Saddleback Meeting

[Edd]

Lift Blog tweeted this alarming news about the deal being dead. Haven’t confirmed it otherwise. Hope this is incorrect.

https://twitter.com/liftblog/status/1175096888866947079?s=21


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[mgalluzz]

Well this is awful.

 

[AdironRider]

On the irrational confidence scale, the Berry family has to be running at like a 9 out of 10 if they thought they could welch on this deal in hopes of spawning a bidding war, after this mountain has sat closed for so long.

 

[Edd]

On the irrational confidence scale, the Berry family has to be running at like a 9 out of 10 if they thought they could welch on this deal in hopes of spawning a bidding war, after this mountain has sat closed for so long.

Yeah, that’s why I’m struggling with the accuracy of this. It’s a uniquely delicate business situation soooo...., would they jeopardize that? Seems weird.

 

[MEtoVTSkier]

Well, they don't seem to have much of a track record for making sensible decisions...

 

[mbedle]

I wonder if the current sale of Jay Peak has brought some new interest in Saddleback.

 

[x10003q]

The Berrys just being the Berrys.

 

[deadheadskier]

These people are idiots. It's unfortunate the tax bill isn't high enough that they have incentive to sell while it's not generating revenue.

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[VTKilarney]

Whether or not they are idiots in this particular situation remains to be seen. You can hardly blame them if they enter into a deal to sell the mountain for more money than Aretaris put on the table.

 

[EPB]

Whether or not they are idiots in this particular situation remains to be seen. You can hardly blame them if they enter into a deal to sell the mountain for more money than Aretaris put on the table.

That depends on the status of the exclusivity agreement they had in place (it's unclear if it lapsed from my read). The letter alleges that the Berrys got greedy and tried to start a bidding war despite signing a contract explicitly saying they would do nothing of the sort.

Putting the ethics of this aside (if true, this is obviously unethical), it could open the Berry family up to damages from breaking the exclusivity agreement, it could make other buyers not want to work with them (i.e. if the new buyers didn't know the Berrys were potentially breaching an exclusivity agreement), and it is difficult to know if the new buyers were anywhere near as serious about buying as Aretaris was (bird in the hand vs. two in the bush).

As a side note, maximizing the value of your assets within three confines of your country's ethical and legal practices is a much better strategy than acting as you suggest. The biggest reason to do this is because business is a repeat game (albeit this is less relevant for the Berrys in this case). Furthermore, the more complicated/long the transaction process, the more likely that one's unethical behavior is likely to come to light and hurt them.

 

[AdironRider]

Whether or not they are idiots in this particular situation remains to be seen. You can hardly blame them if they enter into a deal to sell the mountain for more money than Aretaris put on the table.

The place has been shuttered for 5 years, they aren't getting anything better.

 

[MEtoVTSkier]

The place has been shuttered for 5 years, they aren't getting anything better.

4 years. They operated thru the 14-15 season.

In July of 2015, the Berry family announced Saddleback would close if they could not obtain financing for a new quad chairlift.

 

[AdironRider]

They aren't opening this year. Mark it 5 dude.

 

[Cat in January]

The recent turn of events stinks a lot more on the Arctaris side than the Berry's from my outside point of view.

Why put out the letter you know will become public, but not make a public statement?

If you have the parameters in place to complete a sale, why not continue forward and close the deal?

Unless Arctaris can step up and provide some more details, I think they are just waging a propaganda war.

 

[MEtoVTSkier]

They aren't opening this year. Mark it 5 dude.

Never said they were. Just pointing out your in-accuracy. It'll be 5 years next spring. [*starting to feel like 10 though*]

has been shuttered for 5 years

 

[AdironRider]

The place is screwed due to the Berry's but keep on arguing semantics like they matter champ. Whether they have been closed for 4.34 years or 5 is irrelevant, what isn't is why, and the why is the Berry family.

 

[EPB]

Why put out the letter you know will become public, but not make a public statement?

