Hotel component of Chateau in design phase
This is an original rendering of what the hotel and pool at the Chateau were to look like.
By Kathryn Reed
A 32-room four-star caliber hotel is being designed in what will be the next phase of the Chateau project in South Lake Tahoe.
Accompanying it will be a swimming pool, spa, nearly 19,000-square-feet of retail and open space. The pool will be designed to accommodate what will eventually be two hotels. This first one is permitted for 115 units, while the larger one is for 365 rooms. The bulk of the commercial will be completed in the next phase.
No price is being put on what the next phase will cost, though it is in the tens of millions of dollars range. The opening date could be winter 2017.
Design plans have been submitted to the city. Lew Feldman, attorney for the project owners, says construction could start this fall.
“It really is a testament to where the community is headed,” City Manager Nancy Kerry told Lake Tahoe News. She added that it is especially significant so soon after the initial retail phase of the Chateau opened.
This adds to the 10-year goal, with this being year two, of having $1 billion of private and public money invested on the South Shore. To date $300 million has been spent on upgrading the built environment.
Tahoe Stateline Ventures, the company formed to develop the 11-plus-acre site near the state line, is incrementally building out what was to be a convention center, two hotels and a retail complex. That was the plan that was permitted by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency in 2008, but which got derailed because the original developer filed for bankruptcy. With the dissolution of redevelopment and the city’s not having a role in the project anymore, the likelihood of a convention center’s ever coming to fruition is slim to none.
What that aspect of the project might become remains to be seen.
Still, Owens Financial, the parent company of Tahoe Stateline Ventures, is continuing to believe in South Lake Tahoe. The completion of the next phase could mean the project would be in a better position to attract investors to complete the plans.
The first hotel project will be 32 rooms of what could become a 115-room hotel. It will be a hotel-condo project, with full ownership and the possibility of rooms being put into a rental pool.
Feldman told Lake Tahoe News it is too soon to know if the lodging property will have a well-known flagship or be independent.
This next phase will be adjacent to the Chateau retail that exists on Highway 50. The electric bike rental shop will be demolished. The retail will be on the first floor and the hotel-condo complex on the second and third levels. Rooms will be one-, two- and three-bedroom.
The streetscape along Highway 50 will be completed. For people not wanting to use Stateline or Friday avenues to access the property, a route via Cedar Avenue will be created. This will give guests better pedestrian access to Lakeside Beach, and those staying elsewhere greater access to the retail center.
I’m glad to hear Owens Financial is moving forward wth this project. It will fill in the hole with what looks to be a quality resort.
I hope they hire local contractors for the big construction phase and hire locals to work there on a permanent basis for day to day needs of the Chateau and their guests.
Come on Owens, become part of the community and invest in South Shore.
Always optomistic, OLS
HOLE-y ish! Glad to see progress, but…
What was the point of tearing down retail and hotel units just to replace them with more hotel and retail units again ‘without a convention center?’
A nicer pool?
The old units were removed as they needed upgrading. The real reason behind the development move however is greed and investment return.
we need more sock stores.
the Convention Center I am glad that’s not going to happen
the City was going to pay $53,000,000.00 to buy it back from John Serpa once it was built.
the Marvelous Makeover marches on.
Will these rooms be paying the TOT ?
This is very good news and I think this project is esthetically, environmentally, and financially a huge improvement over the dilapidated structures that had been at that site. It is extremely unfortunate that in 2008 the worst recession since 1929 occurred which seriously impacted our state economy, our national economy, the global economy, and South Lake Tahoe’s economy for several years and caused a long delay in project construction in our small community and throughout the entire state and country.
I would like to thank Mr. Owens for his investment of millions of dollars in the South Shore to make improvements that will provide positive benefits to South Lake Tahoe’s economy and reduce negative environmental impacts to Lake Tahoe. I further submit that contrary to what many people post on this blog, not everyone in this community wanted to see the original project or this project fail.
The article says three stories, the illustration shows a building that is five? And even from the elevated view in the illustration you can hardly see the mountains – it’s why we think people want to come hear yes, the view? It isnt like the world has a shortage of hotel rooms?
Then we have the reminder that the only thing this project has that town did not or already does not have is a convention center. People should read Aesop’s “The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs” – it describes the Tahoe commercial mind-set perfectly – and it was written thousands of years ago – illustrating that although we have fancier toys, our basic human motivations haven’t evolved very much.
It’s interesting that “investing” some huge some of money in a Tahoe project is treated like the entities involved are just giving money away to all the inhabitants. No, they are accumulating funds from people they have convinced they found the right goose, most of the money is going into materials and design, and at the right time they will go elsewhere and leave someone else to handle the fall out of over building.
4-mer, Owens capital gave a 23 million dollar loan to Mr. Lane and he defaulted. For collateral they held full portions of the condos or 1/8th share for 13 million dollars and gave a 10 million dollar loan to Mr. Lane so he could pay off the liens for non payment to the electrical contractors from Nv. Yes, I have all the paperwork to prove this. Owens Capital received this project in the foreclosure proceedings. They have no choice but to try and recoup their investment. I think the design and height is to much. No one will be able to enjoy the sun with the building blocking the sun. Move the three sided shape so the open area faces west and they will get the full effect of the sun which is why people go to a pool. They could do only two sides and leave the front and west side open. In this way people walking down the street can gawk and be jealous enough of the beauties in bathing suits to buy into their pool parties. That said, I wish them well.
Kenny’s got it.
Ski Bum has it just about right.
Owens will hopefully break even or make a buck or two. The hated Lane and Serpa Lost close to a hundred million dollars. No one is getting rich on this project.
At least people shut-up about a completion bond, concert site, bad cement and the unicorn stable.
The convention center went the way of the reflections of the lake and sky on the Harvey’s tower and the public beach at Edgewood.
I never fully understood the convention center concept, since all the casinos have plenty of convention space and none of which is ever filled to capacity. As a result, I just could never get behind the idea that they weren’t big enough to compete with Vegas as some had argued.
Instead, I thought it would be a prime location for an OUTDOOR EVENT CENTER, but what do I know? Tax dollars and events for SLT… A real purpose for our airport AND that parking garage… Did I mention economic diversification and more control of our own future? Oh well, nevermind me.
If the people in control with the money think we need more retail and hotel rooms, then more power to them. I wish them all the success possible.
At least it looks like the folks at Hard Rock are moving forward with plans to refurbish their old show room and bring a brand new outdoor venue to the South Shore. That’s good news for everybody in this community.
And just for record, I have always been for redevelopment in this community. I just think there have been a lot of shortcuts and bad decisions made along the way.
With all that being said, the town is starting to look so much better! Let’s keep the street lights going down 50 and continue building and improving more sidewalks and bike lanes!!!!
Peace