Blue Mountain Waterpark

[Kyle]

All the way to Sunday river

[toast21602]

All the way to Sunday river

 

el oh el.

[Ride Delaware ?]

All the way to Sunday river

Well played...

[toast21602]

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-blue-mountain-water-park-plan-20130225,0,293286.story

By Daniel Patrick Sheehan, Of The Morning Call

 

5:16 a.m. EST, February 26, 2013

Turn your thoughts away from these dreary February days and think ahead to the hot and hazy days of summer.

Not this summer, but summer 2016. By then, if all goes well, the Blue
Mountain Ski Area and Resort will also be home to a massive water park
called Summit Splash — wave pool, water slides and a "lazy river"
feature where you'll drift along like old Huck Finn on the Mississippi.

Enticing, yes? Groundbreaking on the roughly $30 million project is
scheduled for April 1, said Matthias Fenstermacher, vice president of
Serfass Construction in Allentown and project executive for the
long-planned park.

"A very cool thing,"
Fenstermacher said, speaking specifically of the panoramic views that
visitors will enjoy from the wave pool but more broadly of the project
itself, which will be built in phases and ultimately cover about 60
acres of the Palmerton-area resort.

Serfass was awarded the
construction contract earlier this month. The project, however, which
will create about 100 full-time and 400 part-time jobs, has been
discussed for years.

"I started here about five years ago and one of the first things I
was hearing from customers during the winter months was, 'Why don't you
have a hotel here?' " Blue Mountain President Barbara Green said. "So we
did a feasibility study for a hotel, and they said it's a 'no go'
without a summer activity."

Green reviewed all the warm-weather activities offered at similar
resorts — zip lines, mountain biking — and concluded none would create
enough business to sustain a hotel.

But a water park? Camelback Ski Resort in Tannersville, less than an
hour from Blue Mountain, had hit a home run with its own, Camelbeach,
touted as the largest water park in Pennsylvania.

A park at Blue Mountain could draw up to 3,000 visitors a day, studies estimated.

"It's a good operational fit," Green said. "Between 3 and 5 percent
of people will ski or snowboard and about 85 percent will go to a water
park. To me it's a natural fit with a ski area. And Camelback has proven
it can be done and done well."

Blue Mountain already offers such non-skiing attractions as disc golf
and mountain biking. It also hosts weddings and other events, including
a blues festival. Green said the addition of the water park should be
more than enough to fill the planned 110-room hotel.

Blue Mountain is hardly the only resort looking to expand beyond the
cold months, and the reason touches on one of the hot topics of the day —
climate change.

In December, the New York Times
reported that fears of climate change were prompting many ski areas to
convert into four-season destinations, adding spas, pools and other
attractions.

The newspaper cited one report that said more than half of the
Northeast's 103 ski resorts would not be able to sustain a 100-day ski
season by 2039 because of warming.

Green, however, said the Blue Mountain project had nothing to do with climate change.

"What entered my calculus is that we would service 350,000 to 400,000
visitors [during the ski season] and for nine months lay dormant," she
said. "It doesn't make financial sense to have all this property and not
do anything with it."

daniel.sheehan@mcall.com

610-820-6598

Copyright © 2013, The Morning Call

Edited February 26, 2013 by toast21602

[indiggio]

I haven't done calculus since college...

[Ride Delaware ?]

Id love to see the phase layout of this project. They say it will break ground this April, be built in phases, but won't open until 2016? That's for to be a typo. 2014 for the first phase maybe? Even Sno Cove, with all it's fuckups, only took 2 years to get open. That's a long time to be putting out that much money and not realizing any benefit.

[indiggio]

Signs on windows in Blue's lobby say Opening 2015.

 

I would think the article, being the latest interview, would be most accurate.

[toast21602]

The first phase is moving the access road so the park can be built where the old one is. They can't start construction on the physical water park until that road is gone. That's why I think it will be a while. I believe the 'start' of the project is just improving the access and parking and tree removal - then water park crap. I could be wrong, but that makes the most sense I believe that's what I heard.

