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Dear Fellow THE ASPEN MOUNTAIN RESIDENCES Owners,

I hope this note finds you well! Today marks a new beginning for our property.  At 12:01 AM last night we officially became THE ASPEN MOUNTAIN RESIDENCES!!!!  and we begin our next chapter of ownership. There are so many things are happening behind the scenes right now to get ready for your next stay.  

Here is an update of just some of the things that are happening now:

Marriott Management and East West Hospitality have worked well together to ensure a smooth transition of management.  The board wants to thank both companies for their professionalism.

The invoices for our annual assessment will be sent out today (Dec 15th) via both email and “snail mail” through East West Hospitality, our new management company.  Payment will be due by Jan 5th which gives you the chance settle the invoice in either 2021 or 2022.  I can now confirm we are adding a new “pay by credit card” option which can be used for an additional fee. This will offer you additional flexibility when paying your annual dues.

Our new Owner Relations /Reservations department is operational as of today! Your new team is ready to give you personalized service and help you make reservations, add guests, exchange with other owners etc.

Their email is: aspenres@eastwest.com. A toll-free number will be in place shortly but will not be available for another week or so. The Owner Relations Dept will be open Monday through Friday 8am-5:30pm MST (will also be open Saturdays 8am-4pm MST starting in January).

East West’s Owner Relations Department has 18 years of Fractional Owner Relations experience, and they look forward to getting to know you. 

We understand you may have many questions around making new reservations and the new owner portal, however, more formal information about booking future reservations and access the online component will not be available until after the New Year; so, keep an eye out for updates when the 2022 reservation system and online portals are solidified.

Please note: All reservations for 2022 are secure so feel free to call Owner Relations to confirm your dates if needed. Just note that they are loading all the reservations starting with week #50, 2021 and will not be finished loading everything till years end so you might want to give them some more time if you are enquiring about weeks later next year.

If you were not able to secure additional reservations using your HRC points before the Dec 2nd deadline, unfortunately you have lost that opportunity to secure any additional time for 2022. No information about prior HRC point balances were transferred from Marriott so there is nothing Owner Relations can do to help you secure additional time.   

New Resort Website – our new website is under development https://aspenmountainresidences.com/ we should have content shortly. On that site there will also be owner log-in to access the new owner portal. Once you log-in you and see your reservations and personal statements as well as some of the functionality we formerly had on the ABCowners.com website such as “time and trade”, “messages from the board”, “unit floorplans” and an “owner blog” will all be there.  Access with limited reservations data will be available in the next few weeks and full reservations data for 2022 will be available shortly after the new year.

Don’t forget!!! Our float selection period for 2023 will be moved back to at least April. This will give us the time needed to finalize our new float selection process and get our systems in place. Nothing else about your intervals will change. More information on this will be coming soon. 

Most of you have heard of the supply chain backlog due to covid. Not only is everything costing more to ship they are also taking much longer to both manufacture and ship. Together with East West Hospitality we began immediately ordering items we knew we would need.

Logo items – such as robes, writing pads, stationary, front door mat, pens, phone surrounds, signs, key and key card folder, skis and ski boot & poles stickers, even the logo which shows on your TV all need to be replaced. All had been ordered as soon as we had the logo in place. Some of these items are already in place and others will be arriving in the coming weeks.

If something was not expected to arrive on time, we needed to order “blanks” to use until the logo item arrives. A good example of this are our room keys which have been ordered but have not arrived yet.

Resort vehicles – We ordered two new 14 seat luxury transport vans in early summer. Tech chip issues impacted availability which caused the delivery dates to keep moving back from the initial Dec 2021 date to the current timeline of April 2022. Unfortunately, they will not be in place this winter when we wanted them. Once they arrive you will see they are a big step up from what we have now.        

Your marketing committee has been working with East West to put out a series of press releases highlighting our transformation to an independent property. In the next few weeks our press releases will highlight our commitment to the local community. We will be highlighting our employees and partners, CB Burger, Aspen Sports, The Marble Bar, as well as the Silver Circle Ice rink and more. Stay tuned!

Speaking of the ice rink – Look for our logo to be added under the ice in the center of the rink. We want everyone to know the rink is part of our resort. Also look for our newly “wrapped” Zamboni which will look like the renditions you saw on our van in the name reveal presentation. All vehicles will get the wrap treatment in the future. 

We will be presenting ideas for our new resort signage to the Aspen planning commission in the coming weeks. Signs for our new brand will be more prominently located so passers-by will see the new brand.  

Keep on the lookout for correspondence from Elite Alliance our new exchange partner in the coming days. The program will start Jan 1, 2022. Putting your reserved time into their program will extend the time you have to make an exchange by two years. You will start receiving correspondence from Elite alliance shortly explaining the program benefits and how to use it.

The board plans on sending out a survey to all owners to get feedback and ideas on a variety of different topics. The plan is to get the survey out before year’s end.

We have a lot going on right now so expect to hear more from the Board during the holiday season!

On behalf of your Board,

Al Kenney                                                                                                                                                                    

President

THE ASPEN MOUNTAIN RESIDENCES CONDO ASSOCIATION, INC.

Board Members and Owner Director Contact Information

Al Kenney – al@bluewaterfractionals.com                                                                                                                 

Allan Sheres – allan@jerig.com

Joe Ferguson – jferguson@rjrcapital.com

Tim Hall – timhl9999@gmail.com

Peter Wells – petercwells@yahoo.com

Charles Baron (Trust Appointed Member of the Board)  

Dear Fellow Grand Aspen Owners,

I hope you and your family had a great Thanksgiving!

Just a few reminders:

The invoices for our annual assessment will be sent out on or about Dec 15th through East West Hospitality, our new management company.  Payment will be due by Jan 5th which gives you the chance settle the invoice in either 2021 or 2022.  We are hoping by then to have added a new “pay by credit card” option, which will be available for an additional fee. You will be notified in your letter when you receive your invoice if that option is available.

