Winter tourism numbers up

From The Telluride Daily Planet: Winter Tourism Numbers Up

 

TTB: Region poised for best year since 2007-08

By Heather Sackett
Associate Editor

Published: Sunday, March 17, 2013 6:06 AM CDT

Despite snowfall that is still lagging behind average, officials in Telluride’s tourism industry are reporting that winter numbers are up.

Although December was slow, owner and chef of Cosmopolitan Chad Scothorn said sales for the months of January, February and March are all up — by double digits.

“I know our biggest increase was January, so I don’t think you can blame the snow,” Scothorn said.

According to the Telluride Ski Resort website, the average yearly snowfall is 309 inches per year. As of Friday, the resort had accumulated 199 inches.

 

Part of the increase at Cosmo is attributed to an additional 10 seats the restaurant added this season, bumping the capacity up from 80 to 90. But Scothorn, who was part of the team that opened the restaurant 18 years ago, wouldn’t be adding seats if he wasn’t confident that business was good. He plans on adding another 20 seats before the summer season.

“Added seats means I’m very optimistic,” he said.

Kristin Holbrook, owner of Colorado Avenue women’s clothing boutique Two Skirts, said winter business has been up for her too, compared with last year. Unlike Scothorn, Holbrook said February’s snow played a role.

“It’s way up from last year because of our snow conditions,” Holbrook said. “Definitely February was up, and I’m blaming it on the snow. March is looking up as well.”

Numbers compiled by the Telluride Tourism Board corroborate the story. So far for 2013, total sales taxes in Mountain Village are up 36 percent over the same time frame in 2012, according to TTB CEO Michael Martelon. Telluride’s sales taxes on the year so far are up 15 percent over 2012.

With the stagnant economy of the Great Recession slowly creaking back to life, Martelon said the area is poised for its best winter season since 2007-08. And it’s not just the Telluride Ski Resort that is driving the trend, Martelon said.

“Another interesting tidbit is that we turned into a European destination when no one was looking,” Martelon said. “We are seeing a lot of visitors come to town and ski three days instead of five and bring people who don’t ski at all. People are choosing to go snowshoeing or Nordic skiing or just hanging out in town and that is the European way of life.”

Martelton said occupancy rates for February were up 12.5 percent over last year, March is pacing up about nine points and bookings for April are up about one point. TTB has set the goal of reaching 50 percent occupancy rates during the busy summer and winter seasons over the next three to five years. If future years keep growing like this one, it won’t take long.

“It’s possible we could end the season at 46 percent occupancy,” Martelon said. “We were at 41.5 percent last year. We are such a small destination that 4.5 points is huge … If we jumped the same amount of points next year as we did this year, we would be at 50 percent next year.”

Telluride Ski and Golf Executive Vice President Jim Mikula said this year has been tough, but still better than last year. While he did not have specific numbers, Mikula said this week especially is up over the same week in 2012. Season pass holder skier days were a little higher than were destination skier days, he said.

“As an aggregate, we are pacing a little ahead of last year,” Mikula said. “We are doing better but haven’t gotten over the hurdle to make all of our businesses more viable.”

According to the Mountain Travel Research Program (MTRiP), which compiles data from about 260 property management companies in 16 mountain destinations including some in Colorado, February 2013 occupancy was up 14.2 percent compared to last February.

 

For more information on this or Telluride real estate, please contact Mary at 970-728-6655, mary@mayaair.com or visit www.marysama.com. 

From The Telluride Daily Planet: Great Lakes adds Denver-Telluride flights

Great Lakes adds Denver-Telluride flights

Daily flights Thursday-Monday during February and March

By Heather Sackett
Associate Editor

Published: Tuesday, January 29, 2013 6:06 AM CST

For the months of February and March travelers will have more opportunities to get to and from Denver with the addition of flights through Great Lakes Airlines.

Telluride Montrose Regional Air Organization is subsidizing a daily Thursday-Monday flight. The flight will depart Denver at 3:45 p.m. and arrive in Telluride at 4:56 p.m. The crew will overnight in Telluride, with a morning flight departing back to Denver at 7:15 a.m., Friday through Monday. TMRAO will be covering the cost of de-icing the planes and lodging for the crew.

“We are blessed to have Great Lakes coming into Telluride,” said Telluride Tourism Board President and CEO Michael Martelon. “It’s a very important thing for us.”

Great Lakes approached TMRAO about adding the 19-seat flights. There are currently two daily roundtrip flights from Denver to Telluride, and the new agreement bumps that up to three, Martelon said.

 

“If it continues doing what it’s doing right now outside, it can do nothing but help,” he said, referring to Monday’s snowfall.

