The August 2020 Townhall did not address the two critical hotel issues that members are concerned about.

The first is the movement of the hotel from the resort site to the Village Center. Shea has not provided any information to show that the hotel needs to be moved. It would cost Shea about 8 homes to keep the hotel at the resort site.

The second issue is whether the hotel will be viable. Specialty Construction has stated that they have a report from a consultant showing that the hotel is viable, but they will not share the report with us due to competitive reasons. The Village Center is in Trilogy. It's part of the WMA. Specialty Construction could provide the report under an NDA but they have chosen not to.

One of our residents, who has extensive experience in hotel financing in the US and overseas, estimates there is an 80% probability that the proposed hotel will fail. There is no interest from a major hotel chain and we are not close enough to the ocean, shopping or other activities to draw visitors. Shea was never able to get anyone interested in putting in a resort even though a golf course was part of the original resort plan. Hotels are only put in specific locations that draw visitors (see information below). Since we are not a location that draws visitors, it will mean that any new hotel will have to focus on cost, and we will likely end up with a low budget hotel or motel.  

So why is Specialty Construction pushing for a hotel in the Village Center? Shea has been looking for a developer for the Village Center for quite some time. The problem has always been that Trilogy and the surrounding areas do not provide enough potential traffic to support the Village Center. Specialty Construction wants the hotel because if the hotel is part of the Village Center plan, they can claim enough traffic, on paper, to get a restaurant interested in the VC. This in turn provides traffic to get businesses interested in the VC and once Specialty Construction has the businesses, they can sell the 2nd floor condominiums.

Hotels are put in areas that draw visitors. The following are areas that support successful hotels. 

​

• Vacations / Getaways: Examples are hotels in wine country or near the ocean that combine ocean activities, shopping, and a range of restaurant choices.​

​

• Transportation: Hotels that serve airports, railroads, or transportation pubs.

​

• Special Destinations / Tourist Attractions: This can be a unique town like Solvang, nature parks or areas that host specialty events.

​

• Business hotels - Supports business travelers.

​

• Casino Hotels:

​

• Hotels in Residential Areas: Residential hotels only work in areas with a large population like a city suburb and where the hotel also supports businesses activity, shopping, and restaurant choices. While Shea has claimed that the hotel will serve people who want to visit Trilogy family members or attend occasional functions like weddings at the club, none of the other Shea locations have a hotel. They can’t justify it. There is not enough activity in Trilogy to support family visitors or attend the occasional special event.

 

We need Shea and Specialty Construction to show us the study that shows the hotel is viable and why it must be moved to the Village Center.