Work picks up at Greek Peak hotel

 Bob Ellis/staff photographer
Tom Pelis, vice president of engineering for the Hope Lake Lodge at Greek Peak, walks over the site Tuesday afternoon. The rear foundation wall, the length of a football field, has already been poured.

March 13, 2008
By EVAN GEIBEL
Staff Reporter
egeibel@cortlandstandard.net

VIRGIL — The pickup truck parked in what would eventually be the lobby of Hope Lake Lodge. Standing on a muddy terrace, Greek Peak’s vice president of engineering and construction, Tom Pelis, pointed to piles of debris and explained that one marked the location of the spa, another the restaurant and yet another the location of an arcade.
The walls of the first floor of the Hope Lake Lodge have begun to jut from the ground of the site, just down Route 392 from the Greek Peak Mountain Resort. Pelis, who oversees construction for the ski resort, said he gets just a bit irritated when people ask when the project’s going to begin.
“We’ve gone through two summers of site work,” Pelis said, shaking his head in disbelief. “Over 150,000 yards of material has been moved to level the site and grade it.”
But now about 500 yards of concrete have been poured, and portions of the retaining walls that will eventually form the east side of the complex’s hotel tower can now be seen rising above the site since work on them began in January.
The 424-unit, five-story hotel and condominium has been in various stages of development for years, but Greek Peak’s contractors have only begun pouring concrete and actually putting infrastructure in the ground since early December. The goal is to have the building “dried-in,” or closed to the elements, by the time winter hits again at the end of this year, with a scheduled completion sometime in the first quarter of 2009, Pelis said.
In addition to the site work and retaining walls, elevator shafts have been sunk 50 feet into the ground and public water and sewer have been installed. Some construction materiel is on site, and Pelis said that more is on its way, including structural steel and concrete planking for the ceiling of the first floor.
One of the major next steps is bringing in the timber frame for the lodge and hotel.
Only about 500 cubic yards of a total of 2,000 yards of cast-in-place concrete have been poured, and the retaining walls will rise another level. Across from those walls on the eastern side of the site, structural steel will eventually be put in place to form the western side of the hotel/condominium. The hotel would be just over the length of a football field and in front of it to the south — yet to be started — stands the “lodge,” which would house the lobby and the hotel’s restaurant, which Pelis said would be named the Acorn Grill.
Pelis walked through the interior of the future hotel tower, pointing to various areas for the spa, the 3,000-square-foot arcade/Family Fun Center and the commercial laundry for handling the multitude of used towels bound to be produced by not only the hotel, but the 22,000-square-foot water park that juts off at an angle from the northwestern side of hotel tower.
Right now, a large rectangular depression marks the future location of the building shell of the water park. Pelis pointed to the future locations of the wave pool, the two waterslide towers that would snake in and out of the building, the kiddie water playground, the indoor/outdoor pool, and other amenities.
“It’s pretty immense,” Pelis said.
Just the construction of the complex is going to cost a total of about $33 million, but add in the engineering work and the cost goes up to about $37 million, Pelis said. The work involves over 30 separate subcontractors, all being overseen by Greek Peak’s general contractor, Krog Corp., which is based in Orchard Park.
Pelis said the project is incorporating some of the latest in environmentally-friendly building techniques, such as a relatively new technique in this country, variable refrigerant volume for heating and cooling. This is more efficient than the geothermal heat pump the hotel originally planned to use, Pelis said.
Other measures include energy efficient lighting throughout the complex, blown-in insulation, and a device to ozonate the water to be used in the laundry — reducing the usage of hot water by 90 percent.
Pelis is excited about other details, such as a system that uses ultraviolet light instead of chlorine to disinfect water in the water park, and a computer system that starts adjusting the temperature in a room once a guest checks in so the room is the perfect temperature when they open the door.
“It’s going to be a lovely property, and since I’m behind the scenes making sure it’s going to be a lovely property, it’ll have a great infrastructure,” Pelis said. “Because I’m a function over form kind of guy.”

Buyer Be Wet
October 12, 2007
By LISA KEYS
The New York Times

WHEN Scott and Sarah Freedman of North Potomac, Md., began to shop for a vacation home three years ago, they envisioned a house near the shore and lazy days at the beach.

They found what they were looking for in a house at the Peninsula on the Indian River Bay, a 1,400-unit development near Rehoboth Beach, Del., for which they paid in the high $500,000s. But something funny happened this past season: the Freedmans didn't hit the beach all that much.

It wasn't the weather that kept them away -- it was the 14,000-square-foot wave lagoon. Instead of slogging to the shore, the Freedmans -- including Ariel, 16, Benny, 9, and Brent, 7 -- spent most days at the wave pool, swimming in the rhythmic waves, relaxing at the surrounding faux beach and taking breaks at the nearby snack bar.

