Peter Fillat Architects and Bear Creek Mountain Resort
Team Up Again for
Second Expansion in Two Years
September 30, 2005
Entrance of Lodge
MACUNGIE, PA- Less than a year after the completion of a 108,000 SF expansion of the Bear Creek Mountain Resort in December 2004 that included the addition of two dining facilities, 54 hotel guestrooms, a lodge and retail plaza, Peter Fillat Architects gears up for round two. Schematic designs for yet another expansion are hot off the press, an aggressive construction schedule is being set into motion and PFA is confident of a repeat success.
In 2004, PFA teamed up with general contractor Ondra-Huyett Associates and completed the $20 million project in just eight months. This time around, the new $7 million expansion will include the addition of 64 hotel guestrooms, 5,300 SF of meeting and banquet space, and is slated to commence in April 2006 and end in December 2006, just in the nick of time for next year's guests.
It is evident that new facilities have proven to be profitable for Southern Management Corporation. The expanded resort's inaugural ski season (December 2004 through March 2005) earned $6 million in revenue independent of the hotel-such as in food, lift tickets and ski lessons, which equates to twice the previous season's earnings of $3 million when the mountain had only a day facility. Hotel revenues have also exceeded the owner's expectations: occupancy in February 2005 exceeded marketing goals by 15 percent.
"We successfully achieved the order and function that is essential to a smooth flowing facility. I'm really excited," said development partner Bob Singer of SMC. "I think we have a fantastic product."
Since Spring of 2005, PFA has been working closely with SMC to design yet another high-quality and profitable design for expansion. In addition to the present-day resort's incredible functionality and innovative design, the resort is designed to conserve energy; large windows that allow for daylighting, a water conservation system that converts precipitation into manufactured snow and utilization of local construction materials significantly reduced costs.