Mt Bachelor plans next growth phase

On Thursday, Mt. Bachelor released a list of proposed updates to its master development plan, which outlines where and how the resort will grow.

Items at the top of the list include new mountain biking trails that would be serviced by the Pine Marten Express lift, a freestanding climbing wall at the Pine Marten Lodge, a summer downhill hiking trail from the top of the Pine Marten Express to the West Village and a new east-side chairlift that would service a new trail network of eight to 10 runs.

Mt. Bachelor is considering several improvements aimed at the summer season because of high demand from visitors.

“Mountain biking is the biggest part of what we think would be an attraction,” Mt Bachelor's CEO says. “We have unbelievably good cross-country mountain biking in Central Oregon already, and what we hear from locals and folks outside the area is that it would be great to have a gravity-fed experience off Mt. Bachelor.”

The second phase of development would be focused primarily on the Sunrise area, which would be transformed into an area for young skiers. The Sunrise Lodge would become a children's center with a new entrance and expanded parking area, and new beginner ski lifts would be added.

In the third phase, the Red Chair lift area would be renovated, and a new parking lot would be added in the West Village area.

With new air service, a link to East Coast

United Airlines has announced daily nonstop flight service from Redmond to Denver will be offered year-round. This is great news for tourism in our region. "We really see Denver not as the destination but really as just the one-stop service that opens up the entire East Coast" said Alana Audette, the President and CEO of Central Oregon Visitors Association. "All of the major metro areas east of Denver have nonstop service to Denver."

Tourism is estimated to have a $571 million annual economic impact on the region, according to COVA research, and air service plays a vital role in funneling in much of that business.

Denver International, the nation’s sixth-busiest airport, is one of seven daily destinations from Redmond Airport, joining Eugene (Horizon Air, effective in November), Los Angeles (Horizon), Portland (Horizon and United), Seattle (Horizon), Salt Lake City (Delta Air Lines) and San Francisco (United).

Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air flies twice weekly to Las Vegas and the Phoenix area.

Flying a 50-seat regional jet operated by SkyWest Airlines, travelers can fly from Redmond to Denver at 11 a.m. and return from Denver at 5 p.m. daily.

But, most importantly, Denver represents the eastern-most airport a traveler can reach nonstop from Redmond.

“It’s a big airport and it gets you lots of different places eastward-bound, southeast, northeast and even on to international destinations,” said Roger Lee, the executive director of Economic Development for Central Oregon. “It’s one of the things that we lacked in this area for a long time. About four years (when Delta Air Lines began offering service to Salt Lake City) is all we’ve had eastern service in this region. Before that, we had to fly west in order to fly east,” he added.

At a time when many airlines are cutting back, Redmond has actually grabbed more seats with the addition of the Denver flight and United’s decision earlier this year to fly a 50-seat regional jet into San Francisco rather than a smaller propeller plane.

“Being able to open up the Denver service at a time when everything else is being cut back, I think, speaks volumes about Central Oregon and our potential for coming out of this recession and the airlines being able to see the long-term viability of Central Oregon,” Audette said.

LOCAL LEGISLATORS TO HOLD TOWN HALL

State Representative Gene Whisnant (R-Sunriver) & State Senator Chris Telfer (R-Bend) will hold a joint Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, Oct 28th, 10:30 am – 12:00 noon, at the Sunriver Area Public Library. Purpose of the meeting is to discuss what has been happening at the State Legislature and what these two legislators can do for Central Oregonians. Info – 503-986-1453.

Sunriver Real Estate Update

By John Watkins, Broker

jdw48@mac.com

We closed out third quarter of 2009 (Q3 09) with a transaction volume of $10.3 million and 27 closed deals. By comparison Q3 08 had 25 closed deals and $12. 5 million in volume. Q3 09 had a carryover of pending deals from Q2 of $3.3 million and 10 transactions. The good new is that the carry over from Q3 09 to Q4 09 is 23 transactions and $10 million in volume. Q4 08 had 27 transactions and 14.3 million in volume, with the big carry over from Q3 09 to Q4 09 we could finally see a quarter over quarter $ volume increase in Q4 numbers.

