The end of Grand Canyon

[41chevy]

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — Generations of Navajo families have grazed livestock on a remote but spectacular mesa that overlooks the confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado rivers. This is the East Rim of the majestic Grand Canyon — the last with no significant development.

But ancestral tradition and the tranquility of the landscape could be subject to change if the Navajo government's plans are realized for a resort and aerial tramway that would ferry tourists from cliff tops to water's edge.

The vast 27,000 square-mile Navajo reservation abuts Grand Canyon National Park, and tribal leaders say they're losing out on tourist dollars and jobs for their people by leaving the land undeveloped. Navajo President Ben Shelly recently stated "We want people from all over the world to visit Navajo land and the Grand Canyon," Shelly said. "We have many of the world's wonders in our midst."

The confluence, as locals call it, is a 100-mile drive off Interstate 40 from Flagstaff off a rough dirt road. Sagebrush, rolling hills, arroyos, canyons and desert mark the landscape where the Colorado meets the blue-green waters of the Little Colorado. It's mostly quiet, save for the occasional helicopter tour over the Grand Canyon or the shouts from river rafters below.

The western edge of the Grand Canyon outside the national park boundaries belongs to the Hualapai Tribe, which has a horseshoe-shaped glass bridge that juts out 70 feet over the canyon's edge and gives tourists a view of the Colorado River 4,000 feet below. Most people visiting the Grand Canyon go to the South Rim within the national park. The North Rim, also within the park, is less developed, but has a seasonal lodge.

The agreement that Shelly signed with the Confluence Partners, LLC., on Feb. 2 said the tribal government expects 3 million visitors a year as soon as 2015 and revenue to be between $40 million and $70 million annually — up to a half of the tribe's budget not including federal funds.

No one lives at the overlook to the confluence but about a handful of people live nearby, and other families have said they want to move back since the construction ban ended. There is no water or electricity at the site and putting in the infrastructure would cost at least $60 million alone, which Tome said also could benefit residents. About 27 miles of dirt road would have to be paved to reach the site, and water would have to be piped in from miles away.

At full build-out, the project could approach $1 billion, said Lamar Whitmer, of the Confluence Partners, LLC.

The tram would run from the East Rim and parallel the Colorado River before coming to a stop at the bottom of the canyon, where a restaurant would be located. A half-mile river walk, also running alongside the Colorado River, would give tourists a view of the confluence but stop 50 feet short of it. The resort hotel and spa, other hotels, commercial, retail space and 2200 to 2500 affordable houses would be located on top of the canyon.

President Obama has lent full support for the project and the proposed job creation from it.

The plan by the Navajo government is drawing opposition from the National Park Service, environmental groups and even some traditional Navajo herdsmen in the area. (AP Photo/Confluence Partners, LLC/HO)

[gearhead204]

now lets see we cant drill for oil in Alaska, we cant bury a pipeline from North Dakota to Texas, but we can turn one of the wonders of the world into a carnival ride............ok then.

[mowerman]

well aint that a bitch,,,i would rather ride thru it,,,on an old fashion stage,personally,,,this entire caper,,,was probably dreamed up,,,so the all mighty obambi,s could view the canyon in style(IDIOTS). .bob

[grayhair]

Can't help but wonder who owns Confluence Partners, LLC. Maybe the Solyndra people?

[mrsmackpaul]

ummm now Im not real smart but just some quick maths in my head is

1 Billion is a Thousand Million at least thats the way it is in Australia 1000,000,000

40 -70 million lets say its gunna big the one 70,000,000

now as I have just stated Im not real smart but but I was always taught that any business should aim for at least a 10% return on investment so if all there stars align and the plan comes off with out a hiccup the best anyone can expect is 7% now once again Im not showing the bright side of my brain but this thingo is gunna take four or five years to build at its quickest

so get a loan for a Billion we pay interest on it for five years on a unsecured loan that would at a guess be 10% interest so thats 100,000,000 for five years so thats 500,000,000

so now we owe 1.5 billion and the gates still arent opened and you will only get what a at the best a 4% or 5% return it wont even cover the interest on the loan

but heck what would I know from the ass end of the earth and I work for my self ??

