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THE MUELLERS AND CRESTED BUTTE:
The honeymoon's over, but the marriage is thriving
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MT. CRESTED BUTTE, CO--From a distance, the handsome new buildings rising from the dust of tired old ones show the most obvious impact of Tim and Diane Mueller's purchase of Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR). But the closer you get, the more you see - from the painstakingly landscaped and groomed ski mountain to the liveliness and humor inside the Axtel office building.
For this mid-summer interview, Diane walked in with dirt under her fingernails from her weed-pulling "rampage." She teased Tim (normally the more reserved of the two) about the red page-boy wig and kimono he uncharacteristically donned for the recent Chefs on the Edge competition. If these two are affecting Crested Butte, perhaps it's a two-way exchange.
"It's still a good fit," Tim said. "We knew Crested Butte preferred a family ownership structure over a corporate, big-city, money-based entity. And we like being here. It fits in with our lifestyle."
"Our values also fit," Diane added. Those values? Hard work, fun, the outdoors, humility, honesty, integrity. "That has been reflected back to us here. People here are also hard working, honest and fun loving. We can build off each other's strengths."
In the two-plus years since the Muellers bought the resort, they've settled into a routine, spending about 40 percent of their time in Crested Butte, the rest at their Okemo Mountain Resort in Vermont and the New Hampshire resort they operate, Mt. Sunapee. Since building a home in Crested Butte, they no longer live out of suitcases. Their son Ethan, CBMR's director of operations, this summer married Katie, his Crested Butte sweetheart. The Muellers have all become more involved in the community: Tim serves on the Crested Butte Land Trust board, Diane on the Gunnison Area Community Foundation board, and Ethan on the Office for Resource Efficiency board.
"We're enjoying our roles, and they help us understand this area better," Diane said.
Tim's and Diane's roles at the ski resort have also settled into a smooth routine; they are engaged and active, but careful not to micromanage what they call "a great team."
The infusion of much needed capital into the ski resort has lifted morale and allowed people to thrive in their jobs, they've observed. "People have always had an affection for this mountain, the feeling that it's their 'place on earth'," Diane said. "Now that they have the tools and resources to do their jobs well, they can be really proud."
Tim added, "I don't think the public realized how much the top managers of the organization sacrificed during the hard times [under financially strapped previous owners]. They did it because they loved this place. Now they really appreciate having the resources they need… and having the opportunity to grow and advance."
The Muellers naturally model their "company values": community relations, profitability, safety, environment, quality product, guest services and teamwork.
"One of the differences between private and corporate ownership is that there's more interaction between people, more trust," Diane said. "There are still goals and accountability, but relationships are more important than monitoring."
Tim added, "If CEOs are there only ten percent of the time, they have to make decisions according to what comes back on paper. Because we're here a lot, we can see and understand. The whole team makes decisions; they don't come down from on high."
"We can also react to things more quickly," Diane said. "We can adjust the budget without getting a board together."
George Lake, the Muellers' financial, real estate and strategic consultant and long-time friend, sees an additional advantage to the family's ownership of CBMR. "Since the resort is privately held, there's no need to show earnings or distribute cash," he said. "Tim and Diane typically establish a business strategy based on constantly reinvesting. They are always seeking to do the right thing… for the mountain, for their employees, for themselves, for the community. Because they are independent, they can also be patient, and move when the market is ready."
For veteran staffers at CBMR, some of whom were fearful about what might happen when the Callaway and Walton families sold the resort, the Muellers have been a delightful surprise. "We are still family owned, which is rare in the ski industry," said Gina Kroft, vice president of sales and marketing. "It's been good for all of us to have the resources to bring Crested Butte to its potential. The Muellers have the support, track record and financial ability. They can come up with out-of-the-box ideas. They're not extravagant; they're smart. They have high expectations and trust. And they work right there beside you, pulling weeds, giving input, coming up with ideas. It excites everybody when your ownership is right there with you."
While upgrading the existing ski operations, the Muellers have focused on two major projects: remaking the base area and creating plans for the North Village, a new Mt. Crested Butte community hub which would also serve as the base area for skiing on Snodgrass Mountain if approved by the Forest Service.
"That's the most fun," Diane said. "Figuring out where we're headed and what steps to take next, then seeing it all happen."
Working closely with the community throughout their planning, the Muellers have forged good relationships with the town of Mt. Crested Butte and other local entities. They negotiated their way through a land swap with the town to mutual benefit. They've also enjoyed positive interactions with the Forest Service, although the approval process for lift-served skiing on Snodgrass Mountain has hit a series of unexpected time delays.
The re-invented base area now rising from the ground, Mountaineer Square, was designed to be "user friendly," with careful attention to welcoming, directing and serving guests. By contrast, the North Village, just taking shape on the drawing board, will serve as a community hub for both guests and residents of Mt. Crested Butte. To create a vital town-center feel in the North Village, the Muellers hired "traditional neighborhood" specialists rather than ski area designers. The resulting plans show a smaller-scale development designed "the way a community would naturally grow," Diane said. (See related story for details.)
In general, the Muellers' Crested Butte real estate investments have gone very well. Sales at the Lodge at Mountaineer Square shattered previous county records. Lots in the ski-in, ski-out mountainside subdivision of Prospect have sold nicely. "The market took off after we bought the resort," Tim said. "Now that has slowed down, as it should, and we'll grow at a slower, more sustainable rate."
The sudden price escalation brought to the fore the issue of affordable housing, which also caught the Muellers' attention. CBMR this summer collaborated with Mt. Crested Butte on a community housing neighborhood in Prospect.
"People enjoy the fact that this is a real community; we need to make sure we have adequate housing so it stays funky," Diane said. "We will continue to be the town and mountain everybody loves, if we all work on it together." Tim added, "We need to come to grips with that community wide, not just burden one sector by relying solely on impact fees."
The spotlight that greeted the Muellers when they first bought CBMR has calmed a bit (though strangers still approach them in restaurants to thank them for "saving our mountain"). That celebrity has segued into deeper connections, concrete results and richer understanding.
"The chemistry still feels very good," Tim said.
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Real Estate in the Crested Butte Valley
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