The Cipriani Club - Homestead



The following is a Positioning or Visioning Statement I wrote for a community in Montana. The text is placed into a handsome picture book of sorts and presented to the client (usually land developers). The Visioning Book is meant to be an internal piece that concretizes the project in the minds of the developers and all those involved.

Our team’s process at InterCom was to visit a property, usually a barren piece of land (though the would-be community outlined below had a small number of old, dilapidated cabins on it) and find the Cornerstones that set the property in question apart from all others in the area, if not the world. After the team deliberated about which Cornerstones were strongest, I was let loose to research and write a comprehensive Visioning Statement. In short, I would envision the property as a thriving Utopia and then write a kind of day-in-the-life look at the place—as if its potential had already been reached. The piece below is 14 pages. (A writer writes, right?)

Each project’s marketing collateral—brochures, ads, website, PR, magazine articles—would then be pulled from the Visioning Statement. I’ve written about a dozen different Visioning Statements for properties in California, Nevada, Utah, Montana, Virginia, Mexico, Panama, Nicaragua and Belize.

Kootenai Visioning Statement

The Treasure State

Montana is the last of its kind. Vast, intimate and uncrowded, America’s fourth largest state lays claim to mammoth swaths of virgin forest, seventy-seven mountain ranges, over two thousand natural lakes, an immense Great Plains and the soul-shaking grandeur of Glacier National Park. In between healthy stands of towering pine, fir, cottonwood, spruce, cedar and larch, an abundance of charming villages boast of a rustic elegance where old-fashioned country stores, trading posts and saloons post themselves proudly alongside upscale boutiques, fine restaurants and esteemed galleries of art. But what truly elevates Montana is her lengthy list of easy-to-reach, outdoor activities—from blue-ribbon angling and hunting to world-class skiing and snowboarding to golf, hiking, boating and mountain biking. And though the bevy of Big Sky’s under-the-sun pursuits is extraordinary, many find it overshadowed by yet another ace up Montana’s long sleeve: a small-town friendliness and ever-gracious hospitality that never fails to warm the hearts of visitor and citizen alike. The Treasure State, it most certainly is.

The Last Best Place

Tucked away neatly in northwestern Montana’s Flathead Valley, there lies a forty-two acre patch of wonderland. Less than thirty-seven miles from Whitefish, Big Mountain and Montana’s most famous resident—Glacier Park—this hidden preserve in between mountains is poised to become, for some, the most striking jewel in Montana’s glittering crown. The thousands of pleasures that the state packs within its wide borders have been captured, concentrated, doubled, then poured out here as the perfect example of what makes for a quintessential Montana experience.

This wondrous place, this last best place…is called Kootenai.

Once Upon a Wilderness

As if lifted from the pages of an ancient storybook, Kootenai’s high trees of gold and green, its mossy log cabins that surely sprung from Earth herself, its rolling green meadows, chattering creek and glass-topped lake are those thought specifically reserved for a bygone era. But they do exist. Today. In Kootenai.

The rising peaks of the Mission and Swan Mountain ranges that have protected this fairytale for centuries have not only hidden it from the encroachment of the outside world but also from the ravages of time itself. Nine precious cabins, a stately barn and strapping grand lodge built for the likes of a Mountain King have stood in this secret nook for nearly a hundred years. Thirty-three more will rise in similar fashion. The coming months shall witness newcomers—to be hewn of stone, larch, cedar and lodgepole pine—that will speak the language of storybook as fluently, as beautifully, as their aged, timber kin.

Forty-two families will have the good pleasure to call this place home. This place where lake, creek and river meet. This place so infused with magic that the waters flow north. This place of lore and legend. This place called Kootenai.

The Guiding Vision

Four guiding principles will form the foundation for Kootenai: strengthening the important historical roots of Kootenai by instigating a discretionary community outreach program; building with respect to Kirtland Cutter by adhering to a rustic Montana architectural style; preserving the natural beauty of the environment by the creation of the Kootenai Conservancy; and capturing the original spirit of “The Kootenai Camp.”