[Ride Delaware ?]

3,000 people a day..wow...the lines will be insane...I am psyched for the hotel..if my paper is straight I might get a room from time to time...will save gas on the 17 mile drive

Think it will stop at the hotel, or continue into condo development? If it becomes year round, that may be enticing to some folks.

[Ride Delaware ?]

Back in 2006 they were talking about a timeshare and new lodge. I hope they build condos and houses will make Blue more legit.

Hopefully that will lead to improvements for the ski area...

[Ski2Live Live2Ski]

This place gets so crowded on weekends already, one shudders to think what it will be like if they make it more enticing with condos, etc. Not sure condos/hotel are that great a fit for a mountain this size anyway, I tend to have skied everything interesting a few times already in one day and look forward to skiing somewhere else the next day.

[indiggio]

This place gets so crowded on weekends already, one shudders to think what it will be like if they make it more enticing with condos, etc. Not sure condos/hotel are that great a fit for a mountain this size anyway, I tend to have skied everything interesting a few times already in one day and look forward to skiing somewhere else the next day.

 

Right! Blue may end up being a victim of their own success, if it's so crowded it drives people away...

 

I'll surely be doing more after work skiing, if the weekends get beyond out of control.

[Johnny Law]

They have to get approval from the state to move the road so that alone takes forever.

 

Blue needs more trails, they need to thin the noob herds across the mtn. ....lol like that will ever happen.

[Kyle]

In fifteen years Blue could have another pod of trails and a

New lift!!

How much land do they own on the other side of paradise?

[toast21602]

About a mile

 

About a mile

[RootDKJ]

About a mileAbout a mile

what what?

[Johnny Law]

Almost as much land as the current ski area. Thy are just so slow in trail expansion. Nightmare-dreamweaver took like5 years.

 

 

I think it's even further than that, like toast said about a mile down the ridge or half way to schaffer rd.

[Ride Delaware ?]

Does anybody know what the permitting process is for new trails in PA? I know it's incredibly difficult for expansion up north because of the Act 250 permits, but that's only because they don't own the property or it's in the public domain, correct? Is it difficult for them to up and cut a new trail? That's usually what eats up the time and funds up north...

[Johnny Law]

Does anybody know what the permitting process is for new trails in PA? I know it's incredibly difficult for expansion up north because of the Act 250 permits, but that's only because they don't own the property or it's in the public domain, correct? Is it difficult for them to up and cut a new trail? That's usually what eats up the time and funds up north...

 

Alot of ski areas in popular areas are essentially permanent leases. Its a 99 year lease with pretty much unlimited re-ups.

 

So Alta is no boarders right but Alta is just the buildings and the little big of land under the lift pads, everything else is FS. Now Alta leases that land from FS in a 99 year dealio, in exchange for expansions and shit you normally do some kind of land swap.

 

So Dick Bass owns the Bird, Dick Bass wants to expand the Bird, Dick Bass is very important mining dude so he goes to the FS and says I'll give you 10,000 acres in no where's ville UT for the 500 acres I want near the Bird. Done deal. More accurately he calls his congress person who he golfs with and says get me a deal for Mary Ellen Gulch and the congressperson and FS work something out.

 

The other problem is some spots have historical abnormalities so when Alta wanted to put a lift up flagstaff for avy mitigation they released an ownership map of LCC, it looks like the most complicated jigsaw puzzle ever. Basically FS owns the vast majority, Alta has a little and there are a bunch of little private plots all of the place. Single acre jobs that were before the FS/National Park system. These people can cause trouble because mostly they own the land for lease $$$$ though there are certainly some houses here and there.

 

In the NE you have a couple of problems, first the Daks have the strictest laws anywhere because they provide all of NYC's drinking water. You can't have a trail wider than 10ft outside of Whiteface though they have some really draconian shit to deal with as well.