At this point, any HRC points left in your account are  not valid. The float selection process for 2023 time has been moved to at least April, by which time the new floating-time reservation system will be in place.

In our last letter, we mentioned the new exchange program with Elite Alliance starting Jan 1, 2022. You will start receiving correspondence from Elite alliance shortly explaining the program benefits and how to use it.

As a result of a request in our last letter, we had a very qualified owner volunteer for our Design Committee – Lina Mira – who will be joining Allan Sheres and Laurie Aronson on the committee. Lina has a stellar background including a BFA in interior design from Pratt Institute in NY, licensing through NCIDQ, and many years in the field of interior design in the residential, corporate and hospital industry.

Thank you to every owner who participated in our resort naming process. It was important to the board to allow everyone to be a part of shaping the new identity of our property. I want to give special thanks to two of our owners – Tom Kaplan and John Fleming – who volunteered many hours of their time to work on our Marketing Committee to guide both East West and Resonance to help craft both our brand name and our marketing plan for 2022.  

So now, the moment many of you have been waiting for…  Please see the attached presentation which will walk you through the “big reveal” of our new name.  The Board members believe that our new property name clearly conveys the unique offering of our exquisite property.   

Congratulations also to the winner of the naming contest, Joseph Golbus.  Joseph will receive a $500 gift certificate to an Aspen restaurant of his choice for suggesting the new name of our property.

We have a lot going on these days so expect to hear more from the Board during this holiday season!

On behalf of your Board,

Al Kenney                                                                                                                                                                    

President

Board Members and Owner Director Contact Information

Al Kenney – al@bluewaterfractionals.com                                                                                                                 

Allan Sheres – allan@jerig.com

Joe Ferguson – jferguson@rjrcapital.com

Tim Hall – timhl9999@gmail.com

Peter Wells – petercwells@yahoo.com

Charles Baron (Marriott Contractual Appointed Member of the Board)  

Dear Fellow Grand Aspen Owners,

I hope you are your family are enjoying a wonderful holiday! I wanted to update everyone on a few important things happening at our property:

  1. The board election results are in. Your new board members for 2022 are:
    • Al Kenney
    • Allan Sheres                                                                                                                                     
    • Peter Wells
    • Joe Ferguson                                                                                                                          
    • Tim Hall

      I wanted to thank everyone who ran for our board. We had many very qualified candidates, and I heard from many owners it made their selections very difficult. The result of the election was very close.  
  2. The transition date for management of the property to East West has been moved back to at least Dec 10th to help ensure a seamless transition with Marriott. On your next stay you will begin to notice some of the upgrades we have made starting with our paper products (toilet paper and paper towels). We will be upgrading many items in the coming weeks, the only issue we have is the supply chain slowdown which will prevent us from having all the items in by Dec 15th, however most are already on order and you should be seeing these upgrades soon!
  3. Bills for our annual dues will be sent out on or about Dec 15th through East West Hospitality. Bills will be due by Jan 5th which gives owners the chance to pay in either 2021 or 2022. 
  4. Our float selection period for 2023 will be moved back to at least April. This will give us the time needed to get our systems in place and finalize our new float selection process. Nothing else about your intervals will change.
  5. At this point you can only use HRC points in your account to book new reservations for 2022 through December 1st. The window is now closed to prepay your dues for 2022 through Marriott to get more points, so you must try and use the ones you still have!
  6. The board is very happy we were able to retain our property’s most valuable assets: We have managed to keep all key Associates, including Roger, Claudine, Linsey, Sheri, and many more! All will become employees of East West Hospitality on the transition date.
  7. Speaking of our employees, the board would like to Introduce our new GM Susan Dampier. Susan starts with East West Hospitality on December 1st and will be on property on the turnover date Dec 10/15th. Susan has her roots firmly established right here in Aspen. She worked for the Aspen Ski Company for more than 10 years in many capacities including Director of Club Operations. Susan worked for The Little Nell Residences as Director of Operations, and was the GM for the Limelight hotel in downtown Aspen. She has great experience, knows our competition inside and out, and will be a big asset to our property and owners in the coming years. Make sure you give her a big welcome next time you check in!   
  8. We will be announcing both the new name of our independent resort and the winner of our naming contest this coming week so stay turned for a new beginning! 
  9. Your Marketing Committee (containing both board members and owners) is busy working on the plan to promote our resort going forward. This will include many things including a new resort website and owner portal.
  10. We are looking for one new qualified member of our design committee. We have a lobby redesign in 2022 followed by a 2023 room refresh coming.  If you have a degree in design such as one from ASID (American Society of Interior Designers) or a similar study certification and would like to help, please let me know.   
  11. The board is also happy to announce all owners of our property can participate in a new exchange program with Elite Alliance starting Jan 1, 2022. This program gives all owners the opportunity to take any Aspen reservation they have and trade it into the program to enable an exchange for other Elite properties including; Tuscany, Telluride, New York, Napa Valley, Bermuda, and Buenos Aires. Elite Alliance properties are located in the world’s most desirable and highly coveted destinations. They continue to grow their portfolio. You will start receiving correspondence from Elite alliance in December explaining the program and how to use it.
  12. COVID / COVID protocols at our property: It’s difficult to know if the pandemic is about to enter a new wave.  The board will be working with East West Hospitality to ensure all town protocols are adhered to. We now are in control of what we do at our property in this area but we need to reiterate that first and foremost we always need to take whatever precautions ensure the well-being of our owners and their guests.  The Pitkin County Health Board released their winter mitigation plans last month which includes current restrictions: https://covid19.pitkincounty.com/traveler-responsibility-code/ Please become familiar with them.
  13. The board continues to keep our eyes on our prime goal, which is to put things in place which should help increase our property values. In talking with Tom Carr (an owner and local realtor who sells many of our fractions) it looks like we are on our way! Tom says there have been 43 sales this year (many since May). Resale prices are increasing and inventory of listings in lower than they have been in 10 years. Sales have been both to existing owners and a few new owners as well. Tom says it’s the best sales year in at least ten years!

