Gravity Groms moves toward lease renewal at Big Mine Park

But for one year, with rent and town manager oversight

Gravity Groms, a local child care business for kids who rip, will return to headquarters in Big Mine Park next summer but the group didn’t get some of the concessions it was seeking from the Crested Butte Town Council as a result of the Whatever, USA production.

Owners and operators Doug and Alexandra Hudson, along with several family representatives of local Groms, came to the council Monday, December 15 asking for a long-term lease, a waiver from rent in 2015, and a person who is not town manager to serve as town overseer.
They got none of those requests, and Crested Butte Nordic director Keith Bauer at the end of the discussion made it clear that the Big Mine Park Warming House facility was getting crowded all year-round and might put pressure on the Groms to make space.
Mayor Aaron Huckstep polled the council to clarify that no one was against entering into a lease with the Gravity Groms. Based on emails and comments he had been receiving from citizens that day, he felt there might be some confusion on that point. Town manager Todd Crossett told the council that the staff was “not making a recommendation to not renew the lease.”
But the tension was clear as Hudson explained his situation to the council. “Before the Whatever, USA event, Gravity Groms and the town had an excellent relationship,” he said. “I can’t say that now.”
Hudson explained that he had been working with then Parks and Recreation director Jake Jones during the spring and summer of 2014. He and Jones had discussed the potential to extend the Gravity Grom lease that ended in August for the Warming House and ice rink into the beginning of the school year to provide after-school programs for the local kids. Hudson had ordered an anti-gravity air bag amenity to go under the roof at the rink. Jones left for another job. Nothing was ever signed in the form of a contract.
“If we had been told of the Whatever situation in June we would have halted development of the amenity and managed our way through the situation,” Hudson said. “But we didn’t hear about Whatever until August. And then it was because we were told we had to be out of the rink by the end of August.
“This summer, the communication from town was very different,” Hudson continued, referring to what he felt was tension with the town manager and staff. “Mr. Crossett told us he was not inclined to renew the lease. It was a very bad situation and felt like a threat.”
Hudson said the scenario soured them on the partnership with the town. They asked the council for some future security by providing a four-year lease agreement. They asked that the mayor or recreation director oversee the lease instead of the town manager. And they asked that the $4,400 in rent be waived, given the tight cash flow situation the Whatever production caused them by not allowing them to use the rink when school started.
“Our goal is to get operating next summer, not profiteer from this,” he said. “We have a serious cash flow situation.”
Hudson made it clear that contrary to some perception, Gravity Groms is not subsidized by the town and pays market rent while charging below-market prices for clients.
Hudson went through a list of concerns outlined by the town staff at the council meeting and said many of the issues were new to him. From property cleanliness to dealing with the Forest Service and storing the air bag at night, Hudson promised to address and rectify every issue.
Town attorney John Belkin said his biggest concern was the air bag after hours. As the air bag is an “attractive nuisance,” he said the town could incur some liability if people came in and used it at night. He wanted to ensure that it was taken down and stored each night or at least fenced after hours.
“Our partnership with the town is invaluable,” Hudson emphasized.
“But obviously you have a problem with the town manager,” said councilman Jim Schmidt. “Are you saying you can’t work with him?”
“I can work with Mr. Crossett,” Hudson responded. “But I’m uncomfortable having our business hinge on his decisions.”
Crossett said he didn’t want to rebut every issue brought up by Hudson. “The concerns we brought up should be in the contract. They are things that need to go well in the future,” Crossett said.
“We’ve made some progress on some of these but they are the concerns of the staff as the custodians of the public property.”
Hudson said his firm had learned some lessons. “Look, I apologize for being a fool and extending ourselves so much without having a formal lease,” he said. “That was dumb. Stupid. Before Whatever, I thought Crested Butte was a more casual and friendly place that could count on verbal trust. That was my fault. ‘Whatever’ was inconceivable until it came along. We could never have imagined it.”
“It was unfortunate,” admitted Crossett. “It happens in other spots. Someone might come in and rent Rainbow Park pavilion for a Saturday and say they want to think about Sunday. But when they come back, Sunday might be rented. We do it on a first-come first-served basis.”
Bauer then told the council that Crested Butte Nordic “is on the cusp of needing the Warming House space in the summer. We have seen tremendous growth. We have the summer Grand Traverse, the junior program is hoping to have a place to hold workouts. It is a busy place with the offices upstairs. We are running out of room and we are right at about the point we could utilize the Nordic Center Warming House building all year-round.”
“We understand the Big Mine Master Plan process is in the works,” said Hudson. “Gravity Groms needs a space. We don’t want to get in the way or hinder any improvement projects.”
Schmidt suggested the staff be directed to start working on a lease but that it should be a one-year lease, that oversight should be handled by the town manager and the Gravity Groms would have to pay summer rent. “You are a for-profit business and we lease to a lot of non-profits that would want that deal. We all want that,” he said. “Maybe the staff can be flexible with the deposits to help your cash-flow situation.”
The rest of the council agreed with those terms.
“We should wait to see what the Big Mine Master Plan comes out with so we shouldn’t go with more than a one-year lease,” added councilperson Skip Berkshire.
Crossett and Belkin will begin drawing up a lease with Hudson to start next summer.