Revised Proposal Reduces Village Expansion By 1/3rd!

It seems that KSL Capital Partners has listened to the public response to the original Village at Squaw Valley Expansion plan.  When the original development plan was first introduced more than a year ago, it got a strong negative reaction from both local property owners and businesses, long time Squaw Valley skiers and  environmentalists.  It caused a local grassroots movement resulting in the creation of Friends of Squaw Valley and Incorporate Olympic Valley.  KSL responded by meeting with many local organizations, opening the Base Camp information center, forming an advisory committee of locals and very openly asking for comments and feedback.  In June 2013 KSL submitted a revised Specific Plan to Placer County and then again in December 2013.

The new proposed plan, released on December 15th, has some very significant changes from the first plan.

• The Members Locker Room, the Olympic House and the Squaw Kids buildings will remain.
• 1/3rd of the lodgings units (700) eliminated.
• Maximum building height to be 7 stories.
• Reconfiguring of building locations to provide view corridors and some building heights to be less than 7 stories to protect existing views.
• Most of the parking lot to remain for Day Skiers use.
• Grand Camp will be 1/3rd smaller, renamed Mountain Adventure Camp and focus more on ski training and out door activities.

Here is the map of the original plan.  You can see that it was much more imposing on  existing buildings in the adjacent area.  What seemed to draw the most  criticism was:

• The existing Village at Squaw Valley was almost completely surrounded.
• The Olympic House, the Members Locker Room and Squaw Kids were replaced by residential buildings.
• Views were blocked for the Olympic Village Inn, Red Wolf Lodge and the Squaw Valley Lodge.
• The parking lot was gone (although KSL said there would be available parking under the buildings).
• The entire proposed expansion was just too big, too overwhelming and too much.
• Many locals and long time Squaw Valley skiers feared that it would change the culture of Squaw Valley.

KSL says they have listened.  They have downsized their plan in response to the feedback they got from over 300 public meetings (attended mostly by locals) and 5000 +  visits to the Base Camp information center in the Village.

The response to the new plan seems to be cautiously positive.  KSL does get credit for addressing the concerns of the local community.  However, many people and environmental organizations (Sierra Watch) have expressed the opinion that “the new plan is better than the old plan, but it is still too much!”  There are concerns about traffic, water, sewage, light pollution, noise, 20 years of construction and the impact on business in both Tahoe City and Truckee.

There is also a question as to who will ultimately have jurisdiction over the development in the valley, Placer County or the possible new City of Olympic Valley.  If the incorporation is approved by LAFCO (Local Agency Formation Commission), there will then be a vote by local property owners.  If the incorporation is approved by voters before Placer County has approved the Specific Plan, then the new city will have jurisdiction.  This could change the course of events dramatically!

 To get a sense of the local reaction read these following articles;

• Sierra Sun: My Turn by Ed Heneveld the Chairman of Friends of Squaw Valley
• Unoffical Alpine: KSL Reveals More Details About The New Plan

For more details on the new proposed plan click on the links below;

• The Village at Squaw Valley: Project Overview with interactive map.
• Placer County: Village at Squaw Valley January 2104 Specific Plan Summary of Changes
• Placer County: Village at Squaw Valley Specific Plan

Here are two detailed articles about the revised plan from local publications;

• Moonshine Ink: Squaw Cuts Village Plan by a Third
• Sierra Sun: Squaw Valley unveils scaled-back redevelopment plan