When the Everist family purchased 416 acres of land nestled between Summit County’s Gore Range and Blue River in the mid ’90s, they knew they had something special. For more than two decades, they used the land primarily to fish, hunt, hike and get together as a family. But as their memories grew, they also dreamed of sharing the area’s magic with others. That dream recently became Summit Sky Ranch, a community that aims to “connect people with each other and with the land in a new way that would serve to enhance and emphasize how special of a place this is,” says development director Matt Mueller. We sat down with Mueller to learn more about the community’s vision, architecture and more.
A: “The short-term vision is to make everyone a believer in what we are trying to accomplish here. We have spent the last few years planning, designing and sharing our story. As we come up on over 50 closings and nearing over 110 sales, we are transitioning to the long-term vision, which is continuing to create a cohesive and inclusive community in Summit County. Whether it’s the 20-acre private lake we are building, the five miles of trails connecting to the Gore Range or the quality and care we take when building our homes, we want every detail to contribute to the reality of this vision.”
A: “Modern architecture is a powerful design ideology. It certainly defines who we are as a community aesthetically, but also creates synergies between the built environment and the natural environment that perhaps other design ideologies could not. Modern/mid-century architecture, by the nature of its common design moves, can create seamless transitions between indoors and outdoors while creating an overall aesthetic that allows the natural surroundings to take center stage. Large expanses of glass encourage interaction with neighbors. It’s hard to hide in a modern home and that is OK, because connection with your neighbors is vital to creating positive morale and pride within the community.”
A: “Our homes feature all-natural cedar and stone on the exteriors, large expanses of glass and windows so that views and sunlight can be captured, in-floor gypcrete radiant heat with high-efficiency boilers, heated garages with floor drains, insulation levels that exceed minimum code standards, quartz countertops, solid wood doors, hardwood floors, large fireplaces, firepits, large decks, expansive patio spaces, and Bosch appliances.”
A: “The Aspen House, the heart of our community, is an 8,000-square-foot architectural gem that houses a year-round heated pool and spas, outdoor fireplace, community fire pit, event lawn, full exercise and wellness/yoga rooms, reading room, kids’ lounge, business center, and a large community room. The Lake House will be a gathering space next to our 20-acre lake. The building will sit along a boardwalk that connects it to a real sandy beach, have kayak/canoe/paddle board storage and a floating dock house for our electric-powered Duffy boat.
We have miles of internal private trails that connect the various parts of our community to the Aspen house as well as miles of public trails that connect through the White River National Forest up to the Gore Range. We also have a private stretch of Blue River for fly fishing. At the entrance to our community we are building a 20-acre Town Park that will feature open playing fields, dog park, sledding hill with warming hut, open air pavilion, bathrooms, Frisbee golf course and playground.
Finally, sitting above the community will be a state of the art observatory that will provide a looped feed for viewing back to Aspen House.”
“Our project is just one piece of the overall revitalization of Silverthorne … [including] a state of the art Performing Arts Center that will serve as the cultural hub for Summit County. Additionally, the town has been designing and planning a walkable main-street component that is currently missing here. Silverthorne is changing rapidly, and we are very excited to be a part of the newest chapter in the town’s history.”
