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Home My WebLink About1. d. 2016 Business Matters BrochureTOWN OF VAIL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OFFICE 75 S. Frontage Road | Vail, Colorado 81657 kmcdonald@vailgov.com | 970.479.2454 | vailgov.com WHAT’S NEW ON THE MOUNTAIN The Vail Mountain experience has changed dramatically in the last decade, and the wave of investments continues with the replacement of Sun Up Lift (#17) with a four-passenger, high- speed lift to debut this winter as chair #9. The ninth new chairlift upgrade in the last 10 years, Sun Up Express (#9) will increase capacity by 65%, disperse skiers and snowboarders into the legendary Back Bowls faster, and reduce the average ride time from 8.2 minutes to 3.9 minutes, meaning more time exploring the mountain and less time riding a lift. New this year, the Forest Flyer Mountain Coaster will be operating at Adventure Ridge this winter. The Forest Flyer™ winds its way 3,400 feet down the mountain, following the natural contours of the landscape through the forest, allowing guests on individual carts to control their own speed. vail.com WHAT’S NEW IN TOWN New construction and a host of remodels will add additional vitality to Vail’s lodging, retail and restaurant scene this winter. These include The Lion, with its mix of new residential units and street level retail space, a rebranding and overhaul of the Vail Cascade Resort and Spa, plus introduction of the newly remodeled DoubleTree by Hilton in West Vail which replaces the Holiday Inn. The Pendulum restaurant will fill the former Ore House space on Bridge Street across from Pepi’s Bar which has received a facelift and expansion. At the top of Bridge Street is the new Almresi restaurant while Expert Burger opens in Lionshead. There’s also the debut and expansion of additional retail businesses, including Christy Sports which will fill the former Sports Authority space in West Vail near the remodeled McDonalds, plus Cripple Creek Backcountry in Lionshead and more. 75 S. Frontage Road Vail, Colorado 81657 970.479.2454 | vailgov.com Vail Yeti Hockey Dec - March Vail Snow Daze Dec 9-11 Skadi Vail: Women’s Ski Fest Dec 14 - 16 Vail Holidaze Dec 16 - 18 & 31 Winter Solstice Lantern Workshop & Walk Dec 21 Vail Winterfest Ice Theater Dec 21 Vail Veterans Program Jan 22-26 Vertical Express for MS Feb 18 CarniVail Feb 25-26 Burton US Open Snowboarding Championship Feb 27 - March 5 Vail Veterans Program March 5-10 U16 Rocky/Central Junior Championship March 10- 16 World Pro Ski Tour March 24-26 Pink Vail March 25 Taste of Vail April 5-8 Spring Back to Vail April 14-16 Skate Vail’s Melee in the Mountains April 29 WINTER EVENT CALENDAR | vail.com BUSINESS MATTERS A NEWSLETTER FOR VAIL’S BUSINESS COMMUNITY Photos courtesy of Taste of Vail, Burton US Open Snowboarding Championship and Vail Snow Daze.DECEMBER 2016 PARKING DISCOUNTS Season parking passes are available to qualifying employees, residents and property owners with substantial discounts from the drive-up rate. The passes, with pricing as low as 96 cents per day for the 150 day season, are available from the town’s parking pass sales office. Open 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Monday through Friday; closed holidays. vailgov.com/parking SIGN UP FOR BUSINESS ALERTS FROM VAIL POLICE DEPARTMENT With the new EC Alert system platform, business owners can now subscribe to receive business-specific alert information. If you’ve already updated your EC Alert subscription, login at ecalert.org and choose “Vail Business” as a subscription. If you need to create an account, go to ecalert.org. ONLINE PARKING PORTAL CONNECTS PASS HOLDERS Access to timely parking announcements and advisories are now available through a new online parking portal. Subscribers to the new service will be invited to share their ideas and suggestions in an open forum facilitated by the town staff. In addition, the portal will provide notifications on upcoming parking restrictions and blackout days as well as related traffic advisories that may impact commuters. Sign-ups are free. vailgov.com/parking THANK YOU SALLY LORTON Sally Lorton, long-time Sales Tax Administrator, has retired effective Dec. 1 after 38 years of service with the town. Through the years, Sally has assisted hundreds of businesses with their filings and licensing, earning many friendships along the way. Stepping in to fill the newly-vacated position is Johannah Richards. Stop by and introduce yourself or call 970.479.2125.Photo by Jack Affleck 75 S. Frontage Road | Vail, Colorado 81657 | 970.479.2454 | vailgov.com TOWN FINANCIAL UPDATE • Year to date Sales Tax collections through September are $20.0M, up 3% from 2015. • Real Estate Transfer Tax collections through October total $4.3M, down 18.6% from this time last year. Annual RETT collections in 2015 totaled $7.0M and exceeded budget only due to large commercial sales, such as the Cascade Hotel and the Holiday Inn. • Construction Use Tax collections through October total $1.6M, down 24.3% from this time last year but exceeding budgeted annual revenues of $1.5M. 2014 and 2015 were record years with collections of $2.3M and $2.2M due to larger construction projects such as the Vail Valley Medical Center and The Lion. Summary: Across all funds, YTD revenues of $49.2M are down 2.4% from this time last year. While parking and lift tax revenues are up, the employee housing fee-in-lieu of $500K collected to date is down from $1.9M collected last year which offsets current year revenue growth. 