Bogley

[stefan]

let the tensions begin ...



Residents Torn over Multibillion-dollar Resort

BEAVER, Utah (AP) -- Developers hoping to build a multibillion-dollar resort here have riled some residents by posting no-trespassing signs on roads leading to several lakes just before a county meeting on the project.

Some in Beaver County are looking forward to the ritzy Mount Holly Club for its economic boon, while others have concerns over public access and snobbish attitudes.

"It's all Hollywood money, and we don't need them coming in here with their Hollywood drugs and pornography," said resident Margaret Wellman.

But not everyone in this southeastern Utah community opposes Salt Lake City developer CPB's plan to redevelop the now-defunct Elk Meadows ski resort with extravagant homes and a posh club.

"Our elementary school here is in real trouble," said Scott Robinson, who owns Beaver Drug in Beaver. "We need a new school and more teachers. So if the environmental concerns are addressed and laws and ordinances are followed, then I look at the project as something that could benefit the county."

Either way, the proposed resort is the talk of this county of 6,400 people.

"It's the biggest issue in the county that I can remember," Robinson said.

The issue is expected to draw a crowd Wednesday night, when the county Planning Commission considers zoning changes and a development agreement for the $3.5 billion project.

The gated ski resort community would include 1,200 houses and town houses along with a 250,000-square-foot clubhouse to be built on 2,000 acres. The club also would include a private ski resort with 36 runs and an 18-hole private golf course. The project is expected to take 10 years to complete.

Among residents' chief concerns are water rights and public access to areas like Puffer Lake. The group bought land near the lake to add to the ski area and recently no-trespassing signs were posted on roads leading to that lake and several others.

At least two of the signs have been removed and Bill Quick, a spokesman for Mount Holly, blames the markers on an overzealous employee.

Terry Krasco, head ranger at the Fishlake National Forest office in Beaver, explained that the agency has decades-old easements for roads that cross the private land now owned by Mount Holly and lead to public areas.

Krasco would not comment about the signs other than to say the Forest Service "plans to assert our rights of way."

Quick maintains that the developers are committed to adhering to the approval process and building public trust.

"It's important that we do this right," Quick said. "There is nothing secretive about what we are doing. We want to be forthright."

[bruce from bryce]

Last year my wife and I took the drive up from Junction up to the top of the mountain, across to Puffer Lake and then up to Big John Flat. Hiked up into the mountains to see the wildflowers and spent the night on the flat, the only negative being the dirt bikes and ATVs running till 11pm.

The next day we hike up to the top of Mt Holly and in doing so tracked down a huge herd of Mt. Goats. I climbed above them to get a few photos and spooked them where they passed within a few feet of my wife who had stayed below. All in all we saw close to 150 of them.

If this resort actually comes to fuition I wonder if it will still be possible for me to do this route?

[stefan]

Planners back Beaver resort project
County Commission plans hearing, possible vote on Monday
By Mark Havnes
The Salt Lake Tribune


BEAVER - It's big. It's plush. It's divisive. And it's one step closer to being built.

The Beaver County Planning Commission has voted to recommend approval of a development agreement for the proposed Mount Holly Club, which plans to plop hundreds of multimillion-dollar homes, along with an 18-hole golf course, on thousands of acres at a now-defunct ski resort in southwestern Utah.

On Monday, the County Commission will hold a public hearing and consider whether to approve the development deal.

Many residents oppose the plan, fearing the $3.5 billion development at the former Elk Meadows ski area would drain resources, ruin the rural atmosphere and deprive them of access to ski runs and other recreational retreats.

Others back the proposal by Salt Lake City-based CPB, LLC and point to the revenue the ritzy resort 18 miles east of Beaver would bring to private businesses and public coffers.

The Planning Commission's unanimous recommendation came late Wednesday night after the panel tweaked a number of terms in the proposed development accord.

For instance, the deal now calls for those with 30 percent ownership in Elk Meadows property to have continued access to the ski resort. Developers had wanted to limit access to those with at least a 50 percent stake.

County Commissioner Chad Johnson, who attended this week's Planning Commission meeting, is reserving comment on the proposed agreement until after Monday's hearing.

