Now ‘Chalet Alpina’ and an Aman hotel, two lodging projects in the Lift One corridor work through city permit review

“At the base of the famed Aspen Mountain, a world crafted from fables comes to life.”

Once it gets its building permit, anyways. 

The developers of a major new lodging project on South Aspen Street are more than two years into the city’s permit review process, and more than a decade into the process of designing, refining and acquiring approvals for a project many know as the Lift One Lodge.

They still face multiple rounds of comments and still need to meet some permit requirements, including a construction sequencing plan, before they can begin any major construction on what they’re now calling Chalet Alpina — a proposal for timeshares, residences, restaurants, retail and amenities near the original base of Lift One. The project rebranded late last year. 

It will be “an ode to Aspen” and “a place where every detail whispers your name and every experience is tailored to your delight,” according to a Chalet Alpina website that offers a “waitlist” to get more information. But for now, the project exists mostly in two dimensions — on paper and online, but not on the ground. Same goes for almost every other element of the larger redevelopment concept for Aspen’s Lift One corridor. 

Those plans also include a separate luxury hotel by a different developer — once proposed as the Gorsuch Haus, now being developed by OKO Group as an Aman destination — as well as a new chairlift to replace the aging Lift 1A (spinning since the winter of 1971-72), and the restoration and relocation of several existing historic assets. Among them is the midcentury Skier’s Chalet Lodge, to be used as an Aspen Historical Society snowsports museum and Aspen Skiing Co. guest services facility, and the Skier’s Chalet Steakhouse, which will be revived as a restaurant.

As for the chairlift? Past proposals indicated the SkiCo could replace the fixed-grip double chair also known as the Shadow Mountain Lift with a “telemix” or “chondola” option that includes open-air chairlift seats and gondola cabins on the same line, but Aspen One spokesperson Sara Roston wrote in an email that the plan for the new lift “continues to evolve” and the company is not in a position to share more at this time. 

All told, the Lift One corridor project totals more than 320,000 square feet of gross floor area for commercial, lodging and residential uses among the new and restored buildings — plus underground parking for lodging guests and day visitors. It spans about 2½  blocks of South Aspen Street, across private lots, city-owned parks and part of the ski hill. And it will involve five different stakeholder groups: the developers of each lodging project, the city of Aspen, the Aspen Historical Society, and the SkiCo (now under the umbrella of Aspen One). 

Aspen voters approved the idea by a margin of just 26 votes in 2019. The ballot measure also rezoned some land from a “conservation” district to “lodging,” conveyed the use of some city-owned land for ski infrastructure, and approved a $4.36 million contribution from the city for public-facing elements such as improvements to Dean Street and the restoration and relocation of the Skier’s Chalet Lodge. 

Both developers are on the hook for some employee housing mitigation, although the total requirements are smaller than might otherwise be expected for projects of this magnitude:  21.68 full-time equivalents (FTEs) for Aman and 39.52 for Chalet Alpina, according to their approval ordinances. Developers of both projects utilized a provision in the city’s land-use code that incentivized high-density lodging with lower housing requirements — a provision that has since been removed from the land-use code and is not available to newer applicants, according to city community development director Ben Anderson.

Michael Brown, co-founder and principal of HayMax Capital, which is a partner in the Chalet Alpina, declined to comment on the project’s housing mitigation plan. But according to the project’s approval ordinance, developers have several options. The team can build off-site units, “buy down” existing units, purchase city affordable housing credits or fork over cash — at a rate of $328,533 per FTE at Category 4 rates, based on the city’s “fee in lieu” schedule that was in effect when Chalet Alpina’s permit was submitted in 2023. 

Both developers must satisfy their housing requirements before receiving a certificate of occupancy. 

‘The most complex build’ in Aspen history?

Earlier projections from developers indicated construction would already be underway by now, but to date, no one has started major digging on their projects. Many of their plans are intertwined, requiring collaboration between stakeholders to ensure the order of operations flows smoothly. 

Take the new chairlift as an example: It’s supposed to sit on top of a subgrade parking garage for Chalet Alpina guests and the general public. Chalet Alpina developers have to build that garage before SkiCo can install the lift terminal above it.