Where Lake, Creek and River Meet

In the early 1900s, a pair of attorneys for Anaconda Copper Company sought to acquire an ideal wilderness hideaway where they could spend carefree summers hunting and fishing with friends. In 1906, Lewis Orvis Evans and Cornelius “Con” Kelley purchased 2700 acres of wilderness in northwestern Montana.

The property was laden with lakes, streams and rivers full of fish. Its forests thick with game: grizzly and black bear, moose, elk, deer, bobcat, mountain lion, big horn sheep, lynx, otter, fox, beaver, wolf. The land also held an overwhelmingly large number of excellent parcels upon which Kelley and Evans could build their summer homes. Yet there was never a question about which location held the most allure, the most charm and power, the most indigenous beauty.

Over a hundred years ago, on a verdant stretch of land where Swan Lake, Johnson Creek and the Swan River meet—present-day Kootenai—a pair of attorneys began to raise their summer cabins…and changed the face of Montana history forever.

The Copper Kings

By 1915, “Con” Kelley and Orvis Evans had shot to the top of Anaconda Copper Company: Kelley became president and Evans, chief counsel.

The pair helped grow Anaconda into one of the largest corporations in the world. And as each fertile vein of Montana’s lucrative mountain ore was lifted to the surface and dispersed to the four corners of a copper-hungry world, so grew the renown, prestige, celebrity—and especially the bank accounts—of Kelley and Evans.

The duo amassed an inconceivable amount of wealth. More than tycoons, magnates or moguls, the pair had become nothing less than kings: The Copper Kings.

Armed with their newfound clout and their apt aristocratic title, the Kings marched to the very top echelon of society. They were lionized along with the world’s foremost Captains of Industry—Vanderbilt, Morgan, Astor, Carnegie, Rockefeller.

The Copper Kings quickly ascended through the ranks of the most privileged class. They had gained entrance into the formidable courts of American Royalty…and they began to live as such.

By 1920, Kelley and his family were arriving at Kootenai in chauffeured limousines with an entourage that included a British butler, French maid, parlor maid, cook, pastry chef, nursemaid and porter. Two trucks wielding luggage, as well as silver service for fifty, would follow the Kelleys into what was then known as the Kelley-Evans Estate.

Past and Present

Today’s Kootenai remains largely unchanged from the days when the Copper Kings roamed its remarkable grounds. The prime forty-acre swatch still billows with grassy knolls and overflows with scores of elderly cedar, lodgepole, cottonwood, maple and ponderosa pine. Johnson Creek bends gently through the private retreat for a thousand feet before tumbling into the Swan. A ribbon of waterfront beach stretches nearly a half a mile to fringe Kootenai’s entire eastern border. But moreover, the land’s clear capacity to refresh spirits and brush the dust from world-weary hearts remains thoroughly in tact.

Kelley and Evans obviously required the nourishment that Kootenai provided. The pair never failed to make the annual journey from their New York homes to the banks of Swan Lake for a few weeks of summer fun. During the earlier years, the arduous route—Long Island to Butte by rail, another train to Ravalli, a stagecoach to Polson, a steamboat across the Flathead to Bigfork and finally a bumpy wagon trip up a trenched and rutted logging trail—took a week to complete.

Thankfully, modern travel allows less time-consuming and more comfortable modes of transport. A plane into Kalispell International Airport—the region’s largest city and one that combines the charm of shiny lunch counters, soda fountains and ample supplies of penny candy with the convenience of a modern mall and host of national retail giants; then twenty-five minutes by car to Bigfork—a quaint, resort village with sidewalk cafés, homespun crafts, fine restaurants, art galleries, a repertory theater, cigar store Indian and Eva Gates’ Homemade Preserves; and a very short drive from Bigfork stand the sturdy iron gates of Kootenai.

Strengthening Kootenai’s Historical Roots

The rich and worthy past of Kootenai, a chronicle that still courses with meaning, heart and undeniable spirit, shall not be forgotten. New settlers will be entrusted to pass on yesteryear’s stories and sagas; the very things that have shaped Kootenai into what it is today. This educative campaign will not only safeguard Kootenai’s historical importance, but will invigorate neighboring communities throughout the Flathead Valley.