If commissioners endorse the deal, developers still would need to secure preliminary and final plat approvals before construction could begin.

[offpiste]

WOW same sales pitch 20 some years ago. The people won't even stop in Beaver, except to get off and on the plane, that's if they can land their planes at the airport there.
Like I said if goes through it will block access to some great country.

[stefan]

Feds skeptical of posh resort's ads
HUD investigator seeks facts about Mt. Holly plan
By Nate Carlisle
The Salt Lake Tribune


BEAVER - An investigator has been in this central Utah city on a "fact-finding inquiry" into whether developers of a proposed $3.5 billion mountain resort are in compliance with federal laws governing real estate advertising.

Beaver County Attorney Von Christiansen said this week that the investigator, G. Wesley Dunlap of Fairfax, Va., told him he was under contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Dunlap also talked to other county officials about the Mt. Holly Club, which plans the deluxe resort on the site of the former Elk Meadows ski area in the Tushar Mountains 18 miles east of Beaver.

Christiansen said Dunlap told him he was looking into whether Mt. Holly Club and its developers had violated the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act and whether HUD had jurisdiction on such a case.

Christiansen said the inquiry was spurred by the possibility the club had produced misleading advertising. Dunlap said "it would likely be some time before HUD took action," Christiansen said.

Mt. Holly Club issued a written statement Friday saying no one from HUD has contacted the resort and that the club is not subject to HUD registration.

"We are still awaiting county approval before selling lots," the statement said. "And our marketing is consistent with HUD regulations. Mt. Holly has been working with sophisticated counsel from Washington, D.C., for months with respect to all issues of HUD compliance and we will continue to do so."

A HUD spokesman in Washington, D.C., said the agency could not confirm an investigation is under way. Dunlap, however, also went to Beaver County's planning office, where he left a business card and a letter from HUD saying the federal agency had contracted him to conduct fact finding.

The developer, CPB Development of Salt Lake City, want to convert the ski resort into a private, exclusive community. Under the plan, the existing ski runs would be complemented by a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course and luxury housing.

Public reaction has been mixed. Some Beaver County residents have praised the idea as an alternative to failed efforts to run Elk Meadows as an open-to-the-public resort. Others have said the plan is too lofty to succeed and will burden the county financially. Questions also have arisen about whether the expanded community would siphon water from the town of Beaver and whether current condo owners would be allowed access to Mt. Holly Club amenities.

On April 16, the Beaver County Commission will consider whether to approve a development agreement with the club.

HUD's attention might have been caught initially by U.S. Forest Service objections to a full-page advertisement that appeared in the Dec. 1 Wall Street Journal .

The ad said the resort could run ski lifts and snow cats up to 12,000-foot-high Mount Holly. However, the peak is on national forest land where motorized equipment is restricted, and the Forest Service asked the club to stop the advertisements.

The club's Web site, www.mthollyclub.com, contains photographs of scenery that does not appear to be at the resort. Mt. Holly Club spokesman Bill Quick said Friday he did not know where the photo was taken. There is also a sentence on the site saying: "Mt. Holly Club is the only private resort that offers ski-in, ski-out wintertime amenities and a signature Jack Nicklaus championship course all in a convenient golf cart community."

The golf course is not operational and Web site visitors need to click on a subhead to read a fact sheet that says the course is under construction. Visitors must click on the contact page to find a sentence reading: "This is not an offer."

The Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act gives HUD authority over large residential real estate projects. The act also prohibits anyone selling or leasing a property from issuing advertising that is untrue or omits "material fact." The act carries possible civil penalties or criminal penalties of up to 5 years in prison.

The HUD investigator also called on Lynn Kitchen, district conservationist for the U.S. Natural Resource Conservation Service. Kitchen said Dunlap wanted to know much snow annually falls on Mount Holly and Elk Meadows. Kitchen said he supplied data.

On Friday morning, a fact sheet on Mt. Holly Club's Web site claimed the club "receives an average of 450 inches of fresh powder each year." When The Tribune reviewed the fact sheet again in the afternoon, the amount was lowered to 400 inches.