but I tell you what figures dont lie no matter what part of the earth your from and for your man at that top say its a good idea to send these people to the wall for no gain only loss is a disgrace maybe big business wants there land and this is some assholes way of getting it ? dunno but somethings not right thats for sure

the only way its gunna work is if a billion over there is 100,000,000

just thinking out allowed

seeya's

Paul

[41chevy]

Can't help but wonder who owns Confluence Partners, LLC. Maybe the Solyndra people?

Confluence Partners LLC.

Confluence Partners L.L.C. is a special entity limited liability company formed for the express purpose of creating and managing the Grand Canyon Escalade project. It’s current active members include:

R. Lamar Whitmer – Managing Partner

Lamar Whitmer is the principal of Fulcrum Group. Mr. Whitmer’s activities have included representing, or engaging in joint ventures or contingency endeavors with publicly traded companies, privately held companies, governments, and sophisticated investors regarding a spectrum of projects and services such as troubleshooting, project analysis, financings, regulatory permitting, and other real estate and development related issues.

Mr. Whitmer was responsible for obtaining the “Hualapai Exception” during the last round of the FAA/NPS Grand Canyon Over-flights rule making. Revenue from the Exception significantly assisted the Hualapai Indian Tribe in expanding their tourism enterprise at Grand Canyon West.

In 1990, he served as the Metro-Phoenix Chief Negotiator for Major League Baseball expansion. Mr. Whitmer served as a financial advisor to the State of Arizona on developing a design build lease-purchase program for the construction of new State office buildings. As an Associate Vice President for Prudential-Bache Securities and AG Edwards, Mr. Whitmer worked as an investment banker and participated in raising capital for retail, office, multifamily, and hotels projects throughout the Western United States. For more than 10 years, Mr. Whitmer was a partner in a general contracting construction company based out of Phoenix.

Albert A. Hale is an enrolled Navajo tribal member, aka “Ahbihay”, who currently serves in the Arizona House of Representatives after four terms in the Arizona State Senate. Representative Hale served as the President of the Navajo Nation from 1995 to 1998. He also served as an Assistant Attorney General for the Navajo Nation and special counsel to the Navajo Nation Council.

Representative Hale has a private law practice with an office located in St. Michaels, Arizona. He represents Navajo and non-Navajo clients in federal, state and various Indian Nations courts including the courts of the Navajo Nation. His clientele include the Navajo Engineering and Construction Authority (a Navajo Nation enterprise) and companies doing business on the Navajo Nation and other Indian Nations.

Eunice L. Tso is a Navajo consultant specializing in projects that benefit Navajo Country. For the past 18 years she has worked on a variety of large and small scale development projects. Between 2005 and 2009 she served as the project manager for the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park Improvement Project and the View Hotel development project. These projects were completed on time and on budget. She’s completed land use plans for over 10 chapters, which has given her an strong understanding of the needs and attitudes of the Navajo people. She’s completed numerous environmental impact analysis for Navajo projects including Twin Arrows and Northern Edge casino developments. Her professional strengths draw from her natural leadership skills and her ability to work well with others, complemented by a strong understanding of regulations that affect the fields of environment and development.

Eunice is an enrolled Navajo Nation tribal member and holds a B.S. Degree in Geology and a M.S. Degree in Environmental Geology from Northern Arizona University (NAU). She hails from Lechee Chapter.

Michael C. Nelson has a law practice based out of Phoenix, Arizona which focuses on Indian Law and Water Law in Arizona, New Mexico and the Navajo Nation. In 2003, Judge Nelson retired as the Presiding Judge of the Superior Court of Apache County, Arizona. While Presiding Judge, he was the Chairman of the Arizona State, Tribal and Federal Judges Forum, Chairman of the Arizona Supreme Court’s Committee on Judicial Education and Training and Chairman of the Navajo Nation Judicial Conduct Commission.

