Winter Advertising Efforts

http://www.yahoo.com/

http://www.google.com/

The Oregon Trip Planner provides the nuts and bolts to planning a trip in Oregon:

1. How to get from A to Z - detailed maps and travel planning resources

2. What to do - attractions, events and activities

3. Where to stay - The Oregon Trip Planner includes a comprehensive list of lodging properties throughout Oregon, including listings provided by the Oregon Lodging Asssociation.

4. Where to go - In-depth profiles of Oregon's seven regions and special niche itineraries.

The Oregon Trip Planner is distributed at all nine official state welcome centers, several of the major airports in Oregon and more than 100 visitor centers statewide.

This is the front and back of a postcard we are mailing out this winter to attract business during January, February and March.

Our Sunriver Scene Ad.

www.PetFriendlyTravel.com

And the snow keeps on coming.

There is currently about 14 inches of snow in Sunriver and about 52 inches of snow on Mt Bachelor. The current forecast shows snow falling every day from now until New Years throughout Central Oregon. It's going to be a white Christmas this year.

Our plowing contractors have been busy plowing homes before arrivals. Here is a driveway that has yet to be plowed.

Sunriver Sledding Park.

Sunriver Needs New Pools

Will you be in Sunriver during the holidays? If so, please join your neighbors at one of two Owner Forums hosted by the Amenities Task Force. Members of the task force will share information with you about our need to replace the North and South pools. They will also share some options developed by consultants who evaluated our aquatics facilities and envisioned future community amenities. You will have a variety of opportunities to share your thoughts and suggestions regarding the future of our pools.

What: Sunriver Owner Forums
When: Saturday, Dec. 27, 6 pm or Tuesday, Dec. 30, 6 pm
Focus: Sunriver's aging aquatic facilities
Location: SROA Administration Building, next to the fire station

We are currently working on dates for additional Owner Forums in Eugene, Salem, and Portland in late January, and are considering forums for Seattle and the SF Bay area. If you would like to attend one of these out-of-town events, please let us know by e-mail at infosroa@srowners.org. Your response will help us secure a facility of adequate size for each forum.

Sunriver Mall sold.

New purchasers pledge to meet with stakeholders and craft a plan that ensures the Village will remain a vibrant community center.

A group of private investors with local ties to the community acquired the Sunriver Village mall on Friday, December 12.

"The investors are committed to the long-term prosperity of Sunriver Village. The transaction came together quickly and the investors do not yet have any specific plans for Sunriver Village," wrote Shelli Petersen, a member of the new management team, in an e-mail that was read aloud during the SROA Board of Directors meeting on Saturday, Dec. 13. "We look forward to meeting with the board and discussing the future redevelopment plans of the village."

"There will be a meeting with key stakeholders in the near future to craft a plan that ensures the Sunriver Village will remain a vibrant community center. The investment group looks forward to being a part of the Sunriver community," Petersen wrote.

Single Digit Temps. in Sunriver

With the snow this weekend came a very sudden drop in temperature. We are seeing below zero temperatures in some areas and single digits in the rest. Today we will be raising the temperature in every home to 75 degrees and making sure that all cupboards to sinks on outside walls are open to get that warm air circulating around the pipes. During these cold times we will keep a constant eye on your home, both physically (by going in house) and through our temperature monitoring system.

We take Safety very seriously.

Safety is often the last thing property owners think about until an accident happens. Then it is the only thing they think about. Accidents are rare, but we (the property owner and Bennington Properties) need to do everything we can to prevent them. Know your risks and be prepared. It is in Bennington Properties' best interest to do everything we can to remedy safety concerns, but ultimately it is your - the property owner's - responsibility to ensure your property is safe for paying guests. Here are some tips to help protect yourself from possible accidents:

1. Make sure you talk to your insurance agent. Many property owners don't share with their insurance agents that they have a "vacation rental" not a "second home" or "long term rental." These are major differences in the insurance world. If you have your home insured only as a "second home" you may not be covered if a guest gets injured. Talk to your insurance agent today to make sure you are adequately insured. ***(Please make sure, if you have not done so already, to add Bennington Properties, LLC. as "Additionally Insured.")

2. Our insurance agent recommends no less than $1,000,000 liability coverage. Starting in 2009, we will require that all new homes to our program have at least $1,000,000 in coverage.

3. Every time you visit your home you should be thinking about safety. If the thought crosses your mind "could this be dangerous?" - don't wait, fix it. We will help you the best we can, but don't rely on us. If you ask us to fix something that is of safety concern give us a deadline and make sure we confirm that it has been done within that time frame.

4. Anytime you hire an independent contractor make sure they show you proof of Workers Compensation insurance if they have employees. If an employee gets hurt doing work at your home and the employer does NOT have worker's compensation insurance, then the State of Oregon will come after you to help pay for medical treatment for their injuries. (Bennington Properties carries workers compensation on all of our employees).

5. Always be on the look out for new safety hazards. Ask yourself questions, like; "What if there was a fire? What would happen if a young child was playing here?" etc.

Here are some of the things we have done recently to help protect your property and to help make it safer:

We have recently completed our Fall winterizing process. This includes a property “walk around” and safety inspection. We have removed any garden hoses to prevent freeze damage and installed missing foundation vents. Deck furniture and BBQs were moved into the garages of many of the homes. The safety inspection is targeted at potential hazards and preparation for the Winter season. We have placed a 5 gal. bucket of cinders at each house so the guests may use these for traction. We will also be closely monitoring those homes with numerous steps to the front door. Snow shovels have been supplied as needed.

In addition to the above, all of the furnaces have been inspected by a licensed heating contractor (unless notified otherwise by the owner) and the fire alarms in each home have been brought up to current standards.

If you are concerned about the safety of your property, please let us know immediately. Thank you for your cooperation. Gene Bennington gene@benningtonproperties.com

Mt Bachelor is OPEN!!!

Mt Bachelor opened today for the first time this season. Only two lifts were operating (Pine Martin Express and Sunshine Accelerator). It turned out to be a beautiful day on the mountain with the sun shining through for most of the day, and just a light cloud cover. Very cold though (temps in the signal digits) and the base still needs a lot of snow to cover up the rocks and trees still poking through. Overall it was a great first day (lots of energy and excitment).

Here is a photo on the way up the mountain this morning.

It's great to finally see skiers on the mountain. I heard complaints about exposed rocks, but for the most part it seemed everyone was happy to be hitting the slopes.

This shot was taken at about 2:00. Only a quarter of the parking lot was full.