Moving forward as a newly branded independent property, we will invest in marketing our new brand and have every reason to expect improvement in the market for our intervals and a recovery of values from past depressed levels. We hope you all agree that our future is looking bright!

We have a lot going on these days so expect to hear from the board frequently during this holiday season!

On behalf of your newly elected Board,

Al Kenney                                                                                                                                                                   

President

Board Members and Owner Director Contact Information

Al Kenney – al@bluewaterfractionals.com                                                                                                                  

Allan Sheres – allan@jerig.com

Joe Ferguson – jferguson@rjrcapital.com

Tim Hall – timhl9999@gmail.com

Peter Wells – petercwells@yahoo.com

Charles Baron (Marriott Contractual Appointed Member of the Board)  

TRANSITION TIMELINE and CLUB POINTS, WORLD of HYATT POINTS and 2022 HRC RESERVATIONS

Dear Fellow Owners,

Please carefully note the following timeline for change in connection with our transition from the Hyatt Residence Club and Marriott Vacations Worldwide:

November 30, 2021 – Our current Management Contract with an affiliate of Marriott Vacations Worldwide terminates.

December 1, 2021 – East West Hospitality (EWH) officially starts as our new management company. All of our valued associates become employees of EWH.

December 2, 2021 – Our Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreementterminates (not on December 3, 2021 as had been communicated previously in error), and our Aspen property ceases to be a component resort of the HRC.

December 2, 2021 – Your membership in the Hyatt Residence Club (HRC), if derived solely from Aspen ownership, terminates.

December 3, 2021 – Our property is no longer The Hyatt Grand Aspen and use of all Hyatt marks ceases.

December 3, 2021 – Our property is (new name soon) and use of our new marks and logo commences.

December 3, 2021 – Our new reservation service administered by East West Hospitality goes live, and you will be provided with usage information prior to that date.

TERMINATION OF CLUB AGREEMENT: Club Membership; Club and World of Hyatt Points; 2022 HRC and Interval International Reservations; and New Float Selection Program

Club Membership – With termination of the Club Agreement your membership in the Hyatt Residence Club (HRC) terminates if your membership is derived solely from Aspen interval ownership. If, however, you own an interval at another Club resort, you will remain a HRC member.

Club Points – With termination of the Club Agreement use of any Club Points (including HRPP, RCUP LCUP, CUP, EEE, and COVID) in your HRC Aspen account terminates. If, however, you have Club Points in another HRC property account (derived from ownership of an interval at another Club resort), those Club Points remain and are not affected.

Confirmed Reservations – With termination of the Club Agreement all reservations (for 2021 and 2022) confirmed in your HRC Aspen account (as of the close of business Thursday, December 2, 2021) are valid and will be honored. With respect to Aspen reservations, you will have the continuing right to use, to rent, or to have guest privileges. With respect to non-Aspen reservations, you may only have the right to use.

Interval International and World of Hyatt –With termination of the Club Agreement, all confirmed Interval International reservations and World of Hyatt points are valid and are not affected.

Use of Club Points Restricted Until 2022 –If prior to the termination of the Club Agreement, an owner desires to use Club Points for a reservation or for exchange into World of Hyatt hotel points, and use of those Club Points is restricted until 2022, you will be required to pre-pay a 2022 dues assessment. Any pre-payment is for the Association’s account and will be a credit against your actual 2022 dues assessment with either a balance due or a credit issued.

Expiration of Club Points –With the termination of the Club Agreement, any Club Points in your Aspen account as of the close of business December 2, 2021, expire and can no longer be used as you will no longer be an HRC Aspen member and our Aspen property will no longer be a component HRC resort.

Replacement Float Time Selection Program –With the termination of the Club Agreement, a replacement float time selection process will be adopted with first use planned in April 2022 for 2023 float reservations. This system will not be points based; rather, it will be based on a priority assigned to each fixed week interval with a priority which “rotates” annually.

We know this letter is somewhat complex but so too is the HRC program we are exiting.

If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact any Director.

On behalf of the Board,

Bob Weisman                                                                                                                                                         

President                                                                                                                              

weisman@greatwatercapital.com

Board Members and Contact Information

Laurie Aronson – aronson@lipseys.com

John Brilbeck – johnbrilbeck@comcast.net

Al Kenney – al@bluewaterfractionals.com

Allan Sheres – allan@jerig.com

Hello fellow “Resort soon to be formerly known as the Hyatt Grand Aspen” Owners:

This is it! You now have the opportunity to determine the new name for our resort!

The process for name selection up until now has been:

Step #1: Owners were asked to submit their ideas for names

Step #2: A panel of judges which include members of your board, select owners on our Marketing Committee, Senior members of East West’s Executive and Marketing team, as well as members of Resonance our Branding Agency voted on what were felt to be the top names. Based on those results we selected the top six.   

Now we are entering the third and final stages of the process and the final selection goes back to you, our owners!

Step #3: The final vote: Each owner now gets two votes (So a husband and wife each get a vote). Your “team” can vote twice for the same name or once for two names. Please keep in mind the property values statement below. You through Wednesday Oct 8th to cast your votes for your favorites.

Step #4: Once the votes have been tallied, a winner will be chosen. The next step is completing the branding process for our new name. A logo needs to be chosen and well as all of the other details which go with it (colors, fonts etc.). Once that work has been completed, all owners will be presented the name and the branding back to our owners. Don’t expect “the big reveal” until the last half of November 2021!    

