VAIL RESORTS EXPANDS INTO GOLF

Source: Vail Resorts/Denver Rocky Mountain News

August 19, 1999
DENVER, CO -- Vail Resorts is expanding its real estate ventures away from its ski mountains and into golf.

The ski company has submitted development plans to Eagle County, Colorado, officials for two 18-hole golf courses and 87 homes near Wolcott, about eight miles west of its popular Beaver Creek ski resort.

The project, called Red Sky Ranch, will be built on 425 acres the company owns one mile south of Wolcott. It is being developed as an extension of their ski resort company.

According to Mark Thorne, vice president of development for Red Sky Ranch, golf has become a key attraction for summer visitors to Vail and Beaver Creek. But the company's Beaver Creek course -- the only one it operates in Eagle County -- has not kept up with the demand.

"Beaver Creek is very full. Our guests often have to take what they can get on (the county's) public courses or know someone who is part of a private course," Thorne said.

The two new courses will be split between membership play and guest use. The first one is scheduled to open in the summer of 2002, with the other following in 2003.

Analysts like the idea of Vail branching out.

"If you can be a year-round cash flow generating company, that's ideal," said Stacy Forbes, an analyst with Janco Partners.

Sales of the exclusive, upscale homes should also generate hefty profits for Vail. Each home will include anywhere from one to 10 acres of land. About 70 percent of the site will remain as open space. A wildlife corridor will also be maintained.

Thorne expects the project to appeal to out-of-state visitors who ski at Vail and Beaver Creek, but want to spend more time in the area in the summer. The development may also draw existing homeowners who want more space.

The company plans to start pre-sales next spring and summer. The first completed homes should be available by the summer of 2002.

Thorne estimates that it will take Vail six to eight months to gain county approval for the project. The company owns a total of 780 acres outside Wolcott, but Thorne said there are no immediate plans to develop the other 355 acres at the site.