For the week of July 23 - 29, 2003

Sun Valley Co.
to present vision
for its future

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By GREGORY FOLEY
Express Staff Writer

Sun Valley Co. officials in August will present to the public a long-term master plan for its resort and related operations, Sun Valley Mayor David Wilson said last week.

At a special meeting of the Sun Valley City Council Thursday, July 17, Wilson announced that Sun Valley Co. has nearly completed a detailed master plan for its expansive property holdings in the Sun Valley area. He said the company would submit the plan to the city at a public meeting in mid-August, likely at the Thursday, Aug. 21, meeting of the City Council.

Wilson made the announcement after meeting with Sun Valley Co. officials prior to the special meeting. The special meeting was scheduled to discuss amendments to the code that governs the city’s Commercial Center zoning district, which includes Sun Valley Village and much of Sun Valley Resort.

After the meeting, Wilson said the aspects of the plan he was briefed on include "great concepts" that should enhance the city in the coming decades. "It’s a whole picture of all of their properties," he said. "It’s very forward thinking for the community."

Wilson said he was not at liberty to discuss details of the plan.

Wally Huffman, general manager of Sun Valley Co., in a June interview said he could not comment on the master plan, except to say that it almost certainly would lend "high priority to build a new hotel at Sun Valley Village." Huffman could not be reached for additional comment this week.

In June, Huffman said company officials would wait to comment on the plan until it was approved by company owner Earl Holding.

Wilson said Sun Valley Co. initiated the design of a long-term master plan after city officials two years ago urged company managers to indicate what they intend to do with the company’s vast property holdings.

He noted that the plan—which is being prepared by Design Workshop—a planning firm with offices in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming—could take up to 60 years to implement.

Wilson said the plan addresses the company’s employee housing needs and includes long-term development plans for the commercial center of Sun Valley Village.

The mayor noted that the plan is "not a vision of maximum buildout," with special efforts made to preserve open space and view corridors. "It maintains the integrity of what has been done to date," he said.

Wilson added that he has asked that $50,000 be set aside in the city’s 2003-2004 budget to rewrite the Sun Valley Comprehensive Plan, in part so it will work effectively with Sun Valley Co.’s master plan.

He said Design Workshop was hired by the city to draft the last set of changes to the city’s comprehensive plan, but would likely not be hired to do any future work on the city plan because of its current contract with Sun Valley Co.

Wilson said the Sun Valley Co. master plan will likely go through a process that would see it formally reviewed and "adopted" by the city.

 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.