A few things you should know:

  • Descriptors so as the words Lodge, Condos, Inn, Hotel, Chateau and more have been removed because our property is not any of those things.
  • Some names could not be considered because of trademark infringement such as our current name “Grand Aspen” which is owned by Hyatt.
  • The descriptors for the base name selected could change based on recommendations from our branding agency. For example, if “The ZZZ” was chosen it could wind up being “The ZZZ Residences”, “The ZZZ Residence Club”, “The ZZZ Residences at Aspen”, ZZZ Aspen – A Private Residence Club” etc. so just keep that in mind when voting. We have given you a few options for each name. You are voting for the “base name” in that grouping

OK enough talk… It’s time for you to cast your vote. Two votes per owner no matter how many fractions you own! Think long and hard about your final selections; How unique the name is, how it would look on a logo, how easy it comes off your tongue when saying it, and how it could be promoted. Good Luck!

Please take this link to place your votes. https://app.alchemer.com/builder/build/id/6536696

The survey website will only allow each owner or LLC cast two votes so make them count!

Sincerely,

Al Kenney

Dear Grand Aspen Owners,

In this letter your Board reports on the termination of our Management Contract and on our progress and timeline to select our new management company.

We also advise you will receive on August 12, 2021 a Notice of Association Special Meeting to be held on September 3, 2021 with a Ballot providing each owner the opportunity to cast an advisory vote in favor of or against terminating the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement (Club Agreement). 

We discuss below our reasons to consider voting in favor of terminating the Club Agreement, and we urge you to contact any Board member should you have questions or wish to discuss the Club Agreement or our reasons in favor of terminating.

Management Contract

At the July 13, 2021 Association Special Meeting 86% of owners voted 98% of their intervals (excluding Trust and Developer intervals) to authorize termination of the Management Contract. As well, on July 13 your Board authorized the Association to deliver notice of termination effective December 15, 2021.

Since July 13 we have sent our Request for Proposals (RFP) to five qualified management companies and have met at our property with four of them. We have received two preliminary proposals, each with a proposed management fee half our current fee which translates into an annual savings of $400,000. Final proposals are expected in mid-August, and the Board plans to select two semi-finalists and conduct in-person meetings in Aspen before Labor Day.

Our goal is to select our new management company by mid-September, and with a December 15 takeover date, our new management company will have time to execute a smooth, orderly transition in advance of the Holiday Season. The Board’s goal is for all key personnel at our property to be retained by the new management company.

We thank all owners for your participation in this process and especially for your overwhelming support authorizing termination of the Management Contract.

Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement

As provided by Colorado law the Association has the right to terminate the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement (Club Agreement) without penalty on not less than 90 days notice.

Although neither the Club Agreement nor our governing documents requires owner authorization to terminate, your Board has called a Special Meeting of the Association to provide every owner an opportunity to cast an advisory vote in favor of or against terminating prior to any Board action.

Reasons why the Board may authorize the Association to terminate the Club Agreement are set forth below.

You will soon receive email notice of an Association Special Meeting on September 3, 2021 with links to the Meeting Agenda and an electronic Ballot. We ask every owner to cast his/her Ballot to provide your advisory vote to your Board.

REASONS TO TERMINATE THE CLUB AGREEMENT  

This section expresses the opinion of all Board members, except Charles Baron, who is an executive of our Management Company and is the Developer/Declarant appointed member of the Board.

Contract History 

  • The Club Agreement was entered into in December 2005 prior to property opening and was signed on behalf of the Association by an executive of our management company, one of the parties to this contract.
  • In 2005 your Association and its Executive Board were controlled by the Developer; Owner control of our Board commenced in late 2013.
  • Prior to the Association signing the Club Agreement in 2005, independent legal counsel was never engaged by any Hyatt affiliate or the Developer to represent and look after the interests of our Association and its future members (interval owners), whose interests were thus never protected.

Floating Weeks Program Issues

With respect to the Club’s Floating Weeks program, the Board is of the opinion:

  • The design of the program is defective as there is not nearly enough quality float time to meet the demand and reasonable expectations of owners of 1,049 Fixed Weeks.
  • The Club Points program and reservation system is too complex; as a result, too many of our owners elect not to participate and do not use their annual allocation of Floating Club points.
  • The Floating Club Points reservation process, the first Saturday in January, is best described as a “scrum” with many owners unable to compete effectively for quality Floating Weeks during our Home Resort Preference Period.
  • For all of these reasons, our Floating Week program is neither fair nor equitable to our community of 509 Fixed Week owners and is a source of substantial dissatisfaction for many owners.
  • As well, because the Floating Week program is not understood by a large portion of the Aspen real estate community, very few Aspen real estate brokers are comfortable to present our intervals to potential buyers, which contributes to poor demand and depressed values.
  • By comparison, Residences at the Little Nell and Dancing Bear Aspen have fractional ownership with easily understood float programs, and each of these independent properties has experienced appreciation in the value of their fractional intervals.

Club Program Inequities

Based on personal experience and conversations with owners over the years, your Board is also of the opinion:

