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Methow Valley News December 9, 1999 Endangered Species Merrill puts an end to Arrowleaf proposal Historic decision lays blame on state Ecology’s delays by Lee Hicks After 30 years and the investment of tens of millions of dollars by several developers, the quest is over to build a major destination resort in the upper Methow Valley. R. D. Merrill Co., owner and developer of the proposed Arrowleaf resort site, announced Tuesday (Dec. 7) that it is withdrawing its plans for the 1,200-acre project. Merrill officials expressed frustration at continued delays by the state Department of Ecology related to water rights applications. The resort has also faced continued opposition from the Methow Valley Citizens Council, which also fought the Arrowleaf predecessor, the Early Winters ski area, on water and other issues. But it was the state agency’s uncertain decision path and lack of firm timelines to make critical decisions that apparently killed the project. The announcement came as Merrill was preparing for a Dec. 14 hearing before the county on shorelines issues and a Jan. 24 hearing by the Okanogan County Commissioners to reconsider its July 12 approval of the phase one final development plan. Particularly troubling for Merrill was the Oct. 15 release by DOE of "tentative findings" for water rights for the project. The rulings were unfavorable for the project, but developers had hoped for prompt action by DOE to issue final reports of examinations for the water rights, thereby triggering possible appeals by Merrill. Although a DOE letter announcing the tentative findings held out hope of quickly moving to the final decision, DOE officials later said the process could take as much as a year. Merrill chief executive Charlie Wright said, "We have tried to work with Ecology for seven years and have been frustrated by their inability to, among other things, meet committed deadlines. "Their refusal to give us a final decision on our water rights, which they’ve promised to us time and again, simply makes it untenable for us to proceed. "What’s personally disappointing is that our goal all along has been to build something that everyone in the state could feel proud of. We’ve gone to extraordinary lengths to plan a project that is environmentally without peer," Wright said. The project would have been guided by a "stewardship plan," emphasizing environmental standards, Wright said. It would also have included a "green points" program in which homeowners would have to show attention to environmentally sensitive design and building methods in order to gain approval of building plans. The news release announcing the end of the resort included statements of support for Arrowleaf by Okanogan County planning director Rusty Bonser and Darlene Madenwald, past president of the Washington Environmental Council, who has advised the Arrowleaf team. Merrill’s announcement said Arrowleaf could have generated an estimated 500 jobs in Okanogan County, which in recent years has had a 10 percent unemployment rate—out of step with prosperity on the western side of the Cascades. "This failure—and it is a failure—sits right at the feet of Tom Fitzsimmons and the water resources people at the Department of Ecology," Bonser said. Madenwald said Arrowleaf would have represented, "a win for the economy as well as a win for the environment. It’s a loss for all of us that the DOE can’t get its act together." She also noted the need to balance economic and environmental issues in rural areas. "Until the state of Washington recognizes that the goals of rural economic development and environmental protection are not mutually exclusive, we can count on Washington residents continuing to spend their vacation and second-home dollars out of state. And there will continue to be the ‘two Washingtons’ our governor says he’s so concerned about." But the decision was hailed by Kathleen Hirschstein, vice president of the MVCC, as the proper course of action. "MVCC applauds Merrill’s wise decision to withdraw their too big resort," she said. "The council is looking forward to the opportunity to work together with the parties to continue to protect the environment and social fabric of our community." Hirschstein said she hopes the entire process with Arrowleaf will lead to better scrutiny of water quality and quantity issues for all proposed development in the upper Methow Valley. John Arum, MVCC's attorney, also extended credit to the "unsung efforts" of the Okanogan Wilderness League, which raised many of the water issues years ago, he said. When Merrill took over the project from a previous developer, the company negotiated an agreement with MVCC and Friends of the Methow, a Seattle group, whereby Merrill would not pursue downhill skiing on Forest Service land at Sandy Butte. Merrill downsized the project to include a single 18-hole golf course, instead of two, and reduced proposed lodging and housing units to about 650 rather than up to 4,000 sought by earlier developers. The agreement fell apart when MVCC appealed the August 1996 approval by the Okanogan County Commissioners of the resort’s state environmental impact statement. That issue went to Chelan Superior Court, where Judge Carol Wardell ruled in favor of the developers on most points, but said more detail was needed on water availability and wastewater management. A subsequent EIS addendum addressed those issues. The court still has jurisdiction over matters related to the final development plan and the EIS. Apart from the larger phase one of Arrowleaf, Merrill has built the 24-room Freestone Inn and lake in addition to renovating and building new resort cabins along Early Winters Creek. The Freestone facility has captured land use and architectural awards and been featured in several national and regional publications. Wright did not provide details on plans for the Arrowleaf property. The site is now approved under county zoning for as many as 50 parcels of 20 acres. A separate subdivision in the area, Rainbow Pines, has 35 lots of one acre each which might be consolidated into 17 larger lots. The Arrowleaf announcement suggested that such amenities as public recreation trails, open space, wildlife corridors, salmon habitat projects and music festivals that either exist or were planned, "may be at risk." Wright said the developers are, "considering all our options." The agreement with MVCC gave the organization a first right of refusal to purchase the land for conservation purposes if Merrill decides to sell it. But MVCC’s appeal of the resort EIS and other opposition could have left that possibility in question. Hirschstein and Arum, however, both said they believe that MVCC's right of first refusal on the property remains intact. Arum said the intention would be to purchase the entire parcel and retain it as open space. He added that even if the land were sold to individual property owners, the environmental and social impact would be less than that of the planned resort. "It’ll take people some time to digest this and figure out where we’re going from here," Arum said. The dream of a destination resort near Mazama began with the efforts of a local group in the late 1960s to assess the possibility of a downhill ski resort at Sandy Butte. About that time, Aspen Ski Corp. was searching for new ski sites to develop on Forest Service land in the west. The local group and Aspen together identified land at the base of Sandy Butte for lodging, retail and other facilities in the early 1970s. Aspen purchased options on the base land in 1974 while proceeding to develop master plans for the Early Winters ski area with golfing, lodging and retail services. Faced with continued opposition in the permitting stages by the MVCC, which was formed to fight the project, Aspen left the project in favor of guiding redevelopment of the Whistler Resort area. In 1985, Aspen sold its options on the 1,200 acres to a group led by Harry Hosey, a Bellevue engineer. Among investors in the Hosey venture were descendants of R. D. Merrill, a timber entrepreneur and the maternal great-grandfather of current Merrill Co.’s CEO, Wright. Merrill took over the project in 1992, heading off a trustee’s sale that resulted from the Hosey group’s default on loans. Some sources said Arrowleaf has cost Merrill Co. about $15 million in permitting, court battles and construction of the Freestone Inn facilities. Aspen and the Hosey group spent millions more before Merrill assumed ownership. Merrill officials said after the announcement that no layoffs were planned at the Arrowleaf project office or at the Freestone Inn operation. Officials also said they would continue to work on obtaining water rights for 20 cabin sites dispersed around Freestone Lake and other parts of that property, also known as Wilson Ranch. There are no plans to sell the Freestone facility, a spokesman said. Opinion | Sports |
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