Friday, March 28, 2008

Support the resort


Daren Pennell is a real estate agent who lives in the Warm Springs neighborhood of Ketchum.

By DAREN PENNELL

As a resident in Warm Springs, parent of two elementary school children and a person who relies on our economy to make a living, I have closely followed the proposed Warm Springs Ranch Resort project and attended numerous meetings and presentations on it, which began in June 2007. DDRM Greatplace, the Park City-based developer of the project, has presented us with a proposal for a world-class resort that will attract new people, provide us with recreational opportunities and meeting facilities, inject dollars into our economy and protect more than 86 percent of passive and active open space.

On the deck of the Warm Springs Restaurant last June and July and at every other meeting I have attended since, DDRM has said that officials from St. Regis hotel operators, who are building a hotel with DDRM in Deer Valley, have participated in design meetings since April 2007. Since then, DDRM has continually asked our community for our input and has spent time and money making changes based on our feedback. To me, that shows commitment, and these are exactly the kind of people I want designing a resort to put Ketchum back on the map. It's ironic that someone such as Wally Limburg (letter to editor—March 12), who makes his living by putting huge, box retail stores in people's neighborhoods, is attacking an upscale resort project that will have significant benefits for our community.

The ranch is the right place for a resort. The base of Warm Springs and River Run are fine for hotels, but this is our only opportunity for Ketchum to have a resort with amenities such as a spa, golf, extensive trails, an events lawn for weddings, concerts and more. All of this will be accessible to locals, and the millions of dollars the project will provide to the city and our local merchants will allow us to improve our infrastructure and services, making this a fun place to live, work and play, as well as a viable place to raise a family.

Warm Springs Ranch Resort is also being designed in an environmentally friendly way, using green building practices to minimize its impact. The project would be a model of sustainability and would be something we can all be proud of. Also, it fits extremely well into the site, as over half the hotel is below the grade of Warm Springs Road and has Baldy behind it to help keep the scale of the project in perspective.

As I understand it, DDRM will announce who the hotel operator will be once the city and the community have helped shape the project through the city's hearing process. This is consistent with the decision-making process of any quality corporation making a long-term commitment. It is clear to me that they have the experience and the relationships to bring in a high-quality hotel we can be proud of. These are the people I want as partners in revitalizing this community, and the sooner the better.




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