I’m often asked what I see for the future of The Village at Blue as well as Blue Mountain in general, so I’ve decided to dust off my crystal ball and give you my vision of what I feel it will look and feel like in 2029. I’ll be drawing on my 22 years of experience at Mont-Tremblant as well as my past 18 years as a real estate agent and broker of record in Blue Mountain.
The Village at Blue
Why start with the vision of the Village? Because it was the Village built at the base of Mont Tremblant that brought throngs of new visitors to that resort and started their real estate wheels in motion in 1991. It was the Village built at the base of Blue Mountain that generated heightened interest and got our real estate motor running in 2000. In each case, the Village was the attraction, with boutiques, restaurants and bars breathing new energy into resorts originally created in the 1930s and 40s. In the late 1990s and early 2000s Baby-Boomers were eagerly buying resort real estate as an opportunity to mix fun and investment. Intrawest’s 10 year master plan to build 1,200 resort condominiums in 8 four-story buildings in the Village along with unique commercial spaces and attractions generated uber-buzz in Ontario. Fast forward to today. Only five of the eight buildings with 800 of the previewed 1,200 resort
condominiums have been built with about 65% of the proposed commercial spaces complete. The original 10 year master plan hit a major bump in the road in 2008/09 with the world financial melt-down. Like a prize fighter that took a good hit on the jaw, real estate in the Village stumbled back to its corner, pulled itself together, got back on its feet and today is well positioned for the next 10 exciting years. Here’s what I see in my crystal ball; winter 2029 – I see the remaining three buildings in the Village totalling 400 resort condominiums completed. The remaining 35% of proposed commercial space will be built and operational with funky new boutiques, restaurants and bars. I see a multi-teared concrete
pay-for parking structure located directly in front of The Village to help ease parking congestion. A new shuttle system with city-size buses will efficiently move visitors around the resort and outer parking lots. There will be a new aquatic center / waterpark located either at the south end of the resort or where the 18th green of the Monterra Golf Course is today. Skier visits will surpass 1,000,000 per year with total resort visitors hitting the 3,000,000 per year mark. Annual average occupancy in the village will consistently be at or above 75%. By 2029 the average sale price per square foot for resort condominiums in The Village will reach $600 and as high as $900 for condos in a new luxury address.
The Blue Mountain Area
Due to the increase in the popularity in the area over the next 10 years, Blue Mountain will continue to be the hip-n’- cool Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC). Baby-Boomers who, 25 years ago were looking for resort condominiums for their young families, will sell their homes in the GTA and purchase $1,000,000+ homes in Blue Mountain for their retirement. Full time residents will triple in numbers. This growing sub-culture will demand better infrastructure from roads to hospitals to services and everything in between. Traffic congestion will become a significant issue putting pressure on local politicians to create solutions. Children of Baby-Boomers may find it desirable to work in the area or just make Blue Mountain their destination for fun, as their parents did before them. Affordable housing for resort and local workers will be another key issue that will require cooperation from all levels of government. Savvy developers will recognize opportunities at both ends of the real estate spectrum and will continue to invest in the area. Real estate development will continue to drive the local economy. By 2029, what was once more of a weekend community will be a full-time bustling town with all the benefits of new and improved infrastructure as well as the growing pains that go along with creating it.
All in all, I guess you can summarize my 2029 vision for The Village at Blue and Blue Mountain in one word, “growth.” Are you ready?
Let me know what you think of my vision and perhaps share your own vision with me. You can e-mail me at gerry@remax-bluemountain.com. I’ll look forward to hearing from you.