Rumors have long swirled around the identity of the group planning to develop a private club in the Stagecoach area that would feature hundreds of luxury homes and a golf course and ski area among other recreational amenities.
Early last year, a development group organized under the name SMV Stagecoach Ski Mountain LLC requested an administrative review from the county to receive guidance on a project proposal including more than 750 high-end residential homes, an 18-hole golf course and the construction of five new ski lifts to serve the existing ski area.
Routt County Senior Planner Alan Goldich said last month the development group behind the plans ultimately delayed an application for the project, opting to wait until the county completes an update of its zoning and subdivision regulations.
Now, it appears the development group includes the company operating the exclusive Yellowstone Club in Montana — Discovery Land Company, LLC — and is aiming to move forward with its project application as early as next month.
Founded in 1994 by Michael Meldman, Discovery Land Company operates dozens of private residential communities and clubs in North America, including the Yellowstone Club, Gozzers Ranch in Idaho and Baker’s Bay in the Bahamas.
The real estate development and hospitality company’s involvement in the Stagecoach project was revealed in a draft letter included in a March 13 agenda packet for the Upper Yampa Water Conservancy District.
The letter — addressed to Kyle Collins, Discovery Land Company Vice President of Architecture and Planning — serves as documentation of the Upper Yampa water district’s “conditional commitment to contractually supply water” to the planned private resort’s golf course irrigation and snowmaking needs.
Along with the water information request, the letter states Discovery Land Company is planning to submit a preliminary subdivision plan to the county in May and offers details on what the development will include.
The proposal for the project, known as Stagecoach Mountain Resort, outlines a planned residential development consisting of roughly 700 homes laid out across 6,412 acres of privately owned land, according to the project description included in the letter.
Along with the planned residential developments — which will include approximately 100 large tract lots and 400 single family lots — the plans include designs for a public commercial center, recreational trails, parks and housing developments along with upgrades to local roads and infrastructure.
Additionally, a variety of private recreational amenities will also be constructed and operated, including a ski mountain and a golf course that the letter notes will require “significant infrastructure and investment.”
In Stagecoach, plans for increased development in Stagecoach date back to the 1970s when the Woodmoor Corporation acquired a large portion of land in the area with a vision to develop a ski mountain, golf course, equestrian center and full-service marina surrounded by thousands of single-family and multi-family units.
The Stagecoach ski area would open with three chairlifts and a temporary lodge, but 1974 brought bankruptcy to the Woodmoor group, and the full development vision petered out.
Currently, a special use permit allows the ski mountain to operate in Routt County, but “the size of the mountain property has more than doubled since the (special use application) was first permitted, and the proposal is to provide for additional chairlifts, terrain, snowmaking, and on mountain facilities and activities,” the Stagecoach Mountain Resort project description says.
The development of the golf course, the description adds, would protect a “major view corridor” in the Stagecoach area by reducing the potential residential development on the tract of land by “more than 97% of the permitted residential density under the current zoning.”
“Stagecoach Mountain Resort has been working … to explore the ability to partially reclaim treated wastewater for use as golf irrigation water in contrast to solely relying upon the freshwater resources,” the project description states.
Another letter — sent to Routt County commissioners and county planning staff — comes from the Morrison Creek Water & Sanitation District, which Discovery Land Company anticipates will provide domestic water supply and sanitary sewer treatment to its property’s need falling outside of the golf course irrigation and snowmaking operations.
The letter says the Morrison Creek water district has communicated to the resort’s development partners a “general but conditional support” for serving the projects potable water and sewer collection needs; but raises some questions over its capacity to serve the planned resort.
“Several water and wastewater infrastructure deficiencies have been identified by the district, which will have to be addressed,” the letter states, adding that a study conducted in 2023 found the need for an additional water storage tank of at least 500,000 gallons in size.
The study also identifies a need for an added pressure reduction station and a booster station associate with the new tank, and said an ongoing review is being undertaken to determine where a new commercial well would need to be drilled to support the project.
“The district’s willingness and support to commit to provide potable water and sanitary sewer collection services for the new developments are contingent on the developer applicants collectively paying for the needed infrastructure,” the letter explains, adding that construction costs for the initial water infrastructure are estimated at $2.5 million.
With Discovery Land Group and its partners working with the local water districts and aiming to submit a subdivision application to the county next month, local real estate broker and owner of the Steamboat Group, Jon Wade, revealed other aspects of the project are also moving forward.
In a blog posted to the Steamboat Group’s website last week, Wade said his firm has learned the group is planning to install its first high speed lift, a gondola built by the Austria-based Doppelmayr/Garaventa group, this summer.
He also said the private resort’s partners are already showing the property and sharing pricing information with interested buyers.
“We hear that single family home lots start at over $3 million,” wrote Wade, adding that the development partners have also purchased the more than 800-acre Stetson Ranch, a piece of land offering prime fishing access to the Yampa River.
Wade noted the Wittemyer family has owned Stagecoach Mountain under the group SMV Stagecoach Ski Mountain, LLC, since the early 1980s, while the Stahl family in 2000 purchased the land where the development partners plan to construct the club’s golf course using the entity Stahl Investments LP & Acorn Inn.
County property records show SMW Stetson Ranch took control of the Stetson Ranch in July 2021 from members of the Wittemeyer family who had purchased the property for $7 million the month prior. State corporate records show SMW Stetson Ranch is registered to a Boulder-based attorney, Brendan Chatham.
“We don’t know the specific owners of the SMV Stetson Ranch, but they are likely to be similar,” Wade added. “It is possible that they have taken on partners in these entities.”
According to Wade, the plans for the Stagecoach Mountain Resort and associated marketing efforts from Discovery Land Company to attract potential members could also impact the Steamboat real estate market.
“We are already seeing people who are considering Stagecoach Mountain Ranch look at other options to use until the lots are ready,” Wade said. “Discovery Land Company creates beautiful private clubs, but Steamboat has many other attractive options available, and some people will be drawn to the charms of being in town or close by.”
Routt County Commissioner Tim Corrigan said in February the county would likely require commitments from the Stagecoach Mountain Resort developers to fund county road improvements and construct workforce housing to support the project.
Oak Creek Town Manager David Torgler said last week the infrastructure and housing developments attached to the resort’s development would be important for the South Routt community.
“I think it has potential to be a very good thing for the South Routt region and adding more housing,” Torgler said. “I don’t know what kind of housing is proposed, but if it is a mix of housing, I think that has the potential to really help out with our housing needs.”
Trevor Ballantyne is the city government and housing reporter. To reach him, call 970-871-4254 or email him at tballantyne@SteamboatPilot.com.