Understandably residents of homes in the secluded village of Arrowhead, Colorado value their heavenly space.  After all, the gated community of Arrowhead CO real estate—and its signature Country Club of the Rockies—arrived in the mountains first.  The Country Club of the Rockies does have the distinction of being Vail Valley's  first private golf club.  For ten years, the Jerry Ford Invitational Golf Tournament brought plenty of attention to the golf course and effectually put Arrowhead real estate on the map.

Enter Vail Resorts and their plans to add an 80-unit condo complex to the real-estate landscape of Vail Valley.  Of course, the present citizens are all for progress and normally may welcome a handsomely sculpted lodge into the ski community.  What' the catch?  Well, the Vail Resorts development with its community pool and outdoor fireplaces will replace 260 spaces of free skier parking in Arrowhead.

The current free-skier parking lot is perfectly located at the base of Arrowhead Mountain and Arrow Bahn chairlift.  How do you welcome skiers without adequate free parking?  How do you compete in the resort market?  Vail Resorts explains that they are planning to replace the present above-ground parking with underground parking.  The jury is out about how much the underground parking will cost—or whether it will cost at all.

But word' out that the developer has yet to follow through on a parking obligation in any other project and that may or may not be true.  That being said, however, the condominium project looks like it will bring residents a new pool and other amenities while it could possibly eliminate some of the free skier parking.

So, that is why residents are scrutinizing the plans and stepping up to the microphone to voice their concerns—one of the perks of living in a small mountain community where it is still possible to work together to find creative solutions for issues that affect the pristine quality of life in the Rocky Mountains. 

For information about today' values for investment real estate and luxury vacation homes in the area, contact Joe Johns of Grand Seasons Real Estate at (970) 471-1432.