Before his appointment to the Superior Court in 1989, he served as Special Staff Assistant and Legal Counsel to Navajo Nation Chairman Peterson Zah, where he worked with the National Park Service on boundary issues, agreements, and planning documents for Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Chaco Culture National Historic Park, and Canyon de Chelly National Monument.

Jennifer Taliman is an enrolled Navajo Nation tribal member, and is a government relations and public affairs consultant based out of Window Rock, Arizona. Most recently Ms. Taliman has been engaged as a public relation manager for TallSalt Advisors, a financial advisory firm, located in Scottsdale, Arizona.

In addition her work as a consultant, Ms. Taliman has significant experience with the tourism, retail and financial services sectors. Ms. Taliman attended Northern Arizona University.

Darrell Metzger is an established veteran in the leisure, resort and theme park industry, primarily focused in the Asia Pacific region. Mr. Metzger is currently retained by Khazanah Nasional to advise on the development and operations of major investments for Themed Attractions and Resorts Sdn Bhd. Themed Attractions and Resorts is the operational and management company for Khazanah Nasional Berhad’s Leisure and Tourism Division. He also serves as a director on several companies mandated to develop premier destination resorts and attractions in their effort to promote the growth of this sector in Malaysia.

Spending a decade with the Disney organization culminated in the opening of the Tokyo Disney Resort in the early 1980’s, Mr. Metzger moved to Ocean Park in Hong Kong in the early 1990s. There he successfully implemented a US$100 million strategic plan that doubled profits and attendance.

He then went on to become CEO of the Sentosa Leisure Group in Singapore where he played an instrumental role in building the Sentosa brand and raised private investment of US$6 billion to improve facilities. Mr. Metzger spent a year in Dubai as CEO of Ruwaad Holdings, where he oversaw the company’s entry into South Africa with the announcement of the Amazulu World destination resort in Durban.

An MBA graduate of California State University, Mr. Metzger , his wife Beverly and their two children, have lived and travelled around the world, but have always maintained a home base in Southern California.

Keith Lamparter – Design and Construction Manager – Keith Lamparter is President of KLI Companies, a company he founded in March of 2006 to provide owner’s representative and development management services to private and institutional owners and investors. KLI Clients have included entities owned and/or managed by the Blackstone Group, LP, LXR Luxury Resorts, Credit Suisse Alternative Investments and DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners. Significant projects for KLI Companies have included management of master planning and design for a planned new Four Seasons Resort and Private Residences in Puerto Rico, renovations at the Boulders Resort, in Carefree, Arizona, Casa Marina and Reach Resorts in Key West, Florida, and the El Conquistador, El San Juan, Condado Plaza in Puerto Rico, Terrenea Resort, Rancho Palos Verdes, California and the Westin La Cantera Golf Resort, San Antonio, Texas. KLI also provided evaluation and advisory services of the Grand Canyon South Rim facilities, Grand Canyon Railroad and Yellowstone hotels as part of an advisory team for the acquisition of Xanterra Resorts in 2008.

Having worked in the real estate development since 1984, he has served as project manager for a master-planned community developer in California and later as Sr. V.P. of its hospitality development group. In late 1997 he began working primarily on large destination golf and ski resort properties throughout the western and southwestern U.S. serving variously as a construction and development project manager, Vice President Construction and Development, and L.L.C. Managing Director. Significant projects for Mr. Lamparter include the Four Seasons Resort and Private Residences, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Kierland Resort and Kierland Commons, Scottsdale, Arizona, Terrenea Resort, Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

Bernie Propst – Chief Financial Officer

Bernie Propst was the Chief Financial Officer for the Hualapai Indians’ Grand Canyon Resort Corporation, which operates Grand Canyon West, from 2006 through 2009. As a key member of the GCRC management team, he oversaw all aspects of financial reporting, financial feasibilities, financings, receivables and payables during the dramatic increase of visitor volume.

