Killington Village Plan heading to permit stage

Killington Village Plan heading to permit stage

It has been a week since I have been out on the slopes of Killington, having been laid low first by a big bubble of work and then by a late season cold. I am looking forward to some spring skiing. We have always found the weeks around St. Patrick's day (March 17) offer the best combination of snow conditions and temperatures at Killington. With that in mind, Mary and I have high expectations for being on the slopes next week.

Last night, Mary and I attended an open house at the Killington Grand Hotel hosted by Steve Selbo and S.P. Land Company. Steve has been working quite diligently these last few years to create a Master Plan to develop the area at the base of the resort. While there have been fits and starts, Steve's company, S.P. Land intends to file permit requests with the town of Killington in the next 30 days or so to seek approval to go forward with a plan which will ultimately result in construction of a village at the base of Killington.

S.P. Land's application for plan approval by the town is but the first step in what will be a multi-year process. After the town approves the plan request, the process switches to the State of Vermont and the Act 250 land use hearings. Once approved by the State, individual permits will need to be filed for each area to be developed.

From last nights presentation, S.P. Land will be proposing in their permit application to develop the Killington Village over 5 phases. From start to finish, the effort will take and estimated 18-20 years to complete. Phase 1 timing, which includes a new base lodge between Rams Head and Snow Shed, may take 6 to 7 years to complete, including 3 to 6 months for town approval, 2 (or more) years for Act 250 approvals, and 4 years of construction.

All in all, the village development is an ambitious project. But it is also a very strong signal that the resort owners of Killington are both in it for the long haul, and committed to make substantial investments in the resort.

Later in the evening, when we were safely back at the inn, I experienced one of those paradoxes that only modern living can provide. About 10:45 PM the Killington area experienced a generalized power failure. At the time, I was sitting in the Great Room of the inn reading this months Scientific American. The article was on Albert Einstein and Quantum Weirdness. (My friends see copies of Scientific American around the inn all the time. They kid me about reading it... but in the end, I am a geek after all.)

Of course not wanting a little thing like a power failure to cause me to miss out on some reading, I dutifully went into our restaurant and got one of our oil lamps. When lit, it caste enough light to allow me to finish reading the article. Of course the paradox is that Albert Einstein wrote his special theory on relatively in Berne Switzerland over a hundred years ago, 1905 to be exact, probably by the light of an oil lamp. Proving once again that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

By the way... CVPS restored power to the area around 4 AM this morning... Let it snow!