The addition of another airline to the Telluride Regional Airport was the result of collaboration between TMRAO, the TTB and Telluride Ski & Golf Company. Late last year, the TTB and TMRAO began working together on strategic planning and marketing. The TTB oversees TMRAO’s operations, including personnel supervision and administration, fundraising and marketing.

Telluride Ski Resort Director of Sales and Marketing Ken Stone said Denver is not an originating market for skiers — in other words not many people fly here from the Front Range to ski — but the flights will nevertheless add convenience. Any additional flights into Telluride are a good thing, he said.

“It’s a great advantage for business travelers,” Stone said. “Over-nighting here is good because you can get an early morning flight out.”

United Airlines is also set to come back to the region this summer, the TTB announced last week. There will be twice-weekly service, Mondays and Wednesdays, from Houston to Montrose from June 12-Sept. 25, 2013.

“Following last summer’s great results, we are very pleased that our partner United Airlines will be operating the 2013 service without a revenue guarantee,” TMRAO Chief Operating Officer Matt Skinner said in a prepared statement. “We will do all we can to help make the flight a success again this summer, looking toward daily sustained summer service in the future.”

According to the TTB, the organization is in talks for return summer service on American Airlines from Dallas/Fort Worth to Montrose.

 

For more information on this or Telluride area real estate, please contact Mary at 970-708-0602, mary@mayaair.com, or visit www.marysama.com.

New direction for Telluride Conference Center

Telski wants more exclusive, new events

By Collin McRann
Staff Reporter

 

Now that Telluride Ski & Golf is in charge of the Telluride Conference Center, the company has a few changes in store for the facility.

Telski has been managing the Conference Center, which is located in Mountain Village, since this fall when it took the reins from Cadence Hospitality. Cadence had been managing the center, which is owned by the Town of Mountain Village, since 2009. With the transition over to Telski, a new five-year management agreement has been signed, and according to the company, some new ideas are in the works to get more bookings at the center.

In October, when the Mountain Village Town Council gave its approval for the transition to take place, there was some concern that Telski might not be the best entity to manage the facility. But now, the company believes it can help the center boost the number of events and people it brings to the area.

“[Telski owner] Chuck Horning feels that, long-term, we know that the conference center is an amenity to bringing groups and conferences here,” said Telski Director of Sales and Marketing Ken Stone. “But it certainly runs at a deficit, and the ski area was willing to look long-term at that deficit and say, ‘What does it mean to the community to operate this?’ The business that it brings here benefits other business in the area, including the ski area, but also lodging, food service and retail.”

Part of the company’s plan to get more activity at the center involves the Telluride Tourism Board. Stone said the TTB wants to get different aspects of the community involved with the center, including lodging. But a main point of change has been to make the center more easily accessible with fewer hurdles to jump through when events are booked.

Stone said some of the main challenges facing the center involve the area’s remoteness. However, Telski is hoping to utilize the TTB’s marketing expertise to help increase the center’s exposure and get the word out across a wider audience.  

“We think one of the opportunities we have is to work with the community and even with second homeowners that want to start, hold or bring their events here on a permanent basis,” Stone said. “Having events that originate here in Telluride that have a reason to be here year after year, we support those and make it easy to work with all the entities to make them happen.”

Though this summer the town council decided it would not consider making any upgrades or expansions to the center, Telski plans to look into some improvements. Stone said the company is talking with sales teams to see what infrastructure or technological improvements could be made that would be most beneficial.

A major component at the center in the future that could be upgraded is its videoconference equipment. Stone said the equipment is in demand and in the past has been used heavily, especially by smaller groups or businesses.

It might be early, but Telski is anticipating some new groups and events at the center.

The Governor’s Tourism Conference is planned for the end of next October at the conference center. The three-day conference will include a number of speakers and groups from around the state — which Telski and the TTB anticipate will be a good showcase of not only the center, but the area as well. Last year the governor’s conference was held in Steamboat Springs.

“We’re excited to work with the community and the town to make this a successful part of the equation,” Stone said.

Real Estate Sales In Telluride Are Rockin’ And TREC Is Leading The Charge

Area Wide Sales Up 23% So Far in 2012; TREC’s Sales Up 87%

You have no doubt been hearing from your local broker that real estate sales in the Telluride area are well ahead of last year’s pace. Through October 2012 in fact, sales in San Miguel County are up over 23% versus the same period last year. Clearly the recovery that we have been watching slowly take shape is now gaining real momentum. But allow us here at Christie’s/TREC to toot our own horn for a moment. Over the same time period of this January through October, our sales are up 87% versus last year. Our dominant market share and sales momentum also show no signs of abating as we close out 2012. We have a record amount of property (in terms of dollar volume) under contract for closing as of this writing. We are mindful of "irrational exuberance," but the facts speak for themselves. Here’s to a continued, sustainable recovery going forward.  -The TREC Team

Summer spending growing faster than winter in Colorado resort towns

Denver Post Article, By Jason Blevins

Summer business in resort towns is growing at a faster rate than winter, revealing both a recovering economy and a shift in resort tourism.  While Colorado's high country will always rely heavily on skiers, mountain towns are seeing more summer vacationers in a trend that promises swifter growth than downhill skiing — especially if weak snowfall continues in the high country.