Proximate elementary schools, Boy Scouts, Girls’ Clubs and other like-minded organizations may be invited to set foot upon the grounds to spend a few hours learning about the Copper Kings, irascible artist Charles Russell, architect Kirtland Cutter, Kootenai’s own ghost stories and other chestnuts of this land’s bountiful past. During the high season, a Guest Historian will lead kids to the big red barn. Built in 1915, the barn was at one time used by Kelley and Evans to harbor their thirty-one polo ponies. Today, a clever refurbishment has set aside much of its prodigious floor space for the Kootenai Museum: a collection of fascinating paraphernalia from Kootenai’s original, ninety year-old guestbook to a medley of historic and vintage photographs taken at Kootenai to a number of Anaconda Copper Co. antiques that had once belonged to the Kings themselves. Following a tour of the museum, entertaining presentations could take place in the form of interactive slide shows, jovial skits in the 60-ton hayloft, Kootenai Indian stories recounted by tribal elders and Western art demonstrations by local artists. And if the whinny and neigh, frenzied hoofbeats and jangle of tack outside arouse a bit of curiosity, relax—it’s simply the echoes of a polo match…one played over 75 years ago.

For older history buffs, Kootenai’s bygone days can be brought to life over elegant dinners at the Lodge. These in-depth voyages back in time may involve evenings spent with experts in Kootenai Indian religion and folklore, respected Western historians, architects and prominent Montana scholars. The final speaker, a relative of Kootenai’s own groundsman during the ‘20s, may close with a tale or two about Kootenai’s famous visitors and bawdy nights of poker, booze and broads.

Like an invaluable antique that demands a greater price because of its one-of-a-kind provenance, Kootenai too stands to boost its cachet considerably by the sharing of its peerless and unique history.

Rustic Montana Architecture

In addition to the historicity of the land and the fabled accounts of the colorful personalities who have left their indelible marks upon Kootenai, there exists an architectural element that is also well deserving of honor—The Kootenai Lodge.

The Magic of Kirtland Cutter

In 1919, Kelley and Evans began to search for an architect to build a lodge at Kootenai. Of all the architects on the planet, and the Copper Kings had the power, competence and financial wherewithal to hire the world’s very best, they sought the services of a man largely unknown outside of his home in America’s Pacific Northwest: Kirtland Cutter.

A few years earlier, Cutter was hired to build a lodge at Glacier Park. When given these instructions, “Build something worthy of a grand, National Park,” Cutter responded. In spades. His Lake McDonald Lodge is a national treasure. Built in the Adirondack Camp Style of the 1920s, Lake McDonald Lodge is considered by many to be one of two perfect examples of rustic log architecture.

The other is Kootenai Lodge.

Kootenai Lodge

Kootenai Lodge is a gateway, a time machine that thrusts one back to the America of the early 1900’s. A hunting lodge dressed up for a grand Gatsby-like ball, The Lodge has entertained John D. Rockefeller, Will Rogers, actress Jane Wyatt, Charles Lindbergh, Queen Wilhelmina of The Netherlands and famed Western artist Charles Russell—who’s talented hand etched some playful images into the concrete of The Lodge’s spacious courtyard.

Hides of Grizzly Bear and Timber Wolf hang lazily over balustrades. Mounts of Elk, Deer, Moose and Caribou survey the sweeping room from their perches high on larch walls. Roughened rock jaws of a walk-in fireplace eat away at fiery logs that crackle in protest while spouting flames to heights of seven feet. And if Teddy Roosevelt were to stomp through those thick wooden doors—a shotgun on his shoulder—it would hardly come as a surprise.

Everything about Kootenai Lodge’s fourteen-thousand square feet of artistic and architectural expertise bewitches the senses: The huge stalks of rugged, bark-on tree trunks that climb thirty-feet from fir floor to open ceiling. The bulky roof trusses, like a forest of fallen cedar, that stretch overhead in parallel lines. The narrow stage above the fireplace fabricated for the plays of precocious sons, daughters, nieces and nephews. The long gnarled tree limbs—timber snakes frozen in various states of writhe and twist—that function as dramatic banisters. And the whimsical half-round and unpeeled logs that make up the treads and risers of the stairs.