  • Most Aspen owners of Fixed Weeks are Aspen centric and paid a very substantial premium for their intervals specifically and only for Aspen use time as compared to other Club members who paid substantially lower prices for intervals at other Club properties and often seek to use their Club Points to reserve Aspen Floating Week time.
  • Most Aspen owners do not use Club Points for reservations at other Hyatt Residence
  • Club properties, for reservations using Interval International, or for exchange into World of Hyatt hotel points. Most Aspen owners make best efforts to use Club Points for Aspen Floating Weeks or do not use them at all.
  • Consider if Club Points are important for an Aspen Owner, a Week 35 two bedroom interval at Hyatt Beach House Resort in Key West has an asking price of $3,000, a 2021 assessment of $1,440, and a value of 2,200 Club Points which is the same Club Point value as a much more expensive Aspen two bedroom interval and thus a much cheaper option for Club Points to reserve at other Club properties, to use for Interval International, or to exchange into World of Hyatt hotel points.
  • The Club Agreement assigns nominal point values to six of our off-season weeks (Mountain Season) resulting in close to 100% occupancy during this time. Our property is used almost entirely by Hyatt Residence Club members from other properties or by Portfolio Club members who have exchanged their Portfolio Club points for our Club Points to secure Mountain Season reservations.
  • Specifically, during Aspen’s Mountain Season a 3BR unit can be reserved for 235 points which is only 10% of the points required during Platinum Season. Mountain Season is a give-away to non-Aspen Hyatt Residence Club members and Portfolio Club members, providing cheap access to our property. This “carrot” (cheap access to Aspen) has been used to market and sell intervals at other Hyatt Residence Club properties and Portfolio Club points.
  • The ratio of non-Aspen Hyatt Residence Club members and Portfolio Club members using our property, as compared to Aspen owners using other Hyatt Residence Club properties or Portfolio Club inventory, is lopsided and adverse to our interest, and during Mountain Season, Aspen owners foot the entire bill for operating expenses and related wear and tear.
  • The Hyatt Residence Club, without any required Member or Association approval, entered into a Club-to-Club Exchange Agreement with its affiliate’s Portfolio Club which provides for one-night stays at our property. Such use is inconsistent with the promised use of our property as a “residence club” which our owners were sold and bought. Hyatt Grand Aspen is a residence club and not a hotel.
  • Finally, the Hyatt Residence Club has twice exercised its right (what it unilaterally determines is in the best interest of members as a whole) to re-rate point values of certain properties (specifically Florida and Carmel), which results in Florida and Carmel owners having more Club Points to reserve Aspen Floating Weeks and Aspen owners being required to pay more Club Points for reservations at Florida and Carmel properties.

Cost

  • The Hyatt Residence Club Fee paid in 2021 by Aspen owners was $327,540, and under the Management Contract the management company charged a 15% management fee on top of the Club Fee, an additional $49,000. Despite our Board’s objections, the management company has charged the 15% fee annually.
  • In addition, every owner pays Hyatt Residence Club website transaction fees such as $41 for certain reservations, $51 for cancellations and $30 for guest certificates.
  • All in, the Board estimates Aspen’s 2021 cost for the Hyatt Residence Club is between $450,000 and $500,000.

REASONS TO TERMINATE: THE BOTTOM LINE

The Board is of the opinion that the design of Aspen’s Floating Week program is defective and too complex and unworkable for many owners; is not understood by most Aspen real estate brokers; is expensive; and facilitates overuse of our property. All of this is adverse to our interest, and if you share your Board’s opinion, ask yourself why our property should be a Hyatt Residence Club property, why our Owners should be members of the Hyatt Residence Club, and why our Association should be a party to the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement.

Of importance, termination of the Management Contract will reduce cost by approximately $400,000, and termination of the Club Agreement will reduce cost by approximately $500,000, a total savings of almost $1,000,000!

OUR VISION: A NEW, IMPROVED, MORE EQUITABLE FLOAT PROGRAM

  • If the Club Agreement is terminated, our Association is required to establish new reservation procedures for use of the Condominium, which may be different from those set forth in the Club Agreement.
  • The right of Owners to secure one week + one split week of float time is inviolate, provided for in our deeds, and will not change.
  • Your Fixed Week intervals are your property in perpetuity and no reservation would be required each year to reserve Fixed Weeks. This is contrary to the Club Agreement which requires Owners each year to reserve (or lose) deeded Fixed Weeks.
  • The current Floating Club Point system and the seasonal designations would be eliminated.
  • The “Land Grab” which takes place the first Saturday in January would be eliminated, and a new reservation process would be adopted which is stress-free and fair and equitable for all owners.
  • Access to Aspen float time by members of the Hyatt Residence Club and by Portfolio Club members who exchange Portfolio Club points for Hyatt Residence Club points would cease. As a result, our owners would have substantially more (hundreds of weeks more) available float time and our operating costs would be reduced.
  • Approximately $500,000 of Hyatt Residence Club dues and fees would be eliminated as our new float program would have no dues or transaction fees.
  • Any unreserved Float Weeks would be made available to owners in a program similar to our old Developer Rate Program which was discontinued several years ago.
  • A draft of a new, proposed float program would be circulated first for owner comment before adoption.
  • Please note termination of the Club Agreement means our property will not be a Hyatt Residence Club property but will be independent, and our owners may then consider association with another exchange or reciprocity program which provides access to other luxury, residential properties.

SUMMARY

As provided by Colorado law, the Association has the right to terminate the Club Agreement without penalty on not less than 90 days’ notice.

As set forth above, your Board is of the opinion we can do much better if we terminate the Club Agreement. As an independent property our Association would have control and the ability to develop programs that are, first and foremost, in our owners’ collective best interest.

You will shortly receive Notice of a Special Meeting of the Association on September 3, 2021 providing each owner an opportunity to cast an advisory vote in favor of or against terminating the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement.

Your Board urges every owner vote and requests you contact any Board member should you have any questions or wish to discuss the Club Agreement or any of our reasons to vote in favor of terminating.

On behalf of the Board,

Robert H. Weisman,

President

Board Members and Owner Director Contact Information

Laurie Aronson (Owner) – aronson@lipseys.com

Charles Baron (Marriott Contractual Appointed Member of the Board)

John Brilbeck (Owner) – johnbrilbeck@comcast.net

Al Kenney (Owner) — al@bluewaterfractionals.com

Allan Sheres (Owner) – allan@jerig.com

Bob Weisman (Owner) – weisman@greatwatercapital.com

OUR APOLOGIES FOR THE LENGTH OF THIS LETTER WHICH CONTAINS A PROGRESS REPORT ON SELECTION OF OUR NEW MANAGEMENT COMPANY AND INFORMATION CONCERNING AN UPCOMING OWNER ADVISORY VOTE ON TERIMNATION OF OUR HYATT VACATION CLUB RESORT AGREERMENT. WE THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ CAREFULLY.

