Stemming from an application by Ketchum developer Brian Barsotti to turn the Eagle Crest Inn, a Warm Springs hotel, into a 17-unit condominium, the Ketchum City Council entered into a philosophical discussion Tuesday about the economic future of the Sun Valley Resort base area.
Barsotti's initial plans, which he said are not completely dead, were to rejuvenate the hotel by joining it in some future function with the Baldy Base Camp building at the base of the Warm Springs ski lift, which houses Paul Kenney's Ski and Sports.
Barsotti said the hotel has not been a viable business, and he said the idea to turn the space into small condominiums came because he sees a demand for smaller units than are currently being built in the neighborhood.
City Council Member Terry Tracy said if the units could be guaranteed as livable, she would agree with approval of smaller units. However, she was concerned that the project would merely become another example of so-called $250,000 parking spaces, which is "not going to be a benefit to the community."
Barsotti said he could not control what buyers would do with the spaces, but he added that interest in the condominiums has come from people who have stayed at the hotel and he did not expect people would buy them only to gain easy access to the ski lifts.
Councilman Randy Hall said the hair stood up on the back of his neck when he thought of some of the early planning decisions that took place during his early tenure working for the city. Those decisions have contributed to deadening commerce and the community around the base area. Barsotti, who has lived in Ketchum for more than 25 years, said that last summer he only saw one other person at a pool where he swims regularly.
The council agreed that steps need to be taken to rejuvenate Warm Springs. Mayor Ed Simon said that Sun Valley Resort could be part of the solution. A suggestion was made that opening the ski lift for summer trips could help. Promoting recreation and affordable housing were both suggested as potential solutions.
Toward the end of the discussion, as the council made some quick calculations about what Barsotti's condominiums could cost, Simon asked if Barsotti would consider selling the condominiums to the Blaine County-Ketchum Affordable Housing Authority. Barsotti said yes.
Consideration of the preliminary plat application was continued to March 21, the second city council meeting in the month.
Ketchum developer Brian Barsotti
