Mountain Village Merchants Meeting Notes 3/8/17
In an effort to keep all Mountain Village Merchants better informed, we will be sharing the meeting notes from each monthly meeting on an ongoing basis. Please note: There will be no meeting in April. The next meeting will be on May 10th.
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Merchants Association Meeting 3/8/17 @ 2:00 p.m. TMVOA
Present: Jeff Badger- Chairman & TMVOA Commercial Director, John Carter- Madeline, Heidi Stenhammer – TMVOA, Laila Benitez – MV Town Council, Nichole Zangara – TMV consultant, Anton Benitez – TMVOA, Bill Kight – TMV, Sam Starr – TMV, Jackie Kennefick – TMV and Carmela and Stephano – La Piazza.
The meeting was called to order at 2:03 p.m. on Wednesday, March 8, 2017 in the TMVOA conference room.
TSG Updates
No TSG updates as no one from TSG attended today’s meeting.
TMV Updates
Bill Kight
Nichole introduced Bill Kight, her replacement as the marketing and business development director at TMV. Bill was a former employee of TSG, SBG Productions and PBS in Seattle. He lived in Telluride for 11 years and was away for the past two with PBS. He has extensive experience in public relations, marketing and sales and is excited to be back in Telluride.
Wayfinding Program
Nichole reported that the wayfinding improvements are currently being implemented. Signs are in fabrication and will be installed in phases starting early this summer with the focus on installing the new signs at the entrance, Town Hall and Village Core.
Wayfinding App
Nichole reported that Village Places is the name of the TMV's proposed new wayfinding app through a company called Vizzit. It was noted that TSG is in the process of creating a wayfinding app also and efforts should be combined so that duplications are avoided. Nichole noted that TSG and MTI have been invited to the wayfinding meetings and have not attended however, she will reach out to TSG to gather more information.
Gravity Play Sluice Renewal
Sam noted that Scott Butler with Gravity Play has a one-year conditional use permit for the sluice which is up for renewal in May. The TMV planning department is asking DRB to review this renewal at its next meeting on March 30th and all interested merchants are welcome to attend to voice opinions. Jeff noted that the Merchant group has discussed the possibility of installing a bandstand/gazebo structure in the village core for concerts and that the Gravity Play activities could be spread throughout the various plazas to maintain room for other amenities.
Town Hall Subarea
Bill reported that the next Town Hall Subarea planning meeting will be on Monday, March 13th from 1-7pm at Town Hall Council Chambers. The will be an opportunity to get a project overview, understand alternatives and the final plan and get a comprehensive plan update. The final draft of the plan will be posted to www.townhallplan.com sometime after this meeting. The final plan will then be presented to the DRB and the Town for approval. Once approved it will be rolled into the comp plan for implementation.
Summer Vending in the Core
Bill reported that the town is currently accepting summer vending applications through March 31st. Applicants must agree to a four day per week, four hours per day, minimum commitment. Current Mountain Village restaurants and merchants can apply as well.
New Business / Other Business
Wine Festival Letter
Anton explained that the Telluride Wine Festival applied to the Town of Telluride to hold the grand tasting event in Town Park however that application was denied. They now plan to apply to the Town of Mountain Village to hold the grand tasting in the plazas. A letter from the organizer of the Festival was circulated to all present asking for culinary participation during the grand tasting event. The letter explained that participation would involve a ticketing system whereby ticket-holders could taste various food samplings at participating restaurants or at a booth in the plazas. The tickets would then be turned-in to the festival for a $2 reimbursement per ticket. After some discussion, all present agreed that the concept would create more work than the return on value especially considering restaurants struggle with staffing. Uncertainty about ticket sales and a strong attendance base were also cited as factors.