Dear Grand Aspen Owners,

In this letter your Board reports on the termination of our Management Contract and on our progress and timeline to select our new management company.

We also advise you will receive on August 12, 2021 a Notice of Association Special Meeting to be held on September 3, 2021 with a Ballot providing each owner the opportunity to cast an advisory vote in favor of or against terminating the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement (Club Agreement).  

We discuss below our reasons to consider voting in favor of terminating the Club Agreement, and we urge you to contact any Board member should you have questions or wish to discuss the Club Agreement or our reasons in favor of terminating.

Management Contract

At the July 13,2021 Association Special Meeting 86% of owners voted 98% of their intervals (excluding Trust and Developer intervals) to authorize termination of the Management Contract. As well, on July 13 your Board authorized the Association to deliver notice of termination effective December 15, 2021.

Since July 13 we have sent our Request for Proposals (RFP) to five qualified management companies and have met at our property with four of them. We have received two preliminary proposals, each with a proposed management fee half our current fee which translates into an annual savings of $400,000. Final proposals are expected in mid-August, and the Board plans to select two semi-finalists and conduct in-person meetings in Aspen before Labor Day.

Our goal is to select our new management company by mid-September, and with a December 15 takeover date, our new management company will have time to execute a smooth, orderly transition in advance of the Holiday Season. The Board’s goal is for all key personnel at our property to be retained by the new management company.

We thank all owners for your participation in this process and especially for your overwhelming support authorizing termination of the Management Contract.

Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement

As provided by Colorado law, the Association has the right to terminate the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement (Club Agreement) without penalty on not less than 90 days’ notice.

Although neither the Club Agreement nor our governing documents requires owner authorization to terminate, your Board has called a Special Meeting of the Association to provide every owner an opportunity to cast an advisory vote in favor of, or against terminating prior to any Board action.

Reasons why the Board may authorize the Association to terminate the Club Agreement are set forth below.

You will soon receive email notice of an Association Special Meeting on September 3, 2021 with links to the Meeting Agenda and an electronic Ballot. We ask every owner to cast his/her Ballot to provide your advisory vote to your Board.

REASONS TO TERMINATE THE CLUB AGREEMENT

This section expresses the opinion of all Board members, except Charles Baron, who is an executive of our Management Company and is the Developer/Declarant appointed member of the Board.

  1. CONTRACT HISTORY
  • The Club Agreement was entered into in December 2005 prior to   property opening and was signed on behalf of the Association by an executive of our management company, one of the parties to this contract.
  • In 2005 your Association and its Executive Board were controlled by the Developer; Owner control of our Board commenced in late 2013.
  • Prior to the Association signing the Club Agreement in 2005, independent legal counsel was never engaged by any Hyatt affiliate or the Developer to represent and look after the interests of our Association and its future members (interval owners), whose interests were thus never protected.
  • FLOATING WEEKS PROGRAM ISSUES

                With respect to the Club’s Floating Weeks program, the Board is of the opinion:

  • The design of the program is defective as there is not nearly enough quality float time to meet the demand and reasonable expectations of owners of 1,049 Fixed Weeks.
  • The Club Points program and reservation system is too complex; as a result, too many of our owners elect not to participate and do not use their annual allocation of Floating Club Points.
  • The Floating Club Points reservation process the first Saturday in January is best described as a “scrum” with many owners unable to compete effectively for quality Floating Weeks during our Home Resort Preference Period.
  • For all of these reasons, our Floating Week program is neither fair nor equitable to our community of 509 Fixed Week owners and is a source of substantial dissatisfaction for many owners.
  • As well, because the Floating Week program is not understood by a large portion of the Aspen real estate community, very few Aspen real estate brokers are comfortable to present our intervals to potential buyers, which contributes to poor demand and depressed values.
  • By comparison, Residences at the Little Nell and Dancing Bear Aspen have fractional ownership with easily understood float programs, and each of these independent properties has experienced appreciation in the value of their fractional intervals.
  • CLUB PROGRAM INEQUITIES

Based on personal experience and conversations with owners over the years, your Board is also of the opinion:

  • Most Aspen owners of Fixed Weeks are Aspen centric and paid a very substantial         premium for their intervals specifically and only for Aspen use time as compared to other Club members who paid substantially lower prices for intervals at other Club properties and often seek to use their Club Points to reserve Aspen Floating Week time.
  • Most Aspen owners do not use Club Points for reservations at other Hyatt Residence Club properties, for reservations using Interval International, or for exchange into World of Hyatt hotel points. Most Aspen owners make best efforts to use Club Points for Aspen Floating Weeks or do not use them at all.
  • Consider if Club Points are important for an Aspen Owner, a Week 35 two bedroom interval at Hyatt Beach House Resort in Key West has an asking price of $3,000, a 2021 assessment of $1,440, and a value of 2,200 Club Points which is the same Club Point value as a much more expensive Aspen two bedroom interval and thus a much cheaper option for Club Points to reserve at other Club properties, to use for Interval International, or to exchange into World of Hyatt hotel points.
  • The Club Agreement assigns nominal point values to six of our off-season weeks (Mountain Season) resulting in close to 100% occupancy during this time. Our property is used almost entirely by Hyatt Residence Club members from other properties or by Portfolio Club members who have exchanged their Portfolio Club points for our Club Points to secure Mountain Season reservations.
  • Specifically, during Aspen’s Mountain Season a 3BR unit can be reserved for 235 points which is only 10% of the points required during Platinum Season. Mountain Season is a give-away to non-Aspen Hyatt Residence Club members and Portfolio Club members, providing cheap access to our property. This “carrot” (cheap access to Aspen) has been used to market and sell intervals at other Hyatt Residence Club properties and Portfolio Club points.
  • The ratio of non-Aspen Hyatt Residence Club members and Portfolio Club members using our property, as compared to Aspen owners using other Hyatt Residence Club properties or Portfolio Club inventory, is lopsided and adverse to our interest, and during Mountain Season, Aspen owners foot the entire bill for operating expenses and related wear and tear.
  • The Hyatt Residence Club, without any required Member or Association approval, entered into a Club-to-Club Exchange Agreement with its affiliate’s Portfolio Club which provides for one-night stays at our property. Such use is inconsistent with the promised use of our property as a “residence club” which our owners were sold and bought. Hyatt Grand Aspen is a residence club and not a hotel.
  • Finally, the Hyatt Residence Club has twice exercised its right (what it unilaterally determines is in the best interest of members as a whole) to re-rate point values of certain properties (specifically Florida and Carmel), which results in Florida and Carmel owners having more Club Points to reserve Aspen Floating Weeks and Aspen owners being required to pay more Club Points for reservations at Florida and Carmel properties.
  • COST
  1. The Hyatt Residence Club Fee paid in 2021 by Aspen owners was $327,540, and under the Management Contract the management company charged a 15% management fee on top of the Club Fee, an additional $49,000. Despite our Board’s objections, the management company has charged the 15% fee annually.
  • In addition, every owner pays Hyatt Residence Club website transaction fees such as $41 for certain reservations, $51 for cancellations and $30 for guest certificates.
  • All in, the Board estimates Aspen’s 2021 cost for the Hyatt Residence Club is between $450,000 and $500,000.
  • THE BOTTOM LINE