''It's the beach and the sand without the beach and the sand,'' Dr. Freedman, an emergency physician, said of the Peninsula, which will add water slides, fountains and water cannons by next summer. ''Unlike being at the ocean, where both eyes are on your kids, here, one eye can be on the kids, while the other is looking at someone else, knowing your kids' safety is assured.''

Plus, Ms. Freedman added: ''You don't have the beach traffic. It's a five-minute bike ride.''

In the competitive market for second homes, developers are increasingly using water parks to attract buyers. Over the last few years, vacation homes with, or near, water parks -- indoor and outdoor -- have opened at a steady pace. And the trend shows little sign of slowing. Properties currently under construction include the 106-unit Hope Lake Lodge at Greek Peak, a ski resort in Cortland, N.Y., which will have an indoor water park with more than 500 feet of slides, and Silverline, a 90-unit luxury condominium development near Telluride, Colo., that will have a 40,000-square-foot $18 million community recreation center with an indoor water park.

In Kissimmee, Fla., near Orlando, the Ginn Reunion Resort has a 650-person-capacity outdoor water park, which opened in 2005, in addition to three golf courses. About half of the planned 6,000 residences there -- condos and single-family homes and home sites -- have been built. They start at $350,000 for a one-bedroom.

''The water park moves kids and teenagers to the forefront,'' said Chad Turnbull, vice president of sales for real estate at Ginn Reunion Resort. ''It brings a new life to the resort, keeps it from being pretentious and stuffy.''

By far the most common type of residence offered at indoor water parks is the condo-hotel. In the Wisconsin Dells alone, which calls itself ''the water park capital of the world,'' more than 1,000 condo-hotel units have opened over the last few years at five parks. Similar developments are rising in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., and Reno, Nev.

The boom can be attributed, in part, to the increased popularity of water park vacations at hotels. In 2002, according to Jeff Coy, president of JLC Hospitality Consulting in Phoenix, there were 50 hotels with indoor water parks. By the end of this year, there will be 184.

''The old hotel swimming pool is a thing of the past,'' Mr. Coy said.

According to Mr. Coy, of the 36 indoor water park resorts scheduled to open in 2008, 24 are considering adding a condominium element to the property. For many of these developments, condos, a number of which are sold before construction starts, help provide advance financing for a project.

In Reno, the recently renovated Grand Sierra Resort has 10 restaurants and bars and a large casino and plans a 150,000-square-foot indoor water park. The resort also has 2,000 hotel rooms -- 825 of which are part of a luxury condo-hotel within the hotel called the Summit at the Grand Sierra, with prices starting at $265,000.

''For a property to be successful in Reno, you have to be multifaceted,'' said Richard Langlois, the vice president for sales and marketing, noting that nearly 500 units have been sold. ''You have to be able to attract and satisfy all demographics. There's not enough casino business, not enough convention business. We feel with the addition of the water park, there's something to attract independent and family travelers.''

The condo-hotel arrangement allows owners to put their residences into a rental program, garnering a share (typically 50 percent) of a room's nightly revenue. According to statistics from the Condo Hotel Center, a Miami-based real estate company, a resort with an indoor water park typically has a 26 percent higher occupancy rate than a resort without one and has room rates that are, on average, $69 higher.

After selling some real estate in her hometown of San Francisco, Mary Kossick, a registered nurse, looked for a real estate investment that she could enjoy herself. She bought a unit at the Summit in June 2006, and subsequently bought four more. ''I thought it was a great concept -- we don't have anything like that in this area,'' she said. ''I thought it would be good for families; it's something different, with the water park. I see myself using it, too.''

At the Peninsula in Delaware, the idea for a water park evolved from the development's less-than-prime location, eight miles from Rehoboth Beach. ''Why would someone want to live eight miles from the beach?'' said the developer, Larry Goldstein. ''What can we do to create a beach environment? We felt by offering a wave lagoon and water toys, we'd expand our market.''

Developers are hoping that the water parks can transform seasonal destinations into year-round vacation options. A ski resort with a water park, for example, can extend its season well after the snow stops. And since many water parks are built indoors, a condo hotel complex can remain a destination year round.

That's what attracted Stan Prodes, a nurse who lives in Bethlehem, Pa., and his wife, Jane, a teacher, to spend $78,000 for quarter-ownership of a room that sleeps six at Hope Lake Lodge in Cortland. ''We have young kids, so the water park thing is great,'' said Mr. Prodes, an avid skier. ''I see a lot of potential for the future. The prices were great. It was something we could, without any difficulty, pay for and enjoy throughout the year.''

