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28 p o r t l a n d monthly magazine CourtesyPhotoallevatoarChiteCts PeoPle this. In a student unionin the 1960s sense of a student unionyou slept in one place in the hub. The other attractions such as class- es athletic facilities the library were on the outside of the wagon wheel. We liked that. The thing that was cool about the original Balsams was that lake right outside your front door and the ability to have a hot- spring sauna at your back door. The Bal- sams had great food ice-skating cross- country skiing downhill skiing but the route to making it universally known wasnt as available to Steve and Neil Tillotsen. Now you can see that well have world-class ski- ing available. It was exciting to envision what a 21st-century resort would look like. Were well on our way to at least get our per- mits. The launch is underway. W ith the lodging we are contem- plating in the first phase that fig- ureis143million.Thatwillleave us with three hotels Hampshire House Dix House and the Gloriette House. The key component is the gondola. The gondola will take guests right up to the downhill skiing right from the hotels. Most ski resorts were not designed as summer and winter. Youd have the parking lot the base lodge the lifts that get to the ski lodge and then the ski- ing. If youre going to go paddlewheeling or skimobiling etc. youd have to get in your car. With us everything were doing is with- in walking distance. Hot spring spa. Walk- ing distance. Gondola. Walking distance. Cooking school. Walking distance. Start- ing from scratch we could design to let peo- ple walk from their bedroom. If I want to go to cooking school and you want to go cross- country skiing and our wives want to go four-wheel driving there doesnt have to be a transportation plan. Ive known and loved The Balsams for a long time. I played golf when I was a mem- ber of Rotary maybe 35 or 40 years ago. With The Balsams of the past the food was always great the cross-country ski great the alpine skiingehhh. We will have guests who will come to the enjoy the spa and cooking school and the spring ride the gondola just to go up to lunch and theyre never going to ski. They need not. Were the full component. We dont need to have hotel partners. We dont share in revenuewe are the revenue stream. If theres a dollar being spent its being spent with us. How much bigger can The Balsams possibly get Weve got it up to 11000 acres. When you think of The Balsams you think of poli- tics because the first few votes of a presidential election are tallied there. Youve ventured into poli- tics before. Are there any politics in your future The politics of life. I have not ruled out being an astronaut either. I have no present plans about politics. How about your romantic life Do you have a sig- nificent other Im out of the significant other category. Im dating a wonderful aesthetician from Free- port right now. Youre not afraid to diversify. Tell us about ventures of yours that some Mainers might not connect with you. Were doing very well with our renewable energy business wood-pellet boilers. Our wood-pellet furnace just made it through EPA testing with flying colors. Largest man- ufacturer in the U.S. of wood-pellet furnac- es made in Maine. Weve been in the busi- ness eight years. In our indoor-golf business weve had a break- through. Most ball spin golf systems are priced in the 10000 to 50000 range. Ours is going to hit the 3000 range. Dramatic decrease in price that puts it in somebodys home. Thats pretty cool. Then theres the drumbeat at Sunday River. I got together with Joey Kramer from Aero- smith. He and I are presenting Joey Kram- ers Rockin Roastin Cafe Restaurant. transforming a restaurant at the base of Sunday River and roasting coffee. Its going to be a fun venue. Think Battle of the Bands. When you see the Red Sox play what one part of your part of being on the 700M ownership team on December 21 of 2001 comes back to you Fenway Park. When I entered the fray in October of 2000 there was a plan to remod- el Fenway Park with a 625M pricetag. The plan was to move the park cross the street. I couldnt understand why someone would want to tear down a ballpark like Fen- way. It would have been an exacting mod- el of it the same dimensions of it. With a single thought we launched the purchase of the Red Sox around Fenway Park. Six of the other seven bidding groups were going to move it across the street. Or to the water- front. Or to Suffolk. I was the guy who said no. It wouldnt be there if I hadnt debunked the myth of it sinking in the Fens. I hired Leslie Roberts Assoc. the prestigious en- gineering firm who had done the evaluations of the World Trade Center repairs needed when the bombs went off in the WTC years before 911. You create dreams for vacationers. Where do you go to get away Paris London and Holland. But its not a matter of going on vacation. Thats not tour- ism. Im not generally a tourist. Thats visit- ing family. Im one of the lucky Jews. How many can say I have surviving relatives in London Paris and Holland Also related to luck I certainly appreciate the ability to be intriguing after all these years. SeeArt On Iceon page 51 for more on Les Otten and the remarkable Albert Otten art collection. Otten teams up with Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer above at their new Sunday River restaurantcaf.