Kitchen said the area received 415 inches in 2005 - one of the heaviest years on record. A more typical annual figure is 200 to 300 inches, he said. But Kitchen added: "If people measure in a big snow drift, you could get about any figure you want."

Mt. Holly Club spokesman Quick said previous owners of Elk Meadows and publications have reported the resort receives 400 to 450 inches of snowfall per year. The fact sheet was amended Friday to reflect the lower end of that range, and because Mt. Holly Club talked with the conservation service to learn more about how resorts measure their snowfall, he said.

[stefan]

Moguls for moguls? Resort wins OK with ski runs for the rich
By Mark Havnes
The Salt Lake Tribune
04/16/2007

BEAVER - A defunct southern Utah resort may again see skiers schussing down its slopes - but the thrill seekers may have to live in a ritzy new resort to reach the runs.

The Beaver County Commission approved a development agreement for the proposed $3.5 billion Mount Holly Club.

The exclusive resort - at the site of the now-closed Elk Meadows ski area - plans to plop hundreds of multimillion-dollar homes and town houses, along with an 18-hole golf course, on thousands of acres at the now-closed Elk Meadows ski area about 20 miles east of Beaver.

Commissioners had considered requiring the developers to provide some skiing access to current residents. But they ended up abandoning that tack and leaving the decision to the developers, who appear eager to market the 36 ski runs as an exclusive playground for their rich clients.

The prospect of losing that access has angered current residents as the proposed resort winds its way through the approval process.

Many also fear the project will drain resources and ruin the rural atmosphere.

But others back the proposal and point to the revenue it would bring to private businesses and public coffers.

The developers still must obtain preliminary and final plat approvals before construction can begin.





____________________________________________________


Exclusive club moves toward public hearing
County approves development agreement for old Elk Meadows
By Mark Havnes
The Salt Lake Tribune
04/16/2007

BEAVER - Plans for what could become Utah's first private ski resort for the rich scored a major victory Monday, leaving those who once enjoyed schussing down the Tushar Mountain slopes out in the cold.

In the face of mounting opposition, the Beaver County Commission approved a development agreement for the proposed $3.5 billion Mount Holly Club.

The exclusive resort plans to plop hundreds of multimillion-dollar homes and town houses, along with an 18-hole golf course, on thousands of acres at the now-closed Elk Meadows ski resort and popular Puffer Lake, about 20 miles east of Beaver.

The county's Planning and Zoning Commission, which recommended approval of the agreement, had considered requiring the developers to provide some skiing access at Mount Holly to current Elk Meadows residents.

But commissioners ended up abandoning that tack and leaving the decision to the developers, who appear eager to market the 36 ski runs as an exclusive playground for their wealthy residents.

County resident Margaret Wellman, who has been fighting the project, said she was disappointed but not surprised by Monday's vote.

"I expected a rubber stamp," she said.

Wellman and her allies already have started contacting hundreds of residents, urging them to attend a public hearing Wednesday, when plat approvals for the project will be addressed.

"This is our last chance to speak out," she said. "From here, we'll take it to court."

Like Wellman, many Beaver County residents fear losing access to ski runs and other recreation areas if Mount Holly is built. They also worry that the project would drain water resources and ruin the area's rural atmosphere.

Others back the massive development and point to the revenue it would bring to private businesses and public coffers.

Craig Burton president of CPB, which is developing the project on private land, told commissioners Monday that earlier discussions about possibly accommodating Elk Meadows homeowners and providing access to ski runs started as a good-neighbor gesture last fall.

But, he said, the issue became too complicated and threatened to undermine one of the resort's major selling points: its exclusivity.

Burton said lenders and investors got jittery when they saw news accounts of the developer and county officials working on a plan to possibly let nonmembers ski on the swanky slopes.

"It's yes or no," said Burton of the club's exclusivity. "There's no middle road."

Burton said the developers are ready to go to court if necessary to protect their right to decide who skis at the club, which sits on private land surrounded by Fishlake National Forest.

"We need to put our private property rights to work," Burton said.

