Hotel reportedly will not open until early next year.
Thursday, December 3, 2015, NewEnglandSkiIndustry.com
According to Lyndon State College's News7, the EB-5 funded Q Burke Hotel will not open as scheduled on December 11. News7 states their report has been confirmed by Q Burke's Marketing Department. Q Burke's web site is currently rejecting hotel reservation requests for December and early January.
The area has also been plagued by snowmaking water issues. While snowmaking commenced in November, the area's pond was quickly depleted. Q Burke's Facebook is now suggesting the ski area will try open by December 18.
The new scheduled hotel opening date is reportedly set for Friday, January 15, 2016, the start of Martin Luther King Weekend.
Background
The delay comes just weeks after Q Burke Hotel Construction Manager PeakCM threatened to shut down construction due to the State of Vermont reportedly delaying EB-5 funded payments from Q Burke to the company. PeakCM has managed construction at many of the EB-5 projects at Jay Peak. Ground was broken for the Q Burke Hotel in June 2014. VTDigger reports $120 million in EB-5 contributions is needed for Q Burke.
According to VTDigger, the massive EB-5 projects run by the owners of Jay Peak and Q Burke in Northern Vermont are being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In 2007, the Vermont EB-5 Regional Center was rechartered. Under the EB-5 program, a foreigner can invest $1 million in an approved United States business (which must then create jobs), in exchange for a green card. With the Northeast Kingdom labeled a Targeted Employment Area, the minimum investment is cut in half to $500,000, making participating rural businesses such as Jay Peak more attractive.
The current ownership group has been in place at Jay Peak since 2008. Its first large EB-5 funded project, the Tram Haus Lodge, opened in December of 2009. A $27 million indoor water park opened two years later. Burke Mountain was acquired in 2012 and rebranded as Q Burke in 2013.