The Heart of The Kootenai Experience

As the prime gathering spot, The Lodge will serve this prestigious community as its bustling hub. Overlooking the radiance of Swan Lake, the Lounge and outdoor wraparound deck are arrayed with abundant seating. A grand piano will occasionally sound with impromptu sets by residents or staff. Planned affairs, as the community desires, may even showcase name entertainment. The Lodge is conducive to a variety of functions—from casual charity events to high-profile black-tie galas. And though the wide majority of Lodge events are reserved specifically for Kootenai owners, a gourmet cooking class—one of the limited number of public events at Kootenai Lodge—would have Montanans coming in from miles around.

The two wings that shoot off of The Lodge’s Lounge contain more than a half-dozen sizeable rooms. Many of these rooms, like the Lounge and the Russell Courtyard, are community spaces that will assuredly become favorite haunts of residents and their fortuitous guests.

The Card Room and Library promises books by day and late nights of brandy, poker faces and called bluffs that pay homage to the popular pastime that beguiled so many of Kootenai’s former visitors. The Office of the Concierge is the location to arrange catered in-cabin dinners, sleigh rides, tickets to a Bigfork Summer Playhouse production, a tour of the Flathead Valley in an open-topped Jammer or hayrides to Electric Avenue’s huge 4th of July celebration; a party that will continue into the evening at Kootenai’s annual Independence Day Barbeque—a grand celebration replete with savory steaks, kegs of ale, a hot dog and pie eating contest, carnival games and, of course, the nighttime’s pomp and song of kaleidoscopic bombs bursting in air.

The Media Room, with its international periodicals and plasma screen TVs, connects to a bar area where owners can lock away their favorite libations and aperitifs in a private liquor cabinet accessible by key day and night. Mornings find The Lodge stocked with pots of piping coffee, a wide selection of teas, fresh-squeezed juices and sumptuous stacks of homemade cinnamon rounds, fluffy croissants, muffins and Danish. And kids wet from the lake can nab and nosh frozen sweets at a walk-up ice cream counter without ever entering The Lodge.

Catered parties, weddings, graduation festivities and the like will ensue on the opulent Russell Courtyard. At its center, a marble fountain guards the koi in the pond beneath it. Charlie Russell’s brass-framed etchings of Sun, Salamander, Frog, Turtle, Shield and Spear wreathe the centerpiece and have been commendably restored by a local artisan.

New Logs, Old Tricks

Each of the thirty-three new cabins that will eventually rise from Kootenai soil is to resound with the same rustic architectural elegance as The Lodge and its nine aged siblings. Homes shall be masterfully constructed employing stone, larch, cedar and lodgepole pine. As if plucked from 1910 and lovingly placed here, the new will blend seamlessly with the old: hardwood floors, wide hearths and craggy rock fireplaces, high open ceilings of raw timber beams and spacious decks with stone firepits.

Similar architectural elements will act to stylistically unify each and every one of Kootenai’s forty-two lakefront homes. Yet a small assortment of distinct building designs will be available. Some homes might brandish sprawling wraparound decks while others favor select wood shingle siding or a more generous use of stone. Earthen-hued cabins may very well adopt split ‘stable’ doors or a certain Chalet-like slant to their rooflines. But every home is to be constructed of only the most premium materials and finished to the absolute highest standard of excellence.

The lavish, four- and five-bedroom Kootenai cabins offer a range of thoughtful floorplans. While some homes consist of extra-large rooms fit for entertaining friends and extended family, others enjoy cozier spaces. Owners may choose between our exquisite interior design packages or opt to call upon the skills of their own handpicked designer. It will also be de rigueur, of course, for each dwelling, the old and the new, to contain the best of modern conveniences and the latest technological advances: high-speed internet, video-conferencing capabilities, digital television and a band of other creature comforts and up-to-date innovations.

Respect For What Has Gone Before

Kirtland Cutter’s rustic imagery responded to the grandeur of the western landscape. His artful structures place him firmly among the masters of a significant American architectural genre. The new homes that sprout up around Kootenai Lodge will do so with an immense respect for Cutter’s talent and vision for the openness of the surrounding land.

The National Park Service has awarded Kootenai Lodge with one of its most honorable distinctions. They have placed the monumental work on the National Register of Historic Places. It has been deemed worthy of preservation.