 

In the Whites its predominantly FS but with random private pockets from 100's of years ago. Randolph Mtn Club was an old rich dude's play houses and when he died he gifted them to his club, the FS essentially says run this shit for us but you better follow our rules. Hence why RMC has three cabins/huts and pretty much runs the show in the King/Castle area. ADK too, the JBL/LOJ are historical private plots merged into the larger ADK park rules. Shit outside of the high peaks most of the Daks are a private/public partnership as people lived there before it became a park.

 

The Greens are a real clusterfuck, the state owns some shit, the feds own some shit, UVM runs shit on the behest of the state, private parties own shit. There are tens of agreements resorts have entered regarding everything from expansion to simple trail maintenance. Jay got popped about 10 years back for getting too crazy on the tree trimming and had to give some $$$ and sign a we will be nice to the trees contract. So when those two red necks clear cut little jay shit got nasty for the resort even though they didn't directly do anything.

 

Additionally most of these places need to do Environmental Impact assessments and probably some kind of mitigation. For Mary Ellen Gulch that's a two year process though that probably isn't the best example. LCC/BCC shit is touchy. Add in financing for the larger expansions and the shitty nature of ski area expansions and it can be a long ass process.

 

For Blue I believe they are in a far better position, most of the land there is privately owned by them. They have some rules regarding the AP trail and shit but the permitting process is more streamlined. I assume they have to do an Enivo Impact Assessment but honestly don't know. Additionally any land up there would be state or local which is a hell of alot easier particularly because I have to believe Barb is a kinda of a big bopper in that neck of the woods.

 

I haven't hung out in Palmerton every really but what they hell else is in that area with that kinda $$$.

 

A particular problem to PA is electricity/water usage. Spring can blow alot of snow because they can drain that river and are positioned very close to lots of houses so the local plants have the necessary peak capacity for when the pumps and guns switch on. Bear on the other hand has to go ponds and can't run everything at once because the power company can't provide that kind of peak power.

 

I don't know about Blue's power issues I assume they don't have any really due to their location and I think the high voltage lines go that way anyways. I think they used to have water issues, about the time they did the Paradise expansion I remember a bunch of water trucks parked near the newish pond next to the quad. I haven't seen that shit recently but I was also about 12 so maybe I got that expansion wrong in my head.

[Ride Delaware ?]

I would assume that if they outright own the property, things would be much easier. I know that CNL, whom Boyne leases SR from, owns all of the property the resort is on. SR has recently begun cutting a new adventure/park trail, and it didn't seem to be a large process at all. I guess owning the property makes it much easier.

 

I was just interested to see how difficult it would be for Blue to get this dealio done and started...

[indiggio]

I wonder what's on the front-burner?

 

Seems like the water park instead of trail expansion...

[toast21602]

Blue should have a glade cutting day. Just let people come up and thin out some trees. I would gladly do it for free, but they don't see that. Last year they had a day where people could come up and do trail work for the mountain bike trails and they asked for people to send in resumes with previous trail work. wtf? free help is free help.

[NMSKI]

The thought of people running around with saws on their property probably scares the shit out of them, but if they did that I would gladly help out too.

[indiggio]

Blue should have a glade cutting day. Just let people come up and thin out some trees. I would gladly do it for free, but they don't see that. Last year they had a day where people could come up and do trail work for the mountain bike trails and they asked for people to send in resumes with previous trail work. wtf? free help is free help.

 

Woo Hoo! I'd even buy a new chain for the saw!

 

Probably lawyers got involved and put the kibash on it...

[RootDKJ]

Blue should have a glade cutting day. Just let people come up and thin out some trees. I would gladly do it for free, but they don't see that. Last year they had a day where people could come up and do trail work for the mountain bike trails and they asked for people to send in resumes with previous trail work. wtf? free help is free help.

I'd do it for a day.