in an email response."

So Brent Raymond, the director of the Vermont Regional Center delays Mount Snow from getting approval for their EB-5 project as a way to pressure the Jay Peak whistleblower, Hulme of RapidVisa USA, from doing business in the state specifically with Hulme's Mount Snow client. Later, after the Vermont Regional Center was shut down, Mount Snow hired Brent Raymond to form their separate EB-5 regional center. Imagine being hired by a corporation that you just screwed over. Crazy.

I wonder if that delay in EB-5 approval was what made Peaks Resort take the 20 million dollar loan from the Sacklers to fund the first year of construction for the West Lake project.