SkiCo also has to contend with the buildings themselves, which sit close to the proposed alignment of the new lift. According to the 2023 draft sequencing plan, SkiCo could remove the existing lift about the time that the Aman hotel breaks ground. But they’d still have to wait on spinning a new lift until both Aman and Chalet Alpina finish vertical construction and “enclose” their buildings. Those buildings will also need operating fire alarm and sprinkler systems — or some other “life safety solutions” that may be developed in mutual agreement with the Colorado Passenger Tramway Safety Board that oversees chairlift and gondola regulations around the state, according to the sequencing plan. 

Even if everything goes to plan, skiers and snowboarders will face at least a season or two without a lift up the lower west side of Aspen Mountain while the projects are under construction. 

But it’s still unclear exactly when that will be. Both of the lodging developers, as well as SkiCo and the city, are required to sign off on a construction sequencing agreement that outlines major milestones and a lift-replacement timeline before the city will issue a full permit to either Chalet Alpina or Aman and OKO Group. 

So far, the city has seen only draft proposals of that sequencing plan, and those are already out of date. The most recent draft, from 2023, projected that Lift One Lodge (now Chalet Alpina) would have started construction with utilities, earthwork and shoring this past March. 

Now, the earliest developers could begin utility and infrastructure work is this summer. The city is planning to issue a building permit in phases for both projects, enabling developers to start some preliminary construction while they work through review on other components, Anderson said. 

“This is probably one of the more complex builds, [if not] the most complex build that the city of Aspen has ever seen,” Anderson said. Developers are collaborating on an updated sequencing plan but have not filed it yet. 

In the meantime, the first phase of permitting for Chalet Alpina could be issued “imminently,” Anderson said Thursday. This summer’s work would mostly be focused on a water line utility that affects multiple properties, including SkiCo land, the Chalet Alpina site and the Aman hotel site. (Chalet Alpina crews would be the ones doing the work.) That part of the project also involves review from the city’s engineering department. 

Other Chalet Alpina work proposed this year includes the restoration and stabilization of historic structures such as the Skier’s Chalet buildings, which could happen this summer or fall as authorized through a phased building permit. (Relocation of those structures will happen down the line.) 

Those assets have been monitored for issues and will need some work before they’re ready for new uses. The vacant steakhouse, for instance, has a chimney separating from the main structure, broken windows and other deterioration, while the lodge has a chimney in “poor condition” and a leaking roof, among other signs of age, according to one report from this January.

The Skier’s Chalet Lodge, once a lively hotel and then a low-rent haven for ski bums, is currently used by HayMax as employee housing. (Past tenants included ski coaches, construction workers, bartenders and semi-professional skiers who scored cheap studio apartments while investors figured out their redevelopment plan; residents were paying just $750 a month when they found out their leases would end in 2023.)

The original Lift One gantry and some historic towers are also due for restoration and relocation as part of the corridor development project.  

More significant construction, including that of the subgrade garage, would start next spring at the earliest. 

City planning officials won’t give even a ballpark estimate on when developers could have full permits in hand. “No one has a crystal ball,” said Jen Phelan, who works as a development manager in Aspen’s asset management department and represents the city in stakeholder conversations about the Lift One corridor. 

However, a phased building permit can at least get the ball rolling, according to Anderson and Phelan. 

“I understand the desire to bring certainty to this discussion. I think we’re trying to sort of encourage that,” Anderson said. “I think the phased permitting could contribute to that. … I think in both projects, we have building permits that are proceeding typically through our permit review process, and we’re trying to facilitate getting the project moving forward.”

Developments by the numbers

The complexity of the project is one of the reasons that building-permit review has taken so long, Anderson said. The city has third-party reviewers for the structural plans, and staffers go through mountains of application documents to ensure that they’re consistent with approvals. They aren’t just working with static applications, either; developers just recently provided necessary details for components of the permit-review process, according to Anderson. 

It’s “a big undertaking for the applicant,” too, Anderson said. The developers of Chalet Alpina submitted their application to the city in April 2023 and have since received a “very significant set of first-round comments” as well as a much “less significant” batch in the second round. 

“It’s not atypical to have four rounds” on a large project, Anderson said, but there is at least some reprieve as the rounds tend to get simpler as the project gets refined. 

Chalet Alpina developers are now also seeking approvals on a request for “insubstantial amendments” to their overall layout, which they discussed with city staff and submitted this past spring. They want to change their configuration of timeshares — 27 units, instead of 34, with more floor area per unit “based on final design considerations and the need to establish an efficient layout,” according to the request. 

