Business

Friday, Jun. 20, 2008

Biz Buzz: Private operator takes over Nacimiento Lake duties

Forever Resorts, which runs vacation areas around the world, will manage rentals, stores

Comments (0) |

Forever Resorts, a global vacation destination company based in Scottsdale, Ariz., has taken over recreation and visitor services at Nacimiento Lake and Lake San Antonio.

“We know the lakes are a wonderful draw for people who want to get away from it all,” said company Vice President Darla Cook, who is at the lakes today for grand opening ceremonies. “I don’t think people in this region realize they’ve got such a great vacation destination right in their own backyard.”

The company has a one-year agreement to run all existing recreational services, including condominium lodgings, marinas with watercraft rentals, restaurants, stores and gas stations.

“It’s an interim agreement, but we hope they’re going to be with us a long, long time,” said John Pinio, chief ranger and director of Monterey County parks.

The county’s park system will continue to independently operate the lakesides’ campsites and day-use areas.

In 2006, the most recent year for available data, the two lakes drew more than half a million visitors and earned about $9.5 million in gross revenue between resorts and camping, Pinio said. He hopes the new partnership will increase visitor-ship by as much as 25 percent this year.

The company was hired by Monterey County after it bought the resorts last fall as part of a $22 million settlement with businessman Dan Heath. He sued Monterey County in 2003 over the Salinas Valley Water Project, asking for $170 million in damages. He claimed the county would have to drain

Nacimiento Lake to complete work on the lake’s spillway, which is part of the project, and would damage his business in the process.

Monterey County owns the water rights for the reservoirs, which were built to serve the irrigation needs of the Salinas Valley.

Cook said the lower lake level, down now by 35 feet, is not a problem for Forever Resorts.

“For us, fluctuations are part of the marine business,” Cook said. Many of the company- managed lakes in California are currently down more than 100 feet because of the drought, she added.

For the summer, the company is bringing five new ski boats and five additional “patio” boats (craft with big, flat decks) to each lake, as well as a 59-foot-long luxury houseboat to Lake San Antonio that Cook described as a “floating condo with a water-slide off the back.” The houseboat sleeps 10 and rents for three days in the summer for around $4,000.

Marina fees, boat rentals and lodging fees will remain the same, said Mike Derr, contracts/purchasing officer for Monterey County. There also will be no significant staffing changes, other than the usual ramp-up for the peak summer season, because Forever Resorts has kept on those already working, Cook said.

Rex Maughan, Forever Resorts’ chief executive officer and president, oversees a $2 billion private corporation encompassing agriculture, manufacturing, sales of aloe vera health and beauty products, leisure resort properties, ranching and charities. The firm employs more than 8,200 people worldwide, according to information supplied by Monterey County officials. Its resort division manages 67 marinas, resorts and lodges in Europe, South Africa and the United States, including those at Lake Powell, Lake Mead and California’s Trinity Lake, Lake Don Pedro, Oak Bottom, Brandy Creek and Lake Berryessa, Cook said.

—Melanie Cleveland

SLO improvement district plans finalized

The San Luis Obispo City Council this week finalized an ordinance that would allow the formation of a tourism business improvement district to market the city’s hotel rooms.

A 2 percent levy will be placed on the gross receipts from city hotel rooms, and collections will begin in August. The district is expected to raise at least $950,000 in the first year for tourism promotion.

The city has been more successful at creating such a district than the county as a whole. The proposal to establish a countywide tourism improvement district will again come before the county Board of Supervisors in the fall. Earlier efforts fell short because the cities with the most hotel rooms—Pismo Beach, San Luis Obispo and Paso Robles—decided not to join.

—Sally Connell

Lucky guess wins $500 from OneSource

Lorrie Wells of Atascadero recently won $500 at the San Luis Obispo Home Show by guessing the number of hangers in a Plexiglas box displayed at the OneSource Home Solutions booth.

Wells estimated there were 290 hangers in the box of 295 hangers, making her guess the closest out of more than 200 guesses.

“Well, I have to attribute my win to my husband,” Wells said. “I was going to guess 200, and he said, ‘No, guess 290 hangers.’ ”

OneSource is San Luis Obispo-based company that provides organizational products for the home.

—Tonya Strickland

Paso chamber plans business trip to China

The Paso Robles Chamber of Commerce plans a business leaders’ trip to China from Oct. 14-22.

The cost is $1,599 per person, which includes round-trip airfare, hotel stays, three meals a day, a tour guide, ground transportation and admission to all attractions.

The group will depart from Los Angeles and visit Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou and Hangzhou. Included in the tour are attractions such as the Great Wall as well as places of particular business interest such as the Economic Development Zone in Hangzhou.

An alternate itinerary is available for those who have already been to Suzhou and Hangzhou.

A registration fee of $200 is required for those signing up, and the full payment is due by July 1.

For more information, call 238-0506, ext. 46. —Leah Etling