But Kootenai’s ongoing efforts at preservation shall not be singularly limited to the magnific Lodge, for there are many other elements of these immaculate grounds worthy of protection.

The Kootenai Conservancy

It is a rare place indeed that can boast of over six hundred of species of flora and fauna bursting, bustling and burrowing on its doorstep. Yet this glorious abundance is Kootenai’s good fortune. But to those who are given much, much is expected.

Kootenai’s commitment to the environment will be indicated by the creation of The Kootenai Conservancy. The Conservancy’s primary goals shall be to protect, preserve, enhance and educate residents about the indigenous flora, fauna and wildlife habitats within Kootenai and the surrounding areas for the benefit of present and future generations. Kootenai’s land and vestal waters will essentially be treated as if they were part and parcel of America’s National Park System.

Upon the purchase of a home at Kootenai, a Conservancy Membership shall be automatically allocated to each homeowner and their immediate family. Participation in the Conservancy is voluntary and of no additional cost to the homeowner: the organization will be financially supported by donations and a portion of HOA fees.

Evans Nature Center

An existing homesteader outbuilding is to be restored and converted into the Evans Nature Center (ENC). The ENC will not only function as the Headquarters of the Kootenai Conservancy but, as its name implies, the center of Kootenai’s many environmental activities.

A passionate biologist and environmental educator with years of experience in field research and the handling of wild animals, the Conservancy and Outdoor Recreation Director (the CORD) will spearhead all projects and programs relating to The Kootenai Conservancy.

While wearing the Conservancy Director hat, the CORD’s primary responsibility is to respond to the requests of residents regarding environmental outings and ecological programs. The Conservancy and Outdoor Recreation Director is fully capable of organizing any number of entertaining and educational endeavors that may include mammal tracking, wildlife monitoring, chronicling rare plants, a Nature of Summer Campout, trail safety and survival techniques, Johnson Creek EcoClass, Swan River tour and birdwatching safaris. This is just a small sampling of what may be offered to all Kootenai residents through The Conservancy operating out of the Evans Nature Center.

Whether bottle-feeding an orphaned squirrel back to health or protecting one of Kootenai’s 500-year-old ponderosa pines from a deadly root disease, the idea is the same: Our duty as stewards of this earth is to leave it a better place than we found it. The Kootenai Conservancy exists in part to bring about this honorable task.

The Kootenai Camp

When Kelley and Evans first laid eyes on Kootenai and her vast riches, they had envisioned a summer fishing retreat. They called it “The Kootenai Camp.” As a place to unwind and break free from the workaday din of a demanding business world, Kootenai gracefully succeeded. And eventually surpassed every conceivable expectation.

As is her habit with everyone, Kootenai got under the steely skin of the Copper Kings… and melted their hearts. When an emotion of such inexpressible beauty is encountered, the human reaction is to want to share that experience with others. Such is the power of Kootenai.

The Kings responded admirably to their call to share the splendors of Kootenai. And as the list of family, frequenters and welcome habitués grew, so did the slate of exhilarating outdoor pursuits.

The Kootenai of today, like that of yesterday, will be nothing less than a sporting and recreational Eden. Her attractive banquet of activities is sure to draw even the most practiced of layabouts out of doors.

Thrill to the delights of the Swan Lake Nordic Trail—a circuitous fifty-mile route on which to hike, snowshoe, mountain bike, cross-country ski and horseback ride. All 12 miles of Swan Lake and its big brother, Flathead Lake—the largest natural freshwater lake west of Mississippi—are superb for canoeing, sailing, peddle-boats, jetskiing, kayaking, windsurfing, wake boarding, waterskiing or just lounging in a soft and comfy inner tube. And Swan River, home to the infamous Wild Mile, overturns more than its share of kayakers, river rafters and river tubers before its capricious currents spit them out into Bigfork Bay.

Golf Digest has recently cited Montana’s Flathead Valley among the “50 Greatest Golf Destinations in the World.” Just ten minutes from Kootenai and tailored by Nicklaus Design, Bigfork’s Eagle Bend Golf Club has been rated the #1 course in Montana for six years in a row. And Big Mountain Golf Club, #2 in the state, offers an eighteen-hole test inspired by the links of the Scottish Highlands. More launchpad tees, tiny greens and sculpted fairways accouter the seven other championship courses that all hover within forty minutes of Kootenai.