After Monday's meeting, Commissioner Chad Johnson said the panel's authority is limited to ensuring the proposed development follows ordinances for planned-unit developments, and not to deciding who should be allowed on Mount Holly's property.

Johnson noted the proposed Mount Holly Club has generated more documents, taken more time and stirred up more residents than Circle Four Farms, the huge pig farming operation that began production nearly 20 years ago after much controversy.

"[Circle Four] wasn't as comprehensively looked at as this project," Johnson said. "Circle Four didn't even have a development agreement."






____________________________________________________



Mount Holly ski resort plan on hold
By Mark Havnes
The Salt Lake Tribune
04/20/2007

BEAVER - Developers eager to build a posh, private ski resort in southwestern Utah will have to wait before they start turning any dirt.

The Beaver County Planning Commission has some questions - about water (will there be enough?), about financing (will there be enough of that, as well?) and about the proposed golf course (will the 10,000-foot-or-so elevation pose any problems?).

Until they have satisfied those questions - and more - the planning commissioners aren't about to approve preliminary plats for the proposed $3.5 billion Mount Holly Club.

Mount Holly Partners LLC hopes to build 1,200 upscale homes and town homes on 2,000 acres of private land - surrounded by Fishlake National Forest - in the Tushar Mountains, nearly 20 miles east of Beaver.

Club members would have exclusive access to an 18-hole golf course and runs at the now-closed Elk Meadows ski resort.

Many county residents oppose the club. They worry about dwindling resources, an invasion of rich outsiders and lost access to the ski runs and other recreational areas.

During a public hearing at Wednesday night's planning meeting, residents also expressed concerns about possible pollution to streams and whether the developers are following county ordinances concerning planned-unit developments.

Others in the county of 6,400 residents back the project. They see it as a way to bolster business and beef up tax coffers.

In the face of this community split, the Beaver County Commission approved a development agreement for the project earlier this week.

Construction can't begin, however, until the development wins preliminary and final plat approvals. And planning commissioners want proof that the developers have adequate water before they sign off on the 45 housing units planned for 572 acres in the project's first phase.

"Until the state proves they have the 'wet' water and not just the rights, it [development] isn't going to happen," vowed commission member Dennis Miller.

Commission members also want assurance that the project has enough financing, and they delayed a request for a conditional-use permit to begin construction of the golf course. The panel plans to investigate if other courses built at high elevations faced any problems.

Bill Quick, a spokesman for Mount Holly Partners, conceded that the Planning Commission's lack of action was disappointing.

"Sure, we're anxious to get started and would have loved to have been approved, but we also understand the process and are committed to providing information necessary to get approved," Quick said.

[stefan]

Will plans for private ski area fly this time?
By Ray Grass
Deseret Morning News

The move to make Elk Meadows Utah's first private ski area has turned into a real battle between developers and residents not happy with the idea of being locked out.

Proposed is a $3.5 billion Mount Holly Club.

The concept is that the rich and famous will buy very expensive property and more expensive homes, which will come with an exclusive ski pass good for any of the three chair lifts, poma lift and the state's only T-bar, which are currently in place, and any future lifts and tows.

Residents are worried about losing access to the ski runs, which is a little puzzling since lifts haven't run since March of 2002.

This is not Utah's first attempt at introducing a private ski area.

Back in the early 1970s there was talk of making Solitude private. Most of the land the resort sits on is privately owned, which made it a likely candidate for a private resort.

This came after different managers came and went and left the resort in shambles and closed, which is pretty much the history of Elk Meadows. Solitude closed in the winter of 1974-75. Elk Meadows, formerly Mount Holley, formerly Elk Meadows/Mount Holley, opened in 1971 as a local ski hill. It closed at the end of the 2002 season,

When Solitude closed, owners, tired of what they called "poor boy" outfits trying to run the resort, offered to sell it to Salt Lake County. The asking price was $1.5 million for 526 acres of private land, lifts and lodges.

A few years before one of the "poor boy" groups presented an impressive master plan, complete with model, of new lifts and lodges and runs. Shortly after the resort closed that winter, they left in the dead of night, taking with them everything that wasn't welded down, including lift chairs, silverware and cafeteria tables and chairs.

