Tree Farm developer’s patience pays off
A final lucrative land sale in Eagle County portion of Roaring Fork Valley is scheduled to close by month’s end
Patience has paid off for the developer of the midvalley project called the Tree Farm.
Landowner Ace Lane has sold three major portions of his Tree Farm project to developers in Texas and Nebraska for more than $20 million. One of the most lucrative pieces of the project is expected to sell by the end of March.
Lane sunk several years and untold dollars into securing approvals for 340 residences and 135,000 square feet of commercial space, which includes a hotel. All told, the project will add about 514,000 square feet of development to the midvalley. The project is across Highway 82 from Whole Foods in the El Jebel area.
He’s now reaping the rewards.
Here’s a look at the four companies that have purchased lots or have them under contract and what they are building.
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Realty Capital Residential/courtesy image
— Realty Capital Residential and Lang Partners, both of Dallas, purchased five lots in the Tree Farm subdivision for $11,650,000, according to a special warranty deed filed with the Eagle County Clerk and Recorder. The two companies formed Tree Farm JV LLC to purchase lots E 1-3 and F 1-2 on July 7, 2021.
The companies plan to build 156 free-market rental apartments and 40 price-capped rental apartments. According to the approval from Eagle County, 25 of the price-capped apartments must be priced for households making 80% of area median income while the remaining 15 can be rented to households at 100% AMI. There is no cap on the rents charged for the 156 free-market apartments.
The residences will range from 485 square feet to 1,100 square feet. There is a mix of studios as well as one- and two-bedroom units and co-living arrangements.
The companies announced in January they secured a $54.5 million construction loan from Wintrust Bank’s Denver commercial real estate office. The companies said all apartments would be built at the same time. The anticipated move-in date is July 2024.
Bedford Lodging/courtesy image
— Dallas-based hotel development company Bedford Lodging acquired two large lots at the Tree Farm for $3 million in a transaction completed July 13, 2021. Lots D 1-2 were acquired by Tree Farm Holdings LLC, according to a special warranty deed filed with the county clerk. The owner of the lots is now listed as BMM Basalt LLC.
Bedford Lodging has applied to build a 122-room hotel that it announced would be part of the Tapestry by Hilton Collection. The Hoffman Hotel will be four stories and nearly 77,000 square feet. It will be located on the northeast corner of the intersection of Highway 82 and Willits Lane.
— A company called Essex Communities, which specializes in independent-living complexes, purchased four lots at the Tree Farm for $5,620,000, according to a special warranty deed filed with the county clerk. The Omaha, Nebraska-based company formed Essex Buligo Roaring Fork LLC to complete the purchase on Feb. 8.
Essex plans to build 72 independent living apartments on lots D 3-6. The independent living will be located between the Hoffman Hotel to the west and the Tree Farm Lofts to the east. All three developments are located between Highway 82 and the existing Kodiak Ski Lake on Lane’s property.
Walt Brown Jr./courtesy image
— Scottsdale, Arizona-based developer Walt Brown Jr. said he is scheduled to close on the purchase of several small lots on the west end of Kodiak Lake by the end of March. The price is currently undisclosed, but it includes some of the most lucrative real estate at the Tree Farm.
Brown Family Holdings plans to develop 14 luxury condominiums on the lots closest to the lake. They will be known as The Lakeside — Luxury Lakefront Residences. The Lakeside buildings will include about 13,550 square feet of commercial space.
Another portion of the project will be known as The Creekside, with additional condos and roughly 38,000 square feet of commercial space.
A final component of Brown’s property will feature 10 price-capped, for-sale units.
— A smaller lot in the Tree Farm was acquired by Tree Farm at Aspen LLC for $1,588,980 on Feb. 25. The lot can accommodate four residential units.
Eagle County officials said building permits for some of the various components of the Tree Farm are under review. As of last week, none had been issued yet but a busy construction season is anticipated in 2022.