Sorry for all the numbers, but they do tell the story. We are selling as many or more home than we sold last year in Sunriver, they are just less expensive homes. The market is improving because sellers are pricing there homes to sell and interest rates are now finally back below 5%.

The combination of low prices and low interest rates makes this truly the best of times if you are a buyer.

Goodbye Fall - Hello Winter!!

What we woke up to Sunday morning (October 4th, 2009).

Smoke blankets Sunriver

The smoke is from the Tumblebug Complex Fire, about five miles southwest of Crescent Lake, and the Boze and Rainbow Creek Fire west of Diamond Lake.

With hot, dry weather and an unstable atmosphere keeping the fires burning, they could keep sending up smoke for at least several weeks.

“They're both in the early stages of being suppressed,” Gibbons said. “With increased winds predicted, it looks like they're going to be active for the near future.”

The winds are still predicted to be pushing smoke toward Bend today and Saturday, said Joe Solomon, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Pendleton.

Smoke levels are getting up in the range we consider to be unhealthy for certain groups,” said Mark Fisher, acting air quality eastern region manager with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, listing groups like the elderly, children and people with asthma or heart or lung conditions. “They should stay inside, hopefully in places where there's a good ventilation system or air-conditioning system that has a filter on it.”

For information on these and other fires burning around Oregon visit: http://www.nwccweb.us/information/firemap.asp

Here comes the SNOW!!!!

Photo taken 9-30-09

Photo taken 9-30-09

October is here - welcoming us with a crystal clear day and a snow covered mountain. Not super deep, but always nice to see. The Cone is looking good, meaning its white, but you'd have to be nuts to slide down it. 1" is not enough. Forecasts call for a brief warm up then a return to cold and snow over the weekend. October is lining up to be a busy month for Mt Bachelor (Packed with video premieres, ski shows and sports swaps). Be sure to check out Mt Bachelor's Events Calendar for a list of upcoming events. Winter opening day is projected for Nov 20. Check out a rundown of summer projects that you can look forward to this winter by clicking here.

Season Pass Options
A new 12-Day Pass priced at $399 joins the regular pass line-up this year and the soon-to-be-available Club Card offers a reduced rate on single day tickets. The 12-Day Pass and all other passes are available at the lowest rates of the year through September 30. Season pass information and product purchase details are available at www.mtbachelor.com.

Snowsports School Introductory Programs
The Mt. Bachelor Snowsports School has developed a host of new programs and deals to increase participation in snowsports while improving the skills of current participants. The new “Ski or Ride in 5” program offers 5 beginner lessons to be used throughout the season with special “graduation presents” for guests who complete the program, including free skiing for the remainder of the season. The popular All Mountain Kids season-long camps, which offer a summer camp experience on the snow with the same coach, are now priced including a full season pass. A new online portal at www.mtbachelor.com has been built for the Mt. Bachelor
Snowsports School to describe the variety of offerings available.

Sliding Scale Daily Tickets
Recently covered in Fortune Magazine, Mt. Bachelor is preparing to offer sliding scale daily lift ticket pricing based upon the amount of terrain available and weather conditions. A single day adult lift ticket will be $69, $59, or $49 depending on the day’s terrain and weather. More information about the sliding scale pricing model is available on the lift ticket page of www.mtbachelor.com.

New Trail Map
For the first time in 14 years, Mt. Bachelor has redesigned the ski area trail map artwork from scratch to improve guest navigation. Using new technology that combines high resolution satellite imagery with elevation data, the new trail map is more accurate than previous renditions and is completely to scale. The new technology has also allowed for the Westside of the ski area to be pictured in the same manner as the front side, as opposed to a smaller inset.

For more information visit: www.MtBachelor.com