Solitude was sold in 1968 and again in 1976 to Dick Houlihan and Hal Louchheim, who built new lifts and new runs and started it on its way to where it is today, a first-class resort.

The Elk Meadows/Mount Holley Club situation is a little different in that it sits on 1,400 acres and therefore has lots of land to sell. Solitude's land was limited to its ski runs.

Beaver residents are also worried about water. The previous owner claimed water and water quality are what stopped him from spending $150 million in improvements.

That owner claimed he spent $500,000 to improve the water system but admitted that more water sources were required.

Whether or not Elk Meadows becomes a ski resort or not will have little impact on Utah's ski market. Few Utahns skied there when it was open and far fewer will ski there if and when it becomes a private ski area.

Jumping to another subject, I read an interview a couple of weeks ago where Bode Miller said if he's still with the U.S. Team when the 2010 Olympics roll around, he won't complete.

He said there was too much emphasis on winning.

OK, but isn't that what ski racing is all about — winning? I've never heard a World Cup skier say he or she started a race with the intent of finishing second.

[stefan]

stefan wrote:
Jumping to another subject, I read an interview a couple of weeks ago where Bode Miller said if he's still with the U.S. Team when the 2010 Olympics roll around, he won't complete.

He said there was too much emphasis on winning.

OK, but isn't that what ski racing is all about — winning? I've never heard a World Cup skier say he or she started a race with the intent of finishing second.


uhh ... can we say ... RANDOM.

just to comment on this random aside ... is this guy kidding? how about performance, sportsmanship, style, etc. like, all the other great qualities of sports and competition. i'd make an analogy with business ... it often seems today sees business owners who are more interested in making a profit rather than being more balanced with the equal if not more important goal to make and innovate a great product ... and, moreover, to take pride in that.

in any case of course it's excessively focussed on winning ... after all this is what has driven so many athletes to engage in performance-enhancing drugs and methods.

bode's got a point though ... perhaps the olympics are straying from the Modern Olympic creed expressed by its founder Pierre de Coubertin: "The most important thing . . . is not winning but taking part"

[Powderfinder540]

If this resort is built, will there still be access to the backcountry there? Mt. Holly and City Creek Peak have some awesome lines!

[stefan]

Powderfinder540 wrote: If this resort is built, will there still be access to the backcountry there? Mt. Holly and City Creek Peak have some awesome lines!


i imagine it would seriously be compromised. i have inquired via email with the national forest service (as the mt. holly club has yet to return my phone call). still waiting.

it really would be a shame to deny such access. there are other roads in the vicinity (likely closed in winter) and the main highway from the east which is closed in winter.

[stefan]

Proposed Mount Holly Resort draws ire from neighbors
By Mark Havnes
The Salt Lake Tribune


BEAVER - Jammed streets, packed classrooms, dwindling water supplies and vanishing recreation access.

Those were some of the concerns voiced in court Thursday about a posh resort proposed for a canyon east of Beaver in southwestern Utah.

Residents fighting the exclusive Mount Holly Club - planned at the now-closed Elk Meadows ski area - are arguing in 5th District Court here that the development agreement reached between CPB, LC, and Beaver County is illegal and that county residents should be able to vote on the accord in a referendum.

Carol McCully testified today that she, like many residents, fears the multibillion-dollar project will threaten long-established access to area trails and popular Puffer Lake.

"I'm also afraid they will use the airport to shuttle Mount Holly people to the club [by] going over my house [in helicopters]," she told Judge John Walton on the first day of what it is expected to be a two-day trial. "It's an immense problem. The county sees it as tax-revenue gold. But this is a big problem."

McCully said residents have gathered 845 signatures - hundreds more than the 505 needed - to put the issue before county voters. She noted the county clerk has disqualified 40 signatures and still is reviewing the rest.

Salt Lake City attorney Jay Peck, representing the developer, said his client plans to show that the proposed referendum fails to meet the standards set in a Utah Supreme Court case.