Sunset Concert Series & Firstgrass
Sam reported that TMV will be installing a snow melt system in Sunset Plaza starting in mid-April. TMV has notified the Mountain Village Promotional Association that its license for the Common Consumption Area is suspended until the work is completed. This will only affect the plaza paver area and not the grassy venue. The project is projected to be completed on July 3rd however it will be weather dependent. TMV will work with the concert promoters to ensure access to the venue for the bands and sound technicians. Anton noted that he spoke with Kim Montgomery, TMV Town Manager, about options in case something unforeseen happens and she indicated that TMV will be flexible if the venue needs to be changed to another location in Mountain Village for the first few concerts. TMV will also speak to the Firstgrass organizers regarding options for its June 14th concert which typically has the highest attendance of the entire summer concert series.
Dwight Yoakam Recap
John noted that there was a noticeable uptick in F & B at the Madeline the night of the Dwight Yoakam concert at Club Red. Jeff noted that he observed an increase in people with cowboy shirts and big belt buckles around the village and wondered if more country acts should be brought to the area. John noted that Beaver Creek tried a country music festival and it turned out to be unsuccessful and was discontinued. He also noted that big name acts in a smaller venue are more attractive to concert-goes due to the proximity they have to the artist. Laila noted that she helped at the ticket booth and that many of the people were traveling in large groups from Alabama and North Florida. These attendees said it was their first time to Telluride and that they came specifically for Yaokam.
Gay Ski Week Recap
A discussion ensued regarding last week’s Gay Ski Week and it was noted that the attendees seemed to be older and quieter than in years past. All restaurant representatives present stated that their numbers were average for the week as most of the events were held in Downtown Telluride.
Village Core Tram Update
Anton reported that he spoke with Kim Montgomery about the idea of a tram running throughout Mountain Village core. Kim said that the Town would not be supportive of the idea as the core was intended for walkability and trams of this nature that were used in the past caused more harm than good with speeding issues, injuries, insurance and liability. It also caused people to miss businesses they might have otherwise visited if on foot. After some discussion, it was agreed that this issue would be tabled until the new wayfinding program is well-underway to see if this solves some of the issues with guests finding their way around the core.
Housing Update
Anton reported that TSG recently purchased the Telluride Apartments located on lot 640A which currently has 30 units and is zoned for up to 45. The goal is to get the property cleaned up and habitable by this October. After that point, they will determine if the addition of 15 units is feasible.
Jackie reported that TMV is proceeding with plans to build 40-60 additional units at VCA which will be available to anyone in the local school district who meets TMV’s qualifications. There are no set time-frames for construction at this point but it is a very high priority of TMV. The three organizations involved with the Town Hall Subarea redevelopment (TSG, TMV & TMVOA) are working together to support this expansion as a high priority.
Anton noted that TMVOA has some lots that were considered for employee housing however the allowable density of these lots is low and they are not easily accessible making the project cost-excessive for potential developers.
Closing Day & Extended Lift Closing for Daylight Savings
As discussed at last month’s meeting, TSG will hold its annual pond skim event at Gorrono on closing day, April 2nd followed by an early ski area closing with a concert in Heritage Plaza followed by another concert at Oak street.
It was also noted that regular closing hours will be extended starting this Sunday with the onset of daylight savings. Chair Four will be open until 4:30.
Early Morning Gondola Hours
A discussion ensued regarding the 6:30 a.m. start time for the gondola and whether this should be continued during the summer season. Anton noted that ridership numbers so far indicate that an average of 11 people per day used the gondola between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. during the month of January and 13 people per day used the gondola during that time in February. Word on the earlier start time is getting out and it is likely that more and more people will be using it during that time. The number of riders coming from Telluride to Mountain Village and from Mountain Village to Telluride was split almost equally. TMVOA will continue to evaluate usage through the end of the season and will decide if the early start time will be continued.
Next Meeting Date and Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 3:00 p.m. The next Merchants meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 10th at 2:00 p.m. in the TMVOA Conference Room. NOTE: There will be no meeting in April.
Posted on 2017-03-10