Mr. Propst brings over 25 years of extensive business experience in finance, accounting, taxation, auditing and general management. He earned his CPA license in California in 1980 and his work includes several years of external and internal auditing of public and private businesses. Corporate positions that he has held over the years include that of Controller, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer, and he has served on the Board of Directors of several private companies. Over the course of his career, Mr. Propst has provided businesses with consultancy, tax planning, and other advisory services. He has also provided research and assistance to law firms in dealing with complex financial, accounting, and tax matters. Propst holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting and management information systems from California State University, Sacramento and a Masters in Taxation from Golden Gate University.

Michele Crank is an enrolled Navajo Nation tribal member. Most recently she was the director of government and public affairs for the Heard Museum. Her work experience in Indian Country includes public relations, tourism development, economic development, and business development.

In serving as the public relations/tourism manager and enterprise marketing director at the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, the nation developed a premium brand, opened several new enterprises and expanded long-time events such as Orme Dam Victory Days to raise its profile in the high-end tourism destination market. Michele has deep relationships and partnerships with Arizona’s Indian nations and their neighboring communities, city councils and visitor bureaus as well as local and state elected officials.

Michele currently serves on the American Indian and Alaska Native Tourism Association board of directors. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the University of Phoenix, and has also taught public relations and related trades through the Falmouth Institute.

James J. Maguire, Jr. has over twenty-eight years of trading experience in the financial industry. He started his career in 1983 after receiving a B.A. in Computer Science from Dartmouth College.

Mr. Maguire worked on the American Stock Exchange and CBOE trading floors before joining Henderson Brothers, a New York Stock Exchange specialist firm. At Henderson Brothers, he was responsible for maintaining orderly trading in numerous NYSE listed securities including American Express and J.P. Morgan. He was a specialist at LaBranche & Co. from March of 2000 until joining Christopher J. Forbes, LLC. as a proprietary NYSE floor trader in 2004.

As a New York Stock Exchange member, Mr. Maguire served three terms as a floor official and was a member of the Audit Trail Trade Comparison Committee and a director of the Alliance of Floor Brokers.

[mowerman]

ya and with all that noise remember this is a country thats broke,,,and cant pay its bill (NOW)...idiots...bob

[41chevy]

ummm now Im not real smart but just some quick maths in my head is

1 Billion is a Thousand Million at least thats the way it is in Australia 1000,000,000

40 -70 million lets say its gunna big the one 70,000,000

now as I have just stated Im not real smart but but I was always taught that any business should aim for at least a 10% return on investment so if all there stars align and the plan comes off with out a hiccup the best anyone can expect is 7% now once again Im not showing the bright side of my brain but this thingo is gunna take four or five years to build at its quickest

so get a loan for a Billion we pay interest on it for five years on a unsecured loan that would at a guess be 10% interest so thats 100,000,000 for five years so thats 500,000,000

so now we owe 1.5 billion and the gates still arent opened and you will only get what a at the best a 4% or 5% return it wont even cover the interest on the loan

but heck what would I know from the ass end of the earth and I work for my self ??

but I tell you what figures dont lie no matter what part of the earth your from and for your man at that top say its a good idea to send these people to the wall for no gain only loss is a disgrace maybe big business wants there land and this is some assholes way of getting it ? dunno but somethings not right thats for sure

the only way its gunna work is if a billion over there is 100,000,000

just thinking out allowed

seeya's

Paul

The American Indian Tribes get Federal Aid, State and U.N. funding. They do not pay taxes and are all Indian Reservations considered Sovereign Nations with in the U.S.A. A lot of the funding will be matched by the Feds as grants of International Aid Packages (same as we give to China, India and Vietnam to name a few) and The Native American Reparations Act, signed in 2010 by guess who. Profit is guaranteed by the Federal Government, whether it is successful or not. Paul