Jennings: Tamarack teaches value of planning
Those who have supported Mount Spokane’s recently approved expansion have often been frustrated with the process.
But the arduous and contentious journey to completion for such a project provides opportunities to solve problems and help ensure long-term success.
What can happen otherwise is evident with Tamarack, the ski area in central Idaho that was developed on the fast track in a fever of real estate speculation 10 years ago. The spectacular rise and fall of Tamarack and its developer, Jean-Pierre Boespflug, was either a horrible turn of bad luck, or a classic cautionary tale of recklessness. Yet the story could still have a happy ending.
Following the financial crisis and a collapse in luxury resort real estate, Tamarack imploded. Credit Suisse was left holding the bag for about $350 million. Village construction halted. Temporary buildings have become permanent. The bank threatened to tear out the chair lifts and dismantle infrastructure brick by brick.
But Tamarack is the ski area that refused to die. Credit Suisse wasn’t the only investor that put faith in Boespflug’s vision. People who bought homes and rentals there formed the Tamarack Municipal Association, which has been keeping the skiing and riding on life support for Credit Suisse in an effort to preserve the value of their assets.
After Tamarack went into default and Boespflug disappeared, the ski area closed for the 2009-10 season. But after reopening in the winter of 2010, Tamarack has been fighting its way back to viability. That progress can be seen now as the ski area resumes seven-day operations starting Dec. 12.
That’s good news. So is the fact that Tamarack can offer a high-quality skiing and riding experience, which given its recent travails, is vastly undervalued. If you’re willing to drive about 4 1/2 hours south of here, you’ll find a unique winter getaway at a bargain price.
“Right now we’re pretty happy with the product we can offer,” said Wolfe Ashcraft, marketing and recreation manager at Tamarack. “We’ve got a lot of terrain available that’s underutilized. You can get ski packages for about $100 a night per person. That’s a screaming deal by any standard, especially for the vertical, the terrain, the amenities and high speed lifts. You can get make a lot of turns in a day for that price.”
Tamarack has about 900 acres of lift-served terrain. It’s not a steep hill, but the long, rolling groomers take full advantage of 2,800 vertical feet in a way that makes the area seem bigger. The glades were cut with just the right turn shape in mind. A short hike down a ridge from the summit can bring you to epic side country powder, if you’re willing to ski down to the road and put your thumb out.
When you arrive at Tamarack, you’ll see blocks of unfinished condos encased in Tyvek. The base area and Seven Devils restaurant still operate from the temporary sprung fabric structures that have been there since the beginning. But the Lodge at Osprey Meadows, which never closed, offers first class accommodation.
Although the place was created to sell real estate, Tamarack has managed to survive by focusing on the main reason a mountain resort should exist in the first place: skiing and riding.
“We’re really excited about being open seven days a week now,” Ashcraft said. “It’s one of the latest little baby steps we’ve been taking to add value. We can really call ourselves a destination resort now, with operations seven days a week.”
As for the whereabouts of Boespflug, Ashcraft said no one really knows. But he said the Frenchman shouldn’t be regarded as merely the villain in this story.
“Everybody blamed J.P for everything, but you have to give him some credit, too,” he said. “It was his vision that created this whole thing and put the infrastructure in place so that we could survive. If the houses weren’t built and the roads weren’t put in and the lifts never installed, we would have faded away. We haven’t, and we’re not going to.”