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HOW HAS COVID-19 IMPACTED THIS PROJECT?
How has COVID-19 impacted our project?
The hospitality industry was devastated by the economic standstill caused by the COVID health pandemic. Our funding was negatively impacted and delayed our previous opening date. However, as we shared in our recent blogs, we now have amazing partners and a clear path to success. We believe that our location will enable people to have healthy and fulfilling retreats for decades to come. This can serve as an antidote during the “new normal” as we get through this COVID crisis and deal with future social challenges.
General1
The resort will operate year-round and we plan to open in the winter of 2027/28. We have partnered with a hospitality company (PM Hotels) who will manage and operate the guest experience, marketing, and maintenance activities. We have an amazing ownership group who will control and manage the resort's strategic direction.
The resort will create over 250 full and part-time jobs. We plan to create economically sustainable career paths where individuals can align with their innate talents and calling.
The types of roles will include spa and healing professionals, activity guides/instructors, guest services, maintenance/housekeeping, food service, marketing, management and forestry, just to name a few.
We will start HR planning in late 2026 and will start hiring in mid 2027 . We will keep you informed as we progress through this process.
Guests will be regular people who love nature and are interested in growth and personal development. We will not serve guests that have serious medical, mental or addiction issues needing professional intervention. We will have a 3-night minimum and guests will typically stay 4-5 nights. This is an all inclusive type of destination, so guests typically stay on site