Boulder Bay could be an asset

Someday, in the near future, Crystal Bay could have a facelift that would refresh the historic gaming center, revitalize its sagging economy and rejuvenate one of the North Shore’s gathering places for locals and tourists.

Boulder Bay is the key to this vision.

Time and again, we have seen efforts to upgrade the Crystal Bay gaming center, and we commend properties such as the Crystal Bay Club for its renovations. However, as a whole, the area is a sea of pavement and outdated buildings.

The Boulder Bay development will overhaul 15 acres on the aging Tahoe Biltmore property, and the adjacent and empty field next to it (where the Tahoe Mariner once sat). Instead of the asphalt, dirt piles and outdated buildings we’ve all grown used to, there will be a hotel, casino, spa, pedestrian village with shops and restaurants, landscaping and open space. The ugly parking lot will be placed underground and the entire development will be moved back from State Highway 28.

While the project is still in its early stages, and an environmental impact statement has not yet been completed, the project’s basic idea — to rebuild a key entry point to the North Shore — is something the Bonanza stands behind, for all the reasons above and more.

There are definite community concerns about Boulder Bay, and that’s OK at this point. After the Washoe County Commission rejected a proposed road plan, the developers went back to the drawing board. One meeting has already been held with neighbors to discuss the road design since the county commissioner’s decision, and there are plans to hold more, including one at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Tahoe Biltmore. These meetings, as well as a thorough environmental review, should ensure that the final project is an asset.

As the Bonanza has stated before in its editorials, now is the time for the community to speak up about its concerns with the development. We should all be thankful that those issues are being considered by a developer with local ties — instead of an out-of-area owner who doesn’t take the community seriously. Boulder Bay CEO Roger Wittenberg is an Incline Village resident, and those involved have a larger stake in how this development affects our community.

Already, the team has demonstrated its commitment to Incline Village after Saturday’s Tail and Ale Festival at the Tahoe Biltmore, which donated its profits to the Incline Village Community Hospital and Stadium 2009 project.

The Bonanza expects that Boulder Bay will become a vital community partner in many ways.

Change can be hard to envision, and it’s understandable that fear of the “what ifs” can worry the project’s neighbors. But the Bonanza believes Boulder Bay has shown it is willing to listen and partner with this community. The Bonanza supports the Boulder Bay