What most water park developments have in common is that they are within driving distance of a metropolitan area.

''Frequently I talk to developers who say, 'I have a project I'm building in McGregor, Iowa, or the Wisconsin Dells.' I think, 'Who in the world would want to go there?''' said Joel Greene, president of Condo Hotel Center. ''But if you're in Chicago, it's a three- or four-hour drive away. If you can rest in the pool and the kids can have a great day on the slides, and it's 74 degrees inside and 12 degrees outside, it makes sense.''

As part of a $200 million expansion project that began in the summer of 2005, Chula Vista Resort in the Wisconsin Dells added 182 condo units connected by a tunnel to a new indoor water park. (There are an additional 103 condos on the resort's golf course, with the finishing touches expected by the end of this month.)

''Having watched the trend over the last 5, 10 years, especially in the Wisconsin Dells, I'm seeing more families, regardless of income, gravitating toward water parks,'' said Mark Natzke, a Milwaukee-based account executive at Clear Channel, who closed on a three-bedroom unit in July 2006. ''It's convenient for them to vacation year round and, knowing that families like easy, convenient destinations, the Dells seemed like a good area to invest in.'' (Mr. Natzke declined to say how much he paid, though prices are $300,000 to $500,000.)

TODD and Anke Stimac and their 3-year-old daughter, Annika, are one such family. The Dells are only 45 minutes from their Madison, Wis., home, so they're able to visit their condo at Chula Vista every few weeks. Though the Stimacs initially wanted a lake house for a second home, ''I figured my daughter would want to go to the water park, and I'd go to the water park anyway,'' said Mr. Stimac, the owner of a vending company, who paid $330,000 for a unit that sleeps eight. ''On top of that, I didn't want to do the maintenance. I don't have time to take care of the lawn and all that stuff.''

In Pigeon Forge, Tenn., like many vacation areas, ''Condos are a dime a dozen,'' said Mike Dionas, principal of DionasWhelchel, the developers of the 336-unit Water Resort at Pigeon Forge. ''Our concept is to create a destination place within a destination area.''

But in a town like Pigeon Forge -- already packed with tourist attractions, including Dollywood and Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is an indoor water park really in demand? ''If you had asked me when we started two years ago, I would have said, 'I think so, but I'm not sure,''' Mr. Dionas said. ''After being 85 percent sold, without a water park even running yet, I think the answer is yes, we need one.

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Little Virgil about to grow
Sunday, July 30, 2006
By Rebecca James
Staff writer

Bulldozers are moving dirt in the shadow of Greek Peak, the first small step toward building a new hotel complex near the ski resort. But jump ahead a few years and you may not recognize the landscape around the Cortland County town of Virgil.

Hope Lake Lodge, a $31 million project, includes an indoor water park. The developers also plan a golf course and conference center within five years, a total project that will bring houses, retail development and jobs to the town, predicts Linda Dickerson Hartsock.

"I think all of Virgil will look dramatically different in 10 years," said Hartsock, executive director of the Cortland County Business Development Corp./Industrial Development Agency.

"A project like this is catalytic," Hartsock said. "It spins off other kinds of development. I expect restaurant development. I expect we will see retail development spinoff."

In the next year, the construction phase will create 250 jobs, said Al Kryger, president of Hope Lake Investors, LLC.

Once the hotel complex opens, there will be the equivalent of 240 full-time jobs from lifeguards to marketing professionals working there, Kryger said.

"We don't see many new projects in Upstate New York that generate that number of new jobs," Hartsock said.

Meanwhile, beyond the Greek Peak/Hope Lake development, the town of Virgil is booming, along with the increased recreational opportunities, said James Murphy, town supervisor. As part of the long-term master plan, the machine-made, 22-acre Hope Lake opened five years ago.

"A lot of people are moving here," Murphy said. "A lot are young professionals, like professors from Cortland State. They like it out in the country. It's the best of both worlds."

Virgil, which is eight miles from Cortland, 18 from Ithaca and about 36 from Syracuse and Binghamton, generates few year-round jobs of its own now, but can lure commuters, Murphy said.

In the last two years, more than 20 houses have been built or are under construction, he said. And Murphy said it is a safe bet that number will double in the next five or 10 years.

Virgil is in the process of revising its zoning, and the current proposal increases the minimum lot size from one to three acres. But developers putting in subdivisions, along with access roads, will be able to have smaller lots. The point is to avoid having too many driveways and congestion on the main roads, Murphy said.

Already the value of real estate in Vigil has jumped with two homes built in the town, formerly primarily a farming community, that are assessed breaks. The closing for the agreement with the Cortland County IDA should happen in the next 10 days, Hartsock said.

