This vision is closer to reality with the announcement of a new concept
by the Grand Lake Lodge, a National Historic Landmark located at the
west gate to Rocky Mountain National Park in Grand Lake.
Using a development plan approved by the Town of Grand Lake, the Grand
Lake Lodge has launched an ambitious mission to create a National
Park-style village on its 71.5-acre property.
The village would be complete with mixed-use development ranging from
private, single-family homesites to condominiums, town homes and
additional lodging, most with stunning views of Grand Lake, Shadow
Mountain Reservoir, Rocky Mountain National Park and the upper Colorado
River basin.
Long-range plans for the property may
include a mini-lodge, conference center, general store, and additional
employee
housing, all designed to take advantage of the property’s prime
location
adjacent to Rocky Mountain National Park.
Estes Park Chalet, Inc., which has owned the Grand Lake Lodge since
1953
(50 years this summer), has hired local developer Don Woods to assist
in
planning the proposed expansion. Woods, who has extensive experience
with successful projects in Keystone, Winter Park and at Robert Redford’s
Sundance in Utah,
emphasizes high-quality, environmentally sensitive design and
construction.
His plans for the property blend perfectly with the vision of the
Ted L.
James, Jr. family, owners of Estes Park Chalet, Inc. In essence, the
James family seeks responsible, sensible growth while preserving the
environmental integrity and National Historic Landmark status of this
truly unique property.
The James family also stresses that, aside from its obvious charms
as a
rustic mountain resort blessed with incomparable views, the Grand
Lake
Lodge possesses a certain romantic allure, a subtle sense of enchantment
that consistently evokes what many new western historians refer to
as
“spirit of place.”
To be sure, this “spirit” is a tricky thing to characterize
or quantify
precisely, but its presence is most keenly felt in places of sublime
beauty (Yosemite Valley, for example, or the Grand Canyon) or in
locations associated with the colorful history of the America West,
quality which the Grand Lake Lodge property possesses in abundance.
For many visitors, the spirit of the Lodge is most apparent when they
first set foot in the lobby and literally step back in time to a bygone
era, when overland travel in the West was still a great adventure.
For others, the spirit lingers in the memory of a long-forgotten
romance, or in a lazy swing on the Lodge front porch that will forever
conjure images of cool summer breezes and majestic Rocky Mountain
vistas.
Virtually everyone who has visited the Grand Lake Lodge during its
80-year history has experienced some measure of its magic and it is
this
“spirit of place,” this inspiring combination of romance,
adventure and
enchantment, that the James family most fervently strives to preserve
as
the future of the property unfolds.
Built in 1919 to provide food and lodging for early tourists to Rocky
Mountain National Park, the Grand Lake Lodge resembles one of the
great
Adirondack “camps” of upstate New York. These camps, conceived
and
constructed by wealthy East Coast industrialists and financiers in
the
late 1800s and early 1900s, were comprised of rustic yet elegant lodges
and guest quarters, constructed by local craftsmen and characterized
by
extensive use of native timber and stone.
Camp buildings were designed to harmonize with the natural environment,
and the architectural themes that emerged eventually came to be known
as
the “Adirondack” style. In 1916, the National Park Service
adopted the
Adirondack style for its hotels and lodges cross the country.
By the time the Grand Lake Lodge opened in July 1920, local craftsmen
had transformed the Adirondack style into “Rocky Mountain Rustic
Stick.”
In 1933, the United States Department of the Interior officially listed
the Grand Lake Lodge on the National Register of Historic Places in
recognition of the Lodge’s significant efforts to preserve one
of the
region’s finest examples of this “rustic stick” style
of architecture.
In keeping with this design tradition, the planned development at
the
Grand Lake Lodge will be subject to strict architectural and material
controls to ensure that all structures comply with the Adirondack/Rocky
Mountain rustic stick style and harmonize with the natural environment.
In addition, architectural controls will prohibit the construction
of
the large “trophy homes” that are currently being built
throughout the
Colorado high country.
Instead, the Grand Lake Lodge development plans emphasize high quality,
tastefully designed structures that will complement the natural beauty
of the Rocky Mountain National Park region.
Article from the Grand Lake Prospector. 4/15/2003
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