OTHER
1.What if any mitigation will be required for water use?
SilverStar Destinations has met with representatives of Sunriver Water, LLC to address this issue. Water mitigation credits as required for the development can be purchased on the open market. These credits will be purchased at the appropriate time as required as a condition of approval of the development.
2. Clarify how fire protection will be provided for the proposed building heights and densities.
(Site Plan Question)- All buildings in the Town Center District will be fire sprinklered. In addition and as is evidenced by a letter submitted to county planning staff by Art Hatch, Sunriver Fire Chief, SilverStar Destinations has met with representatives of the fire department on a number of occasions. We are reviewing different strategies for fire fighting in taller structures including new fire equipment with higher firefighting capacities as well as equipment that can be installed within a building to be used on taller buildings. If new equipment is required to service the development, SilverStar Destinations will pay the incremental cost for these upgrades. The specifics of the issue will be addressed during conceptual and site plan review.
3. How will commercial rents compare with current rents? Will they be 10%, 20% or 30% higher?
As a percentage of monthly and annual sales, we expect rental rates to be lower than they are currently. While rent structures have not been finalized, and won’t be until after the construction budgets are confirmed, we are building this facility as an investment in a successful retail core as we intend to own this asset after the private residences are sold. There is very little relevance to the comparison of 2007 rental rates in the current, failing village, to 2010 rates in a new facility, with new use and occupancy patterns in an invigorated, energized commercial core. We will expect to move our rent structures to, primarily, “percentage rent” – which means a floor rate that’s at or below current rent, plus a percentage of the tenants’ sales above a designated threshold.
The desired result is that we only collect more rent if the tenants are making more money from sales.
4. How can Applicant demonstrate that 400 units of residential would not support the project?
The Village at Sunriver is not an easy project. If it were, any of the previous owners or other outside developers would have attempted the project earlier. If this were an easy project, Sunriver Resort would have attempted this project a long time ago. Existing structures have to be torn down. Existing infrastructure needs to be improved and replaced. SilverStar Destinations has stepped up to the plate where nobody else would due to our commitment to the community and has agreed to purchase property based on our SROA agreement. The economic viability of this project is based upon the level of density included in this proposal. Reductions from these reasonable density levels will jeopardize the entire project.
5. How can Applicant demonstrate that they have the experience and resources to complete this project?
SilverStar Destinations is not the subject of the Text Amendment process and our capabilities should have nothing to do with this approval. However, principals of SilverStar Destinations have completed over $500 million in development. In addition, officers of the team have been involved in the development of Keystone Resort, Durango Mountain Resort and Pronghorn Resort. The consultant team for The Village has worked on many of the finest resort communities in North America including Whistler, Mammoth Mountain, Revelstoke. Snowmass, Sandestin, Tamarack, Copper Mountain, Winter Park and Vail, just to name a few.
SilverStar Destinations has already funded more than $30 million for the acquisition of many of the properties within the proposed Town Center District. Funding of buildings will be made through commercial financing that is secured through an organized “presale launch process” as is typically used in the resort development industry.
6. What will the project look like if the sale of the SROA acreage is not approved?
Given the level of support and the mandate that we have received from the community, this has not been an option that we have explored in detail. However, it’s likely that one of two circumstances would result:
1) We would develop a smaller village center that would not include comprehensive enhancement of the full commercial area of Sunriver, including the restructuring of the failed traffic circulation system that is included in our current plan. The other aspect to this scenario is that current owners of adjacent facilities (including Silverstar) could potentially develop individual, one-off developments of a similar character, but without the benefit of consolidated/compatible grading plans, architectural styles, use restrictions, and tenant mixes. Much like the current commercial area has been fragmented and developed inconsistently over many years, any new facilities would similarly lack the cohesion and compatibility that our master plan provides.
2) We would make no further investment in the commercial assets we own, and would likely attempt to fill vacancies in an as-is condition. We would also seek to reduce our operating costs for the facilities, by reducing daily maintenance to base levels, and would remove other components of our current operating initiatives that have served to stabilize and improve the facility to retain customer and user loyalty. We would also solicit a financial buyer for the facility, who would likely operate the facility in a fashion similar to prior owners who were dissuaded from investing in redevelopment.
The text amendment process is intended to create the “framework” for a detailed development plan to be developed. However, in good faith, SilverStar Destinations has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to be able to show the community what the Village at Sunriver might look like if the development were approved. We urge the Board of County Commissioners to approve the text amendment so that we can begin the next level of design and collaboration with the Sunriver Community.