2017 Budget: The 2017 Town of Vail budget represents a cautiously optimistic economic forecast. Sales tax revenue is projected at $26.1M, a 2% increase over the 2016 amended budget; while RETT is projected at $5.8M, a 10% decrease. Construction Use Tax is budgeted at $1.5M, flat with 2016 budget. Across all funds, revenue is projected at $64.9M. This is a 1.7% decrease from the 2016 amended budget. NEW EVENT VENUE DEBUTS AT VAIL GOLF & NORDIC CLUBHOUSE The Gore Range Room, one of the most anticipated community amenities as part of the newly constructed Vail Golf & Nordic Clubhouse, is now available to be booked for events and other functions. The opening of the facility completes the trio of recreation, economic and tourism-driven projects approved by voters in 2011. In addition to world class facilities for golf and Nordic services, the community’s newest event venue includes functions for up to 160 guests with gorgeous views of the Gore Range. vailclubhouse.com WELCOME CENTERS PREPARED TO STRENGTHEN TIES WITH BUSINESS COMMUNITY The Vail Welcome Centers are eager to host a series of meet and greet events now that the operations have transitioned to a town- run function. To expand the Welcome Centers’ outreach to the business community, several new services are being initiated including regular email announcements. The Welcome Centers also offer free distribution of brochures and other materials provided by Vail businesses, as well as the return of the Community Host program. To find out more, contact Amanda Zinn at 970.477.3520. Open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. in Vail Village and extending to 7 p.m. in Lionshead. vailgov.com/welcome-centers TOWN COUNCIL: FULL THROTTLE ON HOUSING An unprecedented effort to facilitate housing opportunities for full-time residents of Vail is taking shape. Identified as a critical priority by the Town Council and the community, the effort is being addressed on several fronts. In West Vail, the new Chamonix Neighborhood could break ground on town- owned land this spring, providing 32 deed restricted homes for eligible home buyers who will be selected in a lottery process. The new homes could be completed as soon as November 2017. Also taking place is a first-of-its kind program to purchase deed restrictions on existing free market homes to help facilitate affordability and availability for local home-buyers and retain availability into the future. The program will be guided by the Vail Local Housing Authority with a goal to obtain 1,000 deed restrictions in 10 years. The first purchase is expected soon. Also taking place is an evaluation of up to 9 adjacent parcels owned by the U.S. Forest Service for potential acquisition by the town as part of a housing or land-banking strategy. In addition, construction of phase 2 seasonal housing at Buzzard Park on the north side of I-70 across from the golf course is being evaluated for feasibility as well as regional partnership opportunities. STRIVING TO BECOME A SUSTAINABLE DESTINATION With over 50 businesses successfully enrolled in the Actively Green sustainable business program, Vail is one step closer to becoming the first Certified Sustainable Destination in North America. Following an initial site visit in September, certification representatives from the sponsoring Global Sustainable Tourism Council will be returning in July 2017 to evaluate Vail’s progress in completing a checklist of 40 sustainability indicators that address such activities as tourism infrastructure, planning for climate change, protection of sensitive environments and wildlife, affordable housing, light and noise pollution, programs for youth and seniors, stakeholder participation, cultural heritage protection and sustainability education. The Sustainable Destination initiative is being undertaken by the Town of Vail with support from Walking Mountains Science Center. To inquire about how your business would benefit from an Actively Green certification, contact Melissa Kirr, Sustainability Programs Director, 970.827.9725, ext. 133 or email melissak@walkingmountains.org. walkingmountains.org The new VAIL App is launching this season for iPhones and Android. Sponsored by the Town of Vail, this is the official vacation guide app for Vail. Features include listings for businesses, an events calendar, parking availability, custom maps of the town and the mountain, plus a nightlife, shopping and lodging guide, and an activities directory. Business owners will also be able to update specials and offerings in real time with a simple email. The app was built and is administered by ResortApp. To arrange a free listing for your business or to learn about other offers, including access to a free web-based map, contact Joe Cleary at ResortApp at 970.688.5479 or 303.929.5412. NEW FOR BUSINESSES P LAY L I K E A L O CA L OOcial App of Vail � �� EGE WINTER AIR SERVICE Access to Vail this winter just got easier with 2 new non-stop routes to Eagle County Regional Airport from Phoenix and Washington Dulles. Service from Phoenix begins Dec. 15 and continues with a flexing schedule from twice weekly to daily through April 2. The Washington Dulles non-stops will operate every Saturday from Dec. 24 through April 1. Eagle County Regional Airport has non-stop winter service from Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York/Kennedy, Phoenix, Toronto and Washington Dulles. Summer non-stop markets include Dallas/ Ft. Worth, Denver and Houston. flyvail.com VAIL I-70 UNDERPASS: NO WINTER TRAVEL IMPACTS The North and South Frontage Roads have returned to their two-way alignment and the West Vail Green transit service has since resumed coinciding with completion of phase 2 of the Vail I-70 Underpass project. The area beneath the underpass will remain closed to vehicles and pedestrians throughout the winter and ongoing construction will be minimal with no travel impacts. The project will be completed at the end of November 2017. codot.gov/projects/i70vailunderpass RBO LICENSING REQUIREMENTS Nearly 300 rent by owner (RBO) properties have obtained business licenses from the town following enactment of new regulations that became effective Jan. 1, 2016 for properties renting more than 14 days per year in Vail regardless of the location of the business management office. Through September, the collections have generated approximately $60,000, a 19% increase in business license revenues from 2015 due to the RBO business licensing requirement. Year to date, the town has also collected approximately $155,000 in sales tax revenues related to RBOs. All short term rentals are subject to sales and lodging tax of 9.8%.Photo by Townsend BessettPhoto by Jack AffleckPhoto by Raul GarciaSUSTAINABLE DESTINATION LOCAL ENGAGEMENT IN A LONG PERSPECTIVE