"This is a very big deal for us," said Michael Martelon, chief of the Telluride Tourism Board, which last summer achieved a longtime goal with summer spending in the box canyon eclipsing winter for the first time ever. Telluride's taxable sales activity set monthly records in July, August and September.  Martelon said the towns of Telluride, Mountain Village and Montrose worked together to boost regional tourism, expanding Telluride's festivals and reaching out to visitors who tend to visit the area regularly.  "I call it microtargeting," he said. "We are talking to people who we know love Telluride, and getting them to come more often is getting us to a place where we are actually able to grow our base."

Telluride joins Winter Park, Aspen, Vail, Steamboat Springs, Breckenridge and Crested Butte in posting strong summers this year, with most of those communities surpassing the pre-recession glory days of 2007. In all seven resort communities, spending from June through September is growing much faster than winter spending.  While last winter's weak snowfall could have pinched spending as fewer vacationers gathered for ski holidays, ski-town winter spending increased in six of the seven resort communities even though visitation plummeted 10 percent, the steepest drop in decades.

Still, summer revenues grew faster.

Ford Frick, the managing director of Denver-based BBC Research and Consulting, thinks the warm, snowless weather of last winter likely helped summer business as flatlanders and urbanites fled the heat by flocking to the high country.   "I think weather was a big influence," Frick said.  While summer is growing, it's still a fraction of winter business in the big resort communities such as Breckenridge, Aspen and Vail. But winter business seems to be inching more than surging and has yet to climb back to pre-recession levels.  There are a number of trends slowing winter's recovery and spurring summer, Frick said. Aging baby boomers and second-home owners are finding summer in the high country more amenable, and growing numbers of Front Rangers  pursuing close-to-home vacations — or economically driven "staycations" — are visiting the mountains for brief bursts in the summer.  "It's a combination of small factors behind this" summer growth, Frick said. "Summer is growing more rapidly, but I think there's a ways to go until summer fills the gap on winter."

Most resort communities have seen summer spending climb past high marks set in 2007. (Winter Park and Steamboat Springs have yet to reach 2007 levels.) Winter spending, though, is lagging, with only Vail surpassing the 2007-08 season. All seven resort communities together are pacing about 7 percent behind the 2007-08 winter season, while summer spending is 3 percent ahead of the once-record 2007 levels.   Resorts have been focusing on their warm-weather seasons for several years, and those marketing programs are finding footing. Federal legislation from last year encourages the Forest Service to work with resort companies on federal land to develop summer amenities and stir local economies. Vail Resorts, for example, last summer proposed a comprehensive interactive project that would install alpine slides, ropes courses and zip lines alongside educational programs on Vail Mountain.

"We are definitely seeing mountain communities working to drive the summer season with either events or more attractions," said Tim Gagen, the town manager for Breckenridge, where 2012 summer spending was up 10 percent over last year. "I think summer continues to be an expanding opportunity. We get to the point where we are talking about a couple holidays being too busy, like July Fourth."  Gagen said close study of his town's tax revenue shows retail, lodging and restaurants leading Breckenridge's climb back from recession. He points to warm weather in Denver driving city folk to the hills and a resurgence in group traffic. Plus the weak snow last winter saw vacationers spending more time — and money — in town.

"For this year, our retailers are seeing more and more positive signs," Gagen said. "People are coming in and actually spending money."

Jason Blevins: 303-954-1374, jblevins@denverpost.com or twitter.com/jasontblevins

Market Update

The start of the 4^th quarter of real estate sales in the Telluride region seems to have signaled a strong resurgence of sales. The month of October experienced an increase in gross dollar sales of 132% and numbers of transactions of 70% over the same month of 2011. Closings are largely the result of contracts “booked” during a very active late summer and early fall. Sales through the first 10 months are up 22% and numbers of transactions have increased 9%.

In the recent past, 2010 experienced a healthy recovery after a rather slow 2009 with an annual increase in sales that year of nearly 20%. The downgrading of US debt and the problematic Euro dampened the market in 2011, but with $103 million of transactions currently under contract (MLS), the market should outperform a rather stellar 2010. Investor attitudes seem to be shifting to resort real estate as a safe haven for capital in markets that have “bottomed out”. Telluride, with its relative limited supply of inventory, provides further assurances against deflation in value and, of course offers an intangible quality of life in a precious, uncrowded resort environment.