The proposed Mount Holly Club would include 1,200 houses and town houses on 2,000 acres. It also would boast a private ski resort and an 18-hole private golf course. The baseline price for a house and lot is pegged at $4 million.

The two-phase project would take about 10 years to complete.

[Powderfinder540]

stefan wrote: Powderfinder540 wrote: If this resort is built, will there still be access to the backcountry there? Mt. Holly and City Creek Peak have some awesome lines!


i imagine it would seriously be compromised. i have inquired via email with the national forest service (as the mt. holly club has yet to return my phone call). still waiting.

it really would be a shame to deny such access. there are other roads in the vicinity (likely closed in winter) and the main highway from the east which is closed in winter.

thats true. the only real access to get there is Highway 153. If the Mt. Holly club does somehow receive permision to build, can they take over the State Highway?

[stefan]

you gotta love some of the mentality in america :haha:

Developers with plans to build an exclusive resort east of Beaver are threatening to sue residents for "millions" for opposing their multibillion-dollar dream.
By Mark Havnes
The Salt Lake Tribune


In an Aug. 7 letter, Stephen R. Jenson, chief executive officer of Mount Holly Partners, warns Elk Meadows residents that they risk being dragged into court personally after their homeowners association filed a lawsuit against Beaver County in hopes of stopping the Mount Holly Club project. The letter labels the association's lawsuit "wrongful litigation" and claims it "has caused Mount Holly millions of dollars in damages as the result of unlawful delays and related costs and expenses." It further says that the developers are preparing to pursue legal action, "including a lawsuit against [association members] for millions of dollars in damages, to recover these wrongful losses."

Victoria Spicer, who owns a condominium in the Snowflake complex, considers the letter a joke. "They are like the new Nazi Gestapo on the mountain," she said. "This is consistent with how they work. We have rights, too, and feel those rights are being violated."

Spicer vows to hold on to her condo no matter what. "My [condo] is priceless to me," she said. "Even if they offer me a million dollars, I won't sell. It's a matter of principle. I don't like bullies."

Alan Bradshaw, the attorney who filed the lawsuit against Beaver County for approving a development agreement for the Mount Holly Club project, called the threatening letter to homeowners "inappropriate." "They [homeowners] exercised their constitutional rights to redress their grievances," he said. Bradshaw said the latest threat smacks of a SLAPP - a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation - designed to silence opposition.

The Utah Legislature passed an anti-SLAPP measure in 2001. But a representative of Mount Holly Club denies the letter amounts to a SLAPP. Spokesman Bill Quick said it was sent because the homeowners' suit had no merit. "The letter states clearly we want damages as a result of what we believe is a frivolous lawsuit," Quick said. "There are significant allegations that Bradshaw and those he represents have made that we believe are false."

Quick said no legal action has been taken and that the trial judge must grant permission before Mount Holly can proceed with litigation. In their suit, the homeowners association alleged the development agreement was flawed. A group of county residents also wanted the court to order the deal be put to a public referendum. But in late July, 5th District Judge John J. Walton ruled in favor of the county and the developers, who were allowed to intervene in the suit. Walton also refused to put the development deal on the ballot. The August letter is the latest salvo in an ongoing battle that started last fall when CPB Development proposed building posh homes and a lodge in a gated community that includes the defunct Elk Meadows Ski Resort, which would be used exclusively by club members along with a proposed 18-hole golf course.

This development would be nestled in the Tushar Mountains about 20 miles east of Beaver on 1,800 private acres surrounded by Fishlake National Forest. Elk Meadows residents want to stop the project. They fear they will lose access to ski runs and hiking trails, and they worry about overloaded infrastructure and possible water contamination. Joe Ban, an attorney for the residents group, has appealed Walton's decision to the Utah Supreme Court in another push to get the development agreement on the ballot.

[stefan]

Dow Jones sues Utah developer
By Nate Carlisle
The Salt Lake Tribune

One of America's most famous news outlets is suing a Utah real estate development over what is alleged to be an unpaid bill.

Dow Jones & Co., whose holdings include The Wall Street Journal, says the Mount Holly Club resort owes more than $586,000 for advertisements it bought in March 2007. Dow Jones submitted an invoice in July but has not received payment, the company says in a lawsuit filed Feb. 1 in federal court in New York. Dow Jones seeks the sum plus interest.