The development is following the standard payment-in-lieu-of-tax schedule that gives developers a 65-percent tax break over 10 years. The Hope Lake proposal estimates that after that point the property will pay almost $900,000 a year in property taxes, assuming current tax rates.

The IDA is also providing a waiver of state and local sales tax on the construction materials purchased for the project.

Some of the financing for the project has come from sales of the rooms and suites of the hotel. The project is a condo-hotel, which means when owners are not using the units, they can be available for hotel guests. Condo owners get about half of the rental fees.

The 150-room hotel represents 106 condominium units, some of which can be subdivided. They are sold by the quarter-share, which means each owner has the unit for 13 weeks a year. Of those 424 shares, just over 30 percent have been sold, Kryger said.

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The Industry Report Home Page
July 11, 2006
Greek Peak Bets Wetter Is Better
 
 
Greek Peak ski area in the Empire State's Cortland County is starting a $30.6 million project that will make it a truly 365-day ski-and-more resort.

The project includes a hotel and indoor water park, the first for any of New York state's ski resorts.

New York has the most ski and snowboard areas in the nation - more than 50 - that annually attract upwards of 4 million riders. Some of those resorts have names as formidable as the Olympics peaks Whiteface Mountain and Gore Mountain in the Adirondacks.

But those hills are mostly empty of riders in the seasonal bookends to winter. Other state ski areas boast convention centers and some have golf courses and perhaps some limited outdoor activities, such as mountain biking.

Greek Peak, whose summit elevation is 2,100 feet with a vertical drop of 952 feet with 29 trails, is situated in the Central New York region and draws skiers from Syracuse, Binghamton, Ithaca and other regions of Central New York and New York's Southern Tier. It has also, for years, been a draw for weekend ski trips by bus for riders from nearby Pennsylvania as well as New Jersey and New York City, approximately four hours away.

The resort has approximately 113 days in its ski season annually - 252 shy of a full year.

Greek's goal is to create a year-round family destination -and perhaps capture those winter visitors in the other months, said Al Kryger, president of Peak Resorts Inc., who is also a managing member of Greek's development offshoot, HLI Management LLC.

Indoor water parks attached to hotels are the resort industry's hot-of-the-moment trend, born and bred in Wisconsin's The Dells destination resort.

New York state's first indoor water park opened earlier this year, in Lake George, adjacent to - and owned by - a Six Flags theme park.

Kryger, a 48-year veteran of the ski business, said he has constantly been looking for ways to expand Greek Peak's reach into the outer months of winter. Work on the project has been ongoing in recent weeks.

"We've started all the site work, the roads onto the site," Kryger said this week. "We had to move 72,000-square-yards of soil from one side of the project to the another. That's in progress."
In recent years, Kryger's company created Hope Lake, with a 22-acre resort lake - which also feeds Greek's snowmaking machinery - housing and a clubhouse near the ski area, to lure homeowners and day-trippers.
The indoor waterpark, with a wave pool and six tube and body slides and other water amenities, would extend that even more, HLI executives hope.

The hotel doubles as condominium complex with quarter-share timeshare units, similar to offerings from the new Whiteface Lodge in Lake Placid.

Further out in the development of Hope Lake Lodge, a 71-par championship golf course is penciled in, along with a conference center.

by Bob Niedt
Written by Mountain News Staff on July 11, 2006 09:49 AM | Email To A Friend
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www.news10now.com
Expansion project begins at Greek Peak
Updated: 5/21/2006 4:31:02 PM
By: Ryan Dean
  
Ski season is over, meaning Greek Peak is closed.

However, employees here say this will most likely be the last off-season the resort will have.
Construction has begun to transform Greek Peak into a year-round recreational resort. The company's president said it's been a vision of his since the ‘70's.

"Our concept was in the future at some point in time we were going to have to face the fact that the ski area if it was going to continue to grow would have to be part of a bigger resort complex that in fact had four seasons aspects to it," said Greek Peak President Allen Kryger.

Kryger said the expansion will come in two phases.

The first phase will be a hotel consisting of 106 condominiums, a spa, and fitness room. Also included in the first phase is an indoor water park.

"We're about $33 million for the first phase of the project," Kryger said.
Kryger said in the second phase a golf course will be constructed, and a conference center will be added onto the hotel.

Kryger said this phase will cost anywhere from $10 to $20 million.
He also said all the funding is not in place, but he expects it to be shortly.

Many officials in Cortland County are excited about the expansion based on what it will mean to the community.

"This project is going to bring 200-plus jobs to the area. Even the construction jobs are estimated to be over 200. So, we're hoping that it will bring a real focus on this community," Town of Virgil Supervisor Jim Murphy said.

Kryger said people should be getting wet in the new water park and enjoying the rest of the first phase by next summer.
 
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