Spring had started on an optimistic note, says Mount Snow Valley Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Laura Sibilia. The number of visitors to the chamber’s Web site had dropped in the previous months, a reaction to the economic worries gripping the country. In June, however, the numbers rebounded. Sibilia says activity on the Web site is a key predictor of future tourist visits.
But when the summer season finally hit, it hit with a thud. And a squish. “The beginning of the summer, with all that rain, was very, very difficult for business,” says Sibilia. “That was true for almost all of Vermont, with the exception of Burlington. But even they weren’t gangbusters.”
Visitors did come to the valley, but many of the valley’s businesses that are focused on outdoor recreation suffered. Golf courses in the valley were hit particularly hard by the weather, Sibilia says. “You can’t tent the golf course,” she jokes.
Jack Tosone, general manager at Haystack Golf Club in Wilmington, says the rainy weather “wiped out” the club’s cash customers. “The economy may have hurt a little, but it was the rain that was the real problem,” Tosone says. “During the 60 days of June and July, we had rain at least 40 days.” And when it wasn’t raining, it was threatening to rain, Tosone notes. “If people look at the weather report and see a 30% chance of rain, they won’t come out.”
But Tosone says an increase in the club’s membership, and a return to more seasonable weather in August has kept this year from being a disaster for the club. “August has been strong. On days when the weather’s nice, it has been crazy around here. It’s not enough to recoup what we didn’t see in June and July, but it’s good.”
Mark and Wendy Pedersen, owners of High Country Marine on Lake Whitingham, say they were already bracing for the impact of the downturn in the economy before the rain hit. The beginning of the season began just as they had feared. “In June our numbers were horrible, for rentals and for sales,” says Mark Pedersen. But neither the economy nor the weather kept boaters out of the water this year. Pedersen had cut the number of new boats he ordered this year, and he soon sold every boat on the lot and had to order more. He even added a new line of upscale boats that start at $72,000. The minimum order was four boats; he has sold three. By the end of the season, Pedersen says, High Country saw a modest three percent increase in revenues.
“From our viewpoint, we had a tremendous season,” he says.
Mount Snow has a wide variety of business interests in the valley, from recreation and events, to lodging and dining. General manager Kelly Pawlak says the resort was “definitely affected by the weather,” but like some of the other businesses, Mount Snow seems poised to finish the season with fairly healthy numbers. Mount Snow’s golf course, like Haystack, suffered early in the season. “When it stopped raining it started to improve,” Pawlak says.
And as far as Mount Snow’s events go, there appeared to be little impact from either the economy or the weather. “This year’s beer fest was the best ever,” Pawlak says. “The blues fest went well despite the rainy weather.”
Pawlak says lodging is only a small part of the resort’s summer business, but she notes there was a small increase in lodging business. Retail and mountain bike rentals have been down, but “not as much as you’d expect with the rain,” she says.
Pawlak says the ski industry in general is not feeling optimistic about the upcoming ski season. But in a business that’s often described as “capital intensive,” she says Mount Snow is well positioned to weather the economic doldrums. “We’ve invested so much in capital improvements over the last few years, and a significant amount this summer,” she says. “We’re in a good position. And we have an advantage, our proximity.”
The nation’s economic downturn has been driven, at least in part, by a crisis in the mortgage and banking industry. In some parts of the country, foreclosures have outpaced home sales. Although Vermont is one of the states with the fewest foreclosures, Deerfield Valley realtors have felt the impact of a stagnant market.
But realtor Meg Streeter, of Meg Streeter Real Estate, says the market in Windham County may be on the rebound. “The pace of sales has picked up across the county,” she says. “We’re about 10% below last year, although that was lower than the sales peak in 2005.”
The first half of the year was unusually slow, but Streeter says sales started to pick up thanks to a federal tax credit for first-time home buyers. And, Streeter says, there’s credit available, despite reports to the contrary. “If you have good credit, you’re fine,” she says.
Condos, however, are an exception. Streeter says buyers can’t get a fixed-rate loan from lenders to buy a condominium.
Streeter says she’s optimistic that the recent increase in activity isn’t a “blip,” and the valley’s economic outlook is good. “It couldn’t be worse than it was a year ago at this time,” Streeter says, “but it looks like there’s more confidence. There are people expanding their businesses. There are people who perceive that this is a good time to buy. There’s enough in our area to draw all kinds of people who want to be here. I don’t see that changing.”
Post a Comment