The 77-acre Warm Springs Ranch property in northwestern Ketchum has again been bought, this time by a McCall luxury resort interest.
But due to an option that was part of the sale, it may yet see another owner before the year is out.
"We're really excited about the acquisition," John Sabala, president of operations for Whitetail Club, said by phone Tuesday. "Doug Manchester (of Manchester Financial Group) and myself are both very excited about master planning the property. I think it would be a lot of fun to do a project there, and we're only going to do it right."
Whitetail Club bought the property from Sun Valley Ventures. The sale closed Monday, May 1, for an undisclosed sum, and includes the site's 17-acre estate lot, said Dick Fenton, a Ketchum real estate broker speaking on behalf of Whitetail.
The new owners have no immediate plans to develop the property or open facilities because they may have to sell it within the year.
"In conjunction with that acquisition, they have granted an option to Ivanhoe Capital, which gives them eight months to purchase it from Whitetail," Fenton said.
That option was a mandatory part of the purchase, Sabala said.
"We hope we'll get the land," he said. "It's a risk we're taking."
A memorandum of option, stating Ivanhoe Capital's option to purchase, is filed at the Blaine County Recorder's Office.
Fenton said that Ivanhoe Capital is "in some fashion" related to Wood River Valley resident George Tischer.
Tischer, reached by phone Tuesday, said he had no comment on the Warm Springs Ranch sale and would not confirm his or his family trust's interest in the matter.
Tischer and Sun Valley Ventures owner Steve Roth were one-time business partners who ended up in a complex, multi-year legal battle relating to the ownership of and interest in the Warm Springs property.
The dispute appeared to be resolved in January when parties settled out of court on the day a damages trial was to begin.
Roth did not immediately return a call Monday.
Fenton said that despite the option, Whitetail is the sole owner.
"Whitetail owns it free and clear of any involvement of Sun Valley Ventures or Ivanhoe," Fenton added. "They're not partners and it's not a joint venture."
The property was the subject of much public debate last summer as Sun Valley Ventures proposed a $200 million development on the site. Plans called for an annexation of land, a boutique hotel, guest cabins and a nature preserve.
Last summer, however, hotel operator Noble House Hotels pulled out of the project and sold its 20 percent share to majority partner Roth.
A golf course advocated by some Ketchum City Council members was the sticking point, project manager Henry Dean said at the time.
If Ivanhoe Capital exercises its option to buy the property, Fenton said, "then it's whatever Ivanhoe wants."
If Whitetail maintains ownership, "they will do something really, really nice," Fenton said. "Whitetail are great people. I think they could do something spectacular with Warm Springs if that opportunity presents itself."