They appeared to be building a rapport with the town of Rangeley as part of their investment/redevelopment strategy. They know full well that the Berry's have run a clown show of a sales process up there including what will be at least 5 years of idle operations and trying to get in bed with a fraudster from Australia. Putting social pressure on the Berry's is perhaps their best option. We have no idea what legal remedy they might have, but it could be expensive and fruitless to go down that path. Let's say they get an award and are owed money from the Berry's - what are the chances they never sell the place and can't pay up anyway?

If you have the parameters in place to complete a sale, why not continue forward and close the deal?

What do you mean by this? Do you think they can still compete the deal when the Berry's are holding out for more from a mystery bidder they were allegedly prohibited from seeking?

Unless Arctaris can step up and provide some more details, I think they are just waging a propaganda war.

I suspect there are legal/non-disclosure reasons to not spill the beans in painstaking detail.

Are the buyers innocent in this? Who knows, but my hunch is that this is the fault of a seller with a clear and demonstrated history of delusional behavior.

 

[Cat in January]

I believe the family has not done a good job hiring people to represent them. This has led to many public guffaws and a poor showing in trying to sell the place. They have done an exceptionally poor job as have the people working for them.

I don't think they have had many good offers on the table. The community funded purchase wallowed as they tried to find clarity and there was not a lot of knowledge in the group what was involved in making a ski area work. The offer from the jerk from Australia was a desperate attempt to sell the area. No surprise that went South.

My read is Arctaris was looking for public funding and this is a ploy to get folks to petition state government to underwrite the sale. I don't think the Berry's would hold back from the sale based on the agreed upon parameters. I view Arctaris as the bad guys here trying to manipulate public opinion. We are all on the outside looking in, but that is my take

 

[EPB]

I believe the family has not done a good job hiring people to represent them. This has led to many public guffaws and a poor showing in trying to sell the place. They have done an exceptionally poor job as have the people working for them.

I don't think they have had many good offers on the table. The community funded purchase wallowed as they tried to find clarity and there was not a lot of knowledge in the group what was involved in making a ski area work. The offer from the jerk from Australia was a desperate attempt to sell the area. No surprise that went South.

My read is Arctaris was looking for public funding and this is a ploy to get folks to petition state government to underwrite the sale. I don't think the Berry's would hold back from the sale based on the agreed upon parameters. I view Arctaris as the bad guys here trying to manipulate public opinion. We are all on the outside looking in, but that is my take

View attachment 25429

Understood. From what very little I know about the fund, they definitely want some element of public help. Much like with the Balsams, they appear to use their leverage as a potentially outsized investment into a struggling rural community (if some taxpayer help is provided) to get the deal over the finish line. It's a tough balancing act for all parties involved. The Balsams and saddleback might never be viable without a kick in the pants from the government. The question is whether the elected officials in each respective area want to play ball. I'm frankly conflicted as to whether they should. The libertarian in me says no way, but this could be a much cheaper fix in the long run than never having saddleback to provide income/jobs for the town again. I just don't know.

Also, it's clear from this letter that the Berry's and the buyer had a major disagreement about how far the mountain was from operation. I think the "getting the mountain ready for this year" thing was ultimately about forcing the Berry's putting their money where there mouth was about the place being ready to go. Clearly, it isn't. I also find it funny that they don't want to have any risk going forward. Sell for less money if that's such a concern. They're sitting on a place they couldn't justify offering. If they don't get the type of free and clear offer they want, it shouldn't be a surprise.

 

[Cat in January]

The hangup all along has not been the ski area, it has been the real estate surrounding it. Expensive condos were built which were never sold and the Berry's are still holding them and the land around the area.

What bothers me is it really is about the real estate. The mountain has been a money looser for everyone who has owned it. I have not heard one person say the mountain can turn a profit. Not a fan of state money (Maine is a poor state with a lot of infrastructure and small towns) being used to prop up real estate.

Not a fan of the Berry's and definitely have had issue with some of the advice they have followed. Arctaris seems to be playing the game too. When they had their big public meeting to announce the purchase they skipped over the public funding part. To me, it seems they are trying to drive that now in a not upfront way.


Rangeley as a town has suffered, but relative to other Maine towns is doing pretty well. Unemployment in the county like the rest of the state has steadily declined since Saddleback was shuttered. Seasonal wages at a ski area don't seem like the best place for the state to be putting its money.