The Board is of the opinion that the design of Aspen’s Floating Week program is defective and too complex and unworkable for many owners; is not understood by most Aspen real estate brokers; is expensive; and facilitates overuse of our property. All of this is adverse to our interest, and if you share your Board’s opinion, ask yourself why our property should be a Hyatt Residence Club property, why our Owners should be members of the Hyatt Residence Club, and why our Association should be a party to the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement.

Of importance, termination of the Management Contract will reduce cost by approximately $400,000, and termination of the Club Agreement will reduce cost by approximately $500,000, a total savings of almost $1,000,000!

OUR VISION: A NEW, IMPROVED, MORE EQUITABLE FLOAT PROGRAM

  • If the Club Agreement is terminated, our Association is required to establish new reservation procedures for use of the Condominium, which may be different from those set forth in the Club Agreement.
  • The right of Owners to secure one week + one split week of float time is inviolate, provided for in our deeds, and will not change.
  • Your Fixed Week intervals are your property in perpetuity and no reservation would be required each year to reserve Fixed Weeks. This is contrary to the Club Agreement which requires Owners each year to reserve (or lose) deeded Fixed Weeks.
  • The current Floating Club Point system and the seasonal designations would be eliminated.
  • The “Land Grab” which takes place the first Saturday in January would be eliminated, and a new reservation process would be adopted which is stress-free and fair and equitable for all owners.
  • Access to Aspen float time by members of the Hyatt Residence Club and by Portfolio Club members who exchange Portfolio Club points for Hyatt Residence Club points would cease. As a result, our owners would have substantially more (hundreds of weeks more) available float time and our operating costs would be reduced.
  • Approximately $500,000 of Hyatt Residence Club dues and fees would be eliminated as our new float program would have no dues or transaction fees.
  • Any unreserved Float Weeks would be made available to owners in a program similar to our old Developer Rate Program which was discontinued several years ago.
  • A draft of a new, proposed float program would be circulated first for owner comment before adoption.
  • Please note termination of the Club Agreement means our property will not be a Hyatt Residence Club property but will be independent, and our owners may then consider association with another exchange or reciprocity program which provides access to other luxury, residential properties.

SUMMARY

As provided by Colorado law, the Association has the right to terminate the Club Agreement without penalty on not less than 90 days’ notice.

As set forth above, your Board is of the opinion we can do much better if we terminate the Club Agreement. As an independent property our Association would have control and the ability to develop programs that are, first and foremost, in our owners’ collective best interest.

You will shortly receive Notice of a Special Meeting of the Association on September 3, 2021 providing each owner an opportunity to cast an advisory vote in favor of or against terminating the Hyatt Vacation Club Resort Agreement.

Your Board urges every owner vote and requests you contact any Board member should you have any questions or wish to discuss the Club Agreement or any of our reasons to vote in favor of terminating.

On behalf of the Board,

Robert H Weisman,

President

Board Members and Owner Director Contact information

Laurie Aronson (Owner) – aronson@lipseys.com

Charles Baron (Marriott Contractual Appointed Member of the Board)

John Brilbeck (Owner) – johnbrilbeck@comcast.net

Al Kenney (Owner)- al@bluewaterfractionals.com

Allan Sheres (Owner) – all@jerig.com

Bob Weisman (Owner) – weisman@greatwatercapital.com

SPECIAL MEETING OF MEMBERS OF G.A. RESORT CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION

HIGH IMPORTANCE – PLEASE READ

Dear Grand Aspen Owners:

This letter is the most important the Board has sent to our owners since the opening of our property in late 2005. We request you read it carefully and we request you call or email any director with any comment or question.

 In 2018, with the passion and leadership of director Paul Freeman, owners initiated the process of establishing owner control of our Board, which was accomplished, and owner control of our resort property. Paul passed away in January 2021; however, his vision for owner control of our property may now be realized and will be determined in July at a special meeting of Association members (owners).

The issue for owner consideration and vote is whether to authorize the Association to terminate the Management Contract. As provided by Colorado law, the Management Contract and our governing documents, the Association may terminate the Management Contract with the approval of our Board and owners.

The reasons the Board requests owners to authorize the Association to terminate the Management Contract are set forth beginning on page 2 of this letter.

Please note the Management Contract is NOT the Club Affiliation Agreement which provides for our resort property to be a component resort of the Hyatt Residence Club, our points based system and our fixed and float reservation rights.

