Edgewood to use lake water to cool hotel rooms
Edgewood Lodge will be open for summer 2017, with views of the lake and golf course. Photo/LTN
By Kathryn Reed
Guests at Edgewood Lodge will be able to feel the cool water of Lake Tahoe without ever having to dip a toe into the lake.
This is because developers are extending the in-take line used by Edgewood Water Company, routing that water through the hotel and then to the pumping station before it becomes potable. That water will actually be the air conditioning for the hotel.
“Instead of spending money on a chiller and cooling tower we spent money on the inline to the lake,” Patrick Rhamey, executive vice president of Edgewood Companies, told Lake Tahoe News. “That way we will use less energy, less greenhouse gases, and it will go toward LEED certification for the hotel. It is a simple, but elegant way to conserve energy and provide air conditioning.”
The current line is 600-feet long, in a depth of 25- to 35-feet of water. The new line will be 3,000 feet, at a depth of 600 feet. That will allow the water coming into the building to be about a constant 46 degrees.
The water for the cooling system is never touched while it’s in the lodge. The pumping system is the same one in place for the water company.
Edgewood Water Company is extending the in-take line 3,000 feet into Lake Tahoe. Photo/LTN
Ratepayers of the Stateline water company will not be affected; the nearly $1 million price tag for the new pipe is being charged to the lodge project.
The existing pipe will remain as a backup.
Edgewood is going after LEED silver certification; this is a federal designation in regards to how green, or environmentally efficient the structure is.
The lodge is slated to open by Memorial Day 2017. It will be possible to make a reservation starting Oct. 24. About 300 more employees will be hired, essentially doubling the staff of Edgewood Tahoe. Edgewood is operating and managing the lodge.
In addition to the hotel rooms (nothing is for sale, these are not condos), there will be a restaurant that caliber-wise will be in between the fine dining restaurant and sports bar that have long been at the site. The lodge restaurant will be bistro-style, serving three meals a day – to guests and the public. It will be the largest of the three dining options, seating 200, along with outdoor tables.
The 8,000-square-foot spa will have multiple treatment rooms. There will also be a salon for people to get their hair and nails done. Edgewood is hoping this will make for a more inclusive option for wedding parties.
A pool will front the lake, as well as a fitness room. These will be exclusively for guests.
The 3,000-square-foot conference center can be divided off into smaller sections. There will also be retail, and for guests an adventure concierge service.
In the future it’s possible 40 residential style units would be built along the fairways of holes 8 and 9. Owners can also add more than 5,000-square-feet of meeting space if there is the demand.