Grand Timber Lodge Property Information: April

Letter from the Assistant General Manager

Greetings from your family in Breckenridge!

April is one of my favorite months in Breckenridge. Spring skiing and spring deep cleaning of the resort are two of my favorite activities of the year. April has historically been our largest snow month; warm temperatures and bluebird days make for an incredible time on the slopes. In late April, our occupancy should go down a bit, allowing us to provide some much-needed love to the areas of the property that have been getting lots of traffic throughout the winter. If you plan on coming to Breckenridge this month, please get with our Owner Relations team ASAP to make your arrangements, as we are still bustling.

As BGV (Breckenridge Grand Vacations) heads towards its strategic priorities of reducing our Green House gas emissions by 50% by 2030, we are constantly looking for new ways to improve our resorts and office buildings. The sustainability team has worked on an energy conservation project this last month by replacing standard light switches with motion sensor light switches in low-trafficked areas at Grand Timber Lodge. These motion sensors use IR (Infrared Radiation), a low-frequency light range that scans the set area for movement. These motion sensors can be set to various time ranges for how long the light can be left on; the preferred timer is one minute with no motion being sensed. A study by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) found that usage of motion sensor light switches can help save up to 60% of the light’s energy usage and reduce energy waste by as much as 68%, depending on the area installed. This will allow BGV and GTL to help pass the saving onto our owners and guest through a lower energy bill.

Here is what is going on around the property:

  • We have a couple new leadership team members
    • Austin Knoblauch joins us as our new Assistant Guest Services Manager. Austin previously worked as a Front Desk Supervisor and replaces Brook Balderston, who has transitioned to our Owner Relations department.
    • Tom Balarezo will be our new Housekeeping Manager. Tom comes with many years of hospitality experience and will replace Leo Alvarez, who, unfortunately, after 13 years with us, is moving out of state.
  • You may recall that some of our unit balconies are a little tight, and the furniture didn’t fit well. We finally found a better-fitting product and installed it on a dozen balconies. Please continue to provide us with any feedback you all have on our furnishings.
  • We have completed extensive work on our ADA pool lifts on the property to ensure they are all working as needed, and we have replacement parts to swap out as needed.

We welcome your feedback and suggestions on making Grand Timber Lodge a better place for you and your family.  You may always send ideas to eli@grandtimber.com for consideration!

Eli Yoder
Grand Timber Lodge, Assistant General Manager