Montana’s best skiing and snowboarding, according to Ski Magazine, is to be found at Big Mountain Ski Resort. Less than an hour’s drive from Kootenai, the mountain’s three thousand acres of challenging slopes, deep powder, slick half-pipes and high-speed quads along with a few true double diamond runs (for certified experts only) are sweetened by sovereign views of Glacier National Park. For the more adventurous, Snowcat skiing and boarding at Big Mountain can be arranged by Kootenai’s Concierge or the Conservancy and Outdoor Recreation Director.

And then, of course, there is the fishing.

Some of Montana’s best bull trout fishing lies just yards away from any one of Kootenai’s forty-two homes. Both Swan Lake and Swan River thrash and tease with these “grizzlies of the fish world.” The bull trout—actually a member of the salmon family—is a fierce fighting fish that has been known to tip the scales at over twenty pounds and Swan Lake is the only water body in the state that allows anglers to catch and keep the endangered, and line-busting, bulls.

Our Conservancy and Outdoor Recreation Director can arrange virtually any angling excursion. The CORD knows all local “hot spots” and will gladly provide a boat, canoe or just a simple pair of waders. Or plan a three-day fantasy fishing camp that will whisk away small groups to secret mountain springs and hidden lakes brimming with well-muscled rainbow and cutthroat trout, perch and feisty Northern Pike. A program upgrade grants one guide for every two guests and these exclusive expeditions often feature gourmet meals and luxury camping accommodations. If lessons in flyfishing are decided upon, whether a quick refresher course or an all day seminar, the CORD is happy to oblige.

Hunting (both bow and rifle), ice fishing, equestrian outings, tours of Glacier Park, snowmobiling and traditional overnight tent camping—either on- or offsite—are just a few of the many odysseys to be made available through Kootenai’s Conservancy and Outdoor Recreation Director.

If the younger set decides to ditch Mom and Dad for a while and cut loose with kids their own age, the ENC, along with the CORD and a small staff of summer interns, will readily provide a myriad of suitable and lively enterprises to pursue. Nature programs are especially designed for children to teach respect for Kootenai’s native surroundings. The nearby Crafts Cabin can be used for face painting, the carving of flutes and totem poles, weaving baskets in traditional Kootenai-style and even the careful construction of miniature canoes for July’s Swan River Boat Float. The opportunity for swim races, building tipis, backpacking and horseback riding will have kids yearning to come back time and time again.

From Polo Ponies to Pulleys and Pilates

For those who prefer to get their exercise indoors, half of Kootenai’s 91-year-old barn is to be fashioned into a comprehensive Fitness Club. With a crew of the latest cardio equipment and strength training apparatus, The Club also affords access to Personal Fitness Trainers, Yoga instructors and Pilates professionals. A neighboring pool is heated for residents and guests who fancy an aquatic workout in a watery clime a few degrees warmer than that of Swan Lake.

And though Kootenai’s overflowing trove of engaging activities is an uncommon and exceptional benefit, it pales in comparison to Kootenai’s greatest strength. Its defining characteristic. Its principal power.

The Real Power of Kootenai

The cornerstones that form the new foundation of Kootenai—the educative dispersion of its worthy history; a respect for the authenticity and rustic beauty of its architecture; the creation of the conservancy; and capturing The Kootenai Camp spirit—are designed to work in concert to bring about what is quite possibly Kootenai’s primary function: To furnish the perfect canvas upon which profound and everlasting memories are painted.

In everyone’s life there are five or six, perhaps ten, moments of perfection: That Christmas day with Granddad, snowmen and sleds. Curling into Papa’s lap by the fire and fighting sleep so that that night, and that feeling, might last forever. A Thanksgiving feast with extended family. That first real kiss. Those fleeting days, evenings and small hours when God’s grace has completely freed us from our cares and worries so that we may more fully appreciate His blessings. These moments, these memories in the making, these points of grace, doggedly search for the ideal setting that will add even more to the meaning and magnitude of these hallowed moments.

In short, memories need a place to happen.

Kootenai is that place.

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