They will still retain a lock-off configuration that results in 104 individual “keys” that can be rented out as hotel rooms when timeshare owners aren’t in town. The plans still include commercial space for restaurants and retail, as well as six full-ownership residential units and one affordable housing unit in a separate building.

The request also includes “technical modifications to floor area calculations” in response to building permit review feedback, an adjusted setback calculation from South Aspen Street and review of a master sign plan. The amendments haven’t been greenlit yet, Anderson said. The review will be an administrative process that does not require approval by City Council or appointed boards and commissions because the changes have been deemed technical and generally consistent with existing approvals; they won’t substantially change the nature of the project. 

Meanwhile, the Aman/OKO application was just accepted by the city in March and now faces its own long road to get a permit in hand. The developers of that project received approval for insubstantial amendments last year, reducing the overall size of the hotel by a couple thousand square feet while slightly expanding the size of its private pool and public amenity space. 

The plans still include 81 hotel rooms, four free-market full-ownership residences, and one affordable housing unit, as well as amenities and commercial space for restaurants and retail. 

That project has a slightly shorter overall construction timeline: 36 to 40 months for Aman, which has just one central building, compared with 40 to 44 months for Chalet Alpina’s two central buildings and historic structures, according to that 2023 draft sequencing plan. Although it’s unlikely that developments would begin concurrently, they could still finish about the same time, Phelan said.

By completing their building-permit applications, both development parties have locked in the vested rights that were set to expire this Dec. 24. That means they won’t have to contend with future changes to the city’s land-use code as their projects move forward, so long as they continue to make reasonable progress and don’t neglect city comments or requests for extended periods of time. 

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Optimism abounds 

Representatives of both lodging developers expressed a positive outlook on their progress and communication so far, but they are otherwise tight-lipped about the status and vision for their projects. They declined to answer specific questions about many parts of the Lift One corridor and instead responded with general statements about their attitude and focus. 

“Aman Group continues to actively move forward with its new property at the Lift One Corridor Project in Aspen,” according to a statement sent by Ray Hennessey, CEO and executive partner of public relations firm Vocatus LLC, which represents Aman. “We are working collaboratively with our partners in the development to create a world-class experience that will serve as a centerpiece of the transformed Lift One environment. While the project is progressing well, it is still too early to share specific details — Aman traditionally waits until every aspect is fully realized before making formal announcements.” 

He added: “What we can share is that Aspen will join the ranks of iconic Aman destinations around the world: thoughtfully created in line with the brand’s luxury ethos and DNA. The Aspen property will reflect Aman’s hallmarks of exceptional privacy, intuitive service, sustainability and architectural harmony with its surroundings.”

Like Chalet Alpina, Aman has a penchant for the language of storytelling: “Like a book of untold stories, the Spirit of Aman is intangible,” the resort group’s website says. “Tales informed and enriched by culture, community, nature — this is a narrative emulated by many, yet delivered by Aman, it is inimitable.”

The developers of Chalet Alpina also seem to share the optimism of their counterparts. 

“We’re genuinely excited about the momentum surrounding the Lift One corridor and the opportunity to contribute something meaningful to Aspen through the Chalet Alpina development,” wrote HayMax’s Michael Brown. “The collaboration to date has been excellent — we’ve appreciated the partnership with the city of Aspen, Aspen Skiing Company, OKO, and all of the various stakeholders involved. It’s very much a collective effort, and we’re proud to be working alongside such a thoughtful group.”

Noting the “complex permitting process,” Brown also wrote that the developers “continue to work diligently and collaboratively with the city to move things forward.” 

He added: “Our focus continues to be executing the development in a way that allows the new lift to be installed as soon as possible.” He declined to comment on the rebrand of Lift One Lodge to Chalet Alpina. 

However they execute it, one thing is clear: These projects will be expensive. Building-permit applications include valuations for the “core and shell” condition of each lodge, a number that includes many structural elements but not all fixings, furniture or employee-housing mitigation costs, according to Anderson. 

For the Aman Aspen property, an estimate from April put the project at $149,779,400, according to the city’s response to a Colorado Open Records Act request. 

For Chalet Alpina, an estimate from March 2023 rang up at $199,499,717. The city is planning to ask for updated estimates from both. 

This Connie Harvey Environment Desk story was published in the July 6 edition of Aspen Daily News. Read Aspen Journalism’s July 17 The Roundup edition featuring this story.