Council asks Aspen Club tough questions

Aspen City Council asked Aspen Club CEO Michael Fox some direct questions Monday night about his proposal for a 104,00-square-foot timeshare development at the club: Are you threatening to shoot the puppy, and are you going to flip and bail?

That exact language was not used, but the point of the questions was clear: Are you threatening to close the Aspen Club if you don’t win approvals, and can you guarantee in writing that you will do what you say if you are given approvals?

The tactic of threatening to “shoot the puppy” is common in Aspen land-use applications. It’s when a developer says something valuable in the community will go away if significant land-use approvals, usually for high-end residential development, are not granted.

During a public hearing Monday, Aspen Mayor Mick Ireland asked Fox directly: “If this is not approved, does the Aspen Club go away?” He said he asked his question because many members of the public who voiced their support of the project seemed to suggest just that.

“What I would say, Mick, the Aspen Club will not go away tomorrow, at some point, though, it probably will disappear,” Fox said.

Acknowledging that his questions were “difficult,” Ireland then asked whether the corporation behind the application has the financial ability to finish the project, if it was willing to commit in writing to spending real estate proceeds on improving the club facility, and whether it was really able to deliver on its promised public benefits.

Those benefits, which are crucial to the club’s request for a zoning change under what’s called a “specially planned area,” include a commitment to keeping the club’s carbon footprint the same, despite building 20 new luxury timeshare condos with 124 total pillows, building 12 employee units for 27 employees, and building a 50-car underground garage.

“We’ve seen people come in, time and time again, and say that their personal interests coincides with the interests of the community,” Ireland said. “And we’ve seen economic changes, personal issues, all kinds of things, change their minds. We’ve seen promises go away. And we have an obligation to ensure that what is promised is done.”

Under questioning by Ireland, Fox confirmed that he personally was not the applicant, but that it was Aspen Club and Spa, LLC, of which Fox owns 35 percent. Fox also said he is the managing partner of the LLC and that he controls 60 percent of the voting shares.

“The applicant is not Michael Fox, it is a corporation,” Ireland said, affirming Fox’s answer. Then, he asked, “Do we have a guarantee that the sale of the timeshares, that the proceeds, will be used to upgrade the club?”

“I don’t think there is anything in the ordinance that says we’re going to put X dollars back into the club,” said Fox. But he said he thought it would be “redundant” to put such a measure into the city’s ordinance approving the project.

“We’re happy to look at putting something in the ordinance, but you have to reinvest in the club to make this whole thing work and sell the units,” Fox said. “The reinvestment in the club happens before you sell these units.”

The Aspen Club’s application does say it intends to invest $7 million into the club facilities, including new equipment, locker rooms, a pool and an upgraded heating and cooling system.

Ireland then asked if there was any guarantee that Fox, who was praised for being a great manager and citizen by many supporters of the project, would stay with the club.

“I’ve never had so many people worried about me getting hit by a truck,” Fox said to laughter.

But Ireland scolded Fox for making light of the process.

“This is a serious issue,” Ireland said. “We’ve seen promises go away.”

Councilman Steve Skadron then told Fox that the Limelight Lodge review process was a perfect example of what Ireland was driving at.

The council was persuaded to give the Paas family, which operated the Limelight for decades, greater land-use approvals based on the family’s character and assertions that they would continue to operate a moderately priced hotel.

Last month, the Paas family announced it had entered into a contract to sell the hotel to Aspen Skiing Co. because they could not carry the recently finished project financially.

“This is a valid question,” Skadron said.

Fox then said the most profitable short-term move would be to scrape the club and build several large homes, which were less likely to be opposed by wealthy property owners in the neighborhood.

“We don’t want to do that,” Fox said. “We’ve been pushing hard for three or four years to not do that and come up with an alternative plan that retains the club, adds value and keeps moving it forward into the future.”

At the end of the public hearing, Councilman Dwayne Romero told Fox that he should bring back to the council assurances, in writing, on three fronts, and he stressed that it was not just the mayor that was asking for the information.

“We are looking for a greater amount of reliance, survivability and permanence around the bag of public benefits that have been articulated and held out as the core set of reasons for the approval,” Romero said. “And we’re looking for reliance and a bit of financial surety, in writing, that the project doesn’t get started and halted.”

Romero said the council also wanted assurances that the environmental initiatives, which include the project being carbon neutral, would actually happen.

“Those are the three areas that need a very, very strong response to kind of line up, frankly, with a very strong application,” Romero said.

On March 8, Fox and planner Sunny Vann will return to the council to set the date for another public hearing in March to review Fox’s responses to the council’s tough questions.