The Management Contract is also NOT the Club to Club Exchange Agreement which enables Portfolio Club members to access our legacy points and thus our float inventory and to book one night stays (which smacks of a transient hotel property and not a residence club).

On Friday June 18th, you will receive email Notice of Special Meeting of the Association Members of Grand Aspen Resort Condominium Association to be held at the Hyatt Grand Aspen on Tuesday July 13th at 11:00am MDT. Voting will be conducted online and your voting credentials will be included with instructions about the voting process. This is the same, easy process with which you are familiar having been used for voting for all recent annual meetings.

Because email correspondence with owners sometimes ends up in an owner’s spam mail, if our email is not in your inbox on June 18th, please check for our email in your spam mail.

All owner directors wholeheartedly support termination of the Management Contract, and we ask all owners to vote each of your intervals as we are seeking approval of a super-majority to authorize the Association to terminate this contract.

REASONS TO TERMINATE THE MANAGEMENT CONTRACT

  1. CONTRACT HISTORY
    • The Management Contract was entered into in 2005 prior to any interval sales and the opening of our property and was signed on behalf of our Association by an executive of the management company, the other party to this contract.
    • Prior to signing the Contract, independent legal counsel was never engaged by the Developer or the Club to represent and look after the interests of future interval owners and their Association, whose interests were thus never protected.
  2. CONTROL OF OUR PROPERTY and OPERATIONS
    • The Management Contract provides “the management company, to the exclusion of all persons including the Association and its members, shall have all the powers and duties of the Association as set forth in the Condominium Documents” (emphasis added), a complete delegation of powers of our Association (and the Association’s Executive Board).
    • The Board feels the Management Contract provision quoted above provides the management company with overly broad, virtually exclusive control over nearly every aspect of our property and its operations.
    • After Hyatt sold the Hyatt Residence Club to ILG in 2014 and after ILG was acquired by Marriott Vacations Worldwide in 2018, each has exercised and maintained such control.
    • Whether it is, for example, our desire to distribute interval ownership and sales information in our lobby (blocked by Management), our design for renovation of our lobby (approval of Management required), our desire to provide incentive compensation to valued associates during the pandemic (blocked by Management), or our participation in the hiring of our general manager (none requested or permitted by Management), the management company exercises total control of core decisions which should be solely under the control of the Association and its Board.
  3. EXCESSIVE MANAGEMENT FEE
    • The Management Contract provides a non-negotiated management fee of 15% of the Association’s annual operating budget, higher than other Hyatt Residence Club properties and substantially higher than a negotiated market rate for independent, highly qualified management. The 2021 fee was $800,000 and will increase annually as operating costs increase. The management company rebuffed efforts by your Board to negotiate a competitive market rate.
    • The personal obligation of each owner to pay Club Dues was unilaterally changed in 2005 to an Association obligation to pay Club Dues on behalf of all owners. As a result, Club Dues have each year been included in our operating budget, and Marriott’s management company has collected a 15% management fee in addition to and on top of Marriott’s Club Dues costing owners since 2005 over $700,000. The management company also rebuffed efforts by your Board to discuss, let alone, to change this.
    • The Association has received a confidential proposal from a highly qualified, independent management company proposing a management fee of half the current 15% rate. Had such a competitive rate been in effect since 2005, owners collectively would have had their assessments reduced by approximately $5,000,000.
  4. EMPLOYEES
    • All employees at our property are employees of the management company and not the Association; as such, during the pandemic the management company refused to allow the Association to provide additional compensation and/or incentives to valued associates, some of whom had been furloughed or had reduced hours of work.
    • With Vic Giannelli’s resignation after 16 years of service as our property’s first and only General Manager, the Association was unable to participate in the hiring of our new GM. The Association had no ability to interview candidates or to set compensation at the level required to attract the most qualified replacement for Vic.
    • Marriott eliminated any housing allowance for its properties system-wide (ignoring housing expense in markets such as Aspen) and set compensation for our new GM in line with its other properties. As a result, our new GM will be living in New Castle, 13 miles west of Glenwood Springs and 54 miles from our property. Just think of the potential ramifications with that commute, especially in the winter season.

NEW MANAGEMENT PROPOSAL AND CRITERIA

The Association has already received its first proposal from a highly qualified, motivated, and independent management company and is seeking additional competitive proposals. The Association will control the selection of our new management company, approve the hiring of key personnel, and set high performance standards.

Our new management company will be required to provide superior services, exceeding the quality of Marriott provided services, with a goal to make our property one of the most desirable in Aspen, while lowering the cost of ownership.

SUMMARY

A “yes” vote is a vote to take back control of our own property!

  • As you consider your vote to authorize the Association to terminate the Management Contract, ask yourself whether, if you had fully understood that Contract provided the management company (and not your Association) with complete control over our property and its operations, you would have bought your intervals and paid premium prices.
  • Also, ask yourself whether new, highly qualified and motivated, independent management working only for our owners and Association, and not for Marriott, will  deliver the high quality services and amenities owners want and at lower cost.
  • The Association expects to have several quality proposals for new management, and with your Association in control, a decision in the best interest of all owners will be made.

Your Board requests every owner vote each of your intervals to authorize the Association to terminate the Management Contract.

If you are considering not voting or voting not to authorize the Association to terminate the Management Contract, we ask you to please communicate first (preferably a direct conversation) with any Director. Please note a failure to vote is the same as a vote notto authorize the Association to terminate the Management Contract.

On behalf of your Board,

Robert H. Weisman,

President

Owner Director Contact Information

Laurie Aronson (Owner) – aronson@lipseys.com

John Brilbeck (Owner) – johnbrilbeck@comcast.net

Al Kenney (Owner) – al@bluewaterfractionals.com

Allan Sheres (Owner) – allan@jerig.com

Bob Weisman (Owner) – weisman@greatwatercapital.com