DONNELLY, Idaho — They say the third time's a charm, and that's what the new owners at Tamarack Resort are hoping for after previous ownerships fell short.
For the first time we hear from Jon Reveal who will be heading Tamarack Resort Holdings, the new group in charge. Reveal has a long history in managing and revitalizing ski resorts around the country.
Reveal has been in Donnelly since this past summer and his vision for Tamarack Resort goes beyond skiing, it includes finishing the Village Plaza which has sat empty for the past 12 years.
Ultimately, Reveal sees Tamarack as not just a winter destination but a spot where people come year-round.
“Tamarack has somewhat of a checkered past, and there have been people that have come in and said ‘oh we are going to do this, we are going to do that,’ then on Tuesday morning they don't show up for work,” Reveal said.
The new group of owners are hoping to finish what those who came before started.
“We are going to start with just a part of the village to get it up and running and then we will base the rest of it on demand,” Reveal said. “So that we do not have too much structure on the place and too much debt on the place and that's exactly where they got to last time.”
The massive project which includes condos, restaurants and retail shops, has virtually been untouched for more than a decade.
“You walk through the place and you think, it's like a ghost town inside, there is drywall in that building which has been sitting there for 11 years and could be used right now,” he said.
While previous owners essentially ran the village project into the ground, Reveal is looking at the glass half full.
“One of the great things they did here was, they actually finished the roof on all six buildings that are there so we do not have any water damage on the inside, all the concrete is good,” he said. “We actually had a company come in and take a look at everything looking at things like animals that could be living in walls and mold or whatever and it's not there.”
A new vision for the ski resort is in place, but not everything is changing on the mountain.
“Ticket prices are not going up, season passes are going to be good, it's not going to be a big change,” Reveal said.
After this first ski season and partial completion of the village, the new owners envision Tamarack rivaling some of the most elite mountain operations in the nation.
“I think if the economy stays good and we have the ability to continue to grow here, I think we can finally be up in the top 10, top 15 ski areas in the United States,” Reveal said.
There is still a lot of work to be done at Tamarack but on the ski front, the mountain will be partially open the Friday after Thanksgiving.
Reveal's group does not own the golf course and he says that element of the resort is still in limbo.
He added that some of the previous contractors who started work on the village will be helping finish the project.