Mount Holly Club ads in The Wall Street Journal already have been a point of contention. On Dec. 1, 2006, the newspaper published a full-page ad in which it was claimed that the resort could run ski lifts and snow cats up to 12,000-foot-high Mount Holly in the Tushar Mountains of Beaver County.

However, the peak is on national forest land where motorized equipment is restricted, and the Forest Service asked the club to stop the advertisements.

Also, in March 2007, an investigator from U.S. Housing and Urban Development was in Beaver County investigating whether Mount Holly Club broke laws related to advertising and land sales. A HUD spokesman declined Monday to discuss the status of the case with the club, which would feature posh homes and a lodge in a gated community that would be used exclusively by club members.

Representatives of Mount Holly Club, which has been opposed by some residents because of fears that it would overload the area's infrastructure, said Monday in a written statement that claims such as the one by Dow Jones often occur on large development projects.

"Mount Holly Club has an excellent relationship with Dow Jones and fully expects this to be resolved quickly," the statement said.

The Dow Jones lawsuit does not specify whether the disputed payment is for The Wall Street Journal advertisement or for promotions purchased later. Besides The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones owns dozens of publications and media outlets, including Barron's. A Dow Jones spokesman on Monday could not immediately locate information about the lawsuit.

The Beaver County Commission in February approved preliminary proposals for Mount Holly Club, but large-scale construction has not begun.

[stefan]

Mount HollyLawyer urges project to go to referendum
Developers, on their part, say the appeal should be dismissed
By Cathy McKitrick
The Salt Lake Tribune
05/22/2008

A developer's legal battle to block a public vote on its plans for a pricey ski-and-golf resort in Beaver County took a circuitous and "desperate" detour through the state Legislature, charges an attorney for resort opponents. "In what can only be described as a series of desperate acts, [developers] have taken extraordinary measures to try and avoid a legal review of the trial court's conclusions," Joel Ban, attorney for a grass roots group trying to put the Mount Holly project to a vote, wrote in appeal briefs filed Wednesday. "[Developers] hired a lobbyist, pursued an amendment to the referendum statute and then filed a request to extend the briefing schedule. Knowing that SB53 had been signed by the governor and would become effective May 5, they nonetheless waited until the last day to act," Ban wrote.

Sen. Brent Goodfellow's SB53 - a new law confusing to the point state lawyers say it could be unconstitutional - took effect May 5. A day later, CPB Development LC and Mount Holly Partners LLC used it as the basis to ask that a resident group's appeal get tossed out of court. Ban wants the Utah Court of Appeals to allow the Mount Holly project to go to a referendum vote. A lower court, in a complex decision, ruled it could not. Ban claims the issue is subject to referendum because the county decision constituted legislative action the enacting of an ordinance establishing the details of the Mount Holly Club development agreement. Developers say the appeal should be dismissed, arguing that SB53 bans referendums on all local land-use issues. It also claims the state Supreme Court is the proper forum for an elections dispute. In late April the state Attorney General's Office questioned SB53's constitutionality in a letter sent to Sevier County Attorney Dale Eyre - concerning another right-to-vote effort, this one over a controversial coal-fired power plant. Assistant Attorney General Thom Roberts cited Article 6 of the state Constitution, which provides for the people's fundamental right to legislate through initiative and referenda.

That right - viewed as sacrosanct - bucks up against individual property rights, said Dan McDonald, an attorney with Smith Hartvigsen, the firm representing CPB and Mount Holly. "More and more, citizen groups who dislike a landowner or development organize themselves to challenge land-use decisions," McDonald said. "The Supreme Court has repeatedly recognized that individual property rights are important as well as deference to local land-use authority." McDonald intends to file a quick answer to Ban's brief today - although the court could rule without it. The weighty issues of SB53's constitutionality - and application to this case - cannot be ignored, McDonald said. "This has statewide impact and is important enough that we think it will percolate to the Supreme Court, no matter who loses in the Court of Appeals."