The Historic Town of Telluride, as is often the case, has been the forerunner of market improvement. Gross dollar sales YTD have increased 16% ($102M vs. $88.3M) and during that same time period, single family home sales gained 47.4% ($51.3M vs. $34.8M). It is notable that vacant land sales rose 170% ($11.8M vs. $4.4M) as the design / build process gains momentum.  It is also notable that the average per square foot price of 2012 vs. 2011 is 10.7% higher.  Nineteen homes have closed above $1M, 13 residences above $2M and 4 properties achieved higher than $1,000 PSF, YTD. 

The Town of Mountain Village gained considerable strength, as well, with gross dollar sales demonstrating an increase of 39% ($99.2M vs. $71.5M). Sales of single family homes increased 107% ($42.9M vs. $20.7M) with sales of condominiums gaining some strength (rise of 13% -- $41.9M vs. $37.1M).  Values also appear to be increasing in the Village, 2012 vs. 2011, in excess of 15%.  The high end is demonstrating recovery with 5 properties under contract at an average price of $6.2M, with two properties listed above $10M. 

The balance of San Miguel County experienced a moderate increase in gross dollar sales from $54M to $59.8M, an increase of 10.7%.  It is interesting to note that the MLS reported a $17M  sale of 2,444 acres and another exquisite, historic ranch totaling 821 acres listed at $15.75M is currently under contract.  There is, once again, significant interest in farm and ranch property in the Telluride region most likely because of a hedge against inflation and values that have stabilized at attractive price levels relative to 2007.

In summary, the Telluride real estate marketplace is demonstrating resiliency during an election year and is in the midst of a significant rebound relative to 2011.  On the other hand, there are still excellent buy opportunities heading into 2013. 

For more information on Telluride real estate, contact Mary at 970.708.0602, mary@mayaair.com or visit www.marysama.com

From The Daily Planet: October A Huge Month For Real Estate Sales

October a great month for property sales

Property sales highest October levels since 2007

By Collin McRann
Staff Reporter

Published: Wednesday, November 14, 2012 6:06 AM CST

October was full of more than just warm weather in Telluride and Mountain Village as property sales heated up.

According to data compiled by Judi Kiernan of Telluride Consulting, eight homes were sold in Telluride during October totaling around $19 million. A high dollar value was seen in other areas of San Miguel County. So far this year, Mountain Village saw a huge increase in home sales with around $43.4 million in sales up from $23.6 million from all of last year.

Kiernan said many factors have contributed to the big jump from last year’s numbers.

“I know anecdotally what people would consider to be the good deals in town are being purchased,” Kiernan said. “The savvy buyers are realizing that it appears our market here in Telluride is beginning to improve, and if they are going to get one of those good deals, now is probably the time to do it. Maybe it’s even past time to do it.”

Since 2007, the number of properties sold each month in Telluride has been inconsistent as some months have been up while others have been down. But according to Telluride Consulting’s data, October of this year was the best October since 2007 with 46 property sales in San Miguel County.

“Needless to say, the market is doing very well,” said Lynn Ward of Peaks Real-Estate in Telluride. “The title company just told me that last month was one of the highest real estate transfer tax months that we’ve had in a very long time.”

Kiernan said one of the contributing factors to October’s strong sales was the completion of some new construction projects. She said in small markets such as Telluride, the completion of construction contracts could offset a month’s sales results.

But as for what November and the remainder of 2012 holds for real estate sales, the stellar numbers of October might not be seen again. October, however, does show the highest dollar volume in sales for that month since 2007, with $49.1 million compared with $56.4 million in October of 2007.

“As I always say, one month does not a trend make,” Kiernan said.

But just about every month this year, property sales in San Miguel County have been above those in previous years since 2007. With 2012’s sales showing an upward trend, the hope is that sales will continue to improve.

“In Telluride if you look at the dollar volume from 2011 to as of right now in 2012 to date, we’re up about 127 percent,” Ward said. “So that’s pretty exciting.”

As for what type of properties are selling in October in San Miguel County, Kiernan’s data shows the top three units selling are single family homes in Telluride with eight units sold, followed by eight Mountain Village half-duplex condominiums and five Telluride half-duplex condominiums, all totaling more than $32 million.

The comeback has been a relief to a lot of people who have managed to hold on to their properties, Kiernan said.

For more information on Telluride real estate, please contact Mary at 970.708.0602, mary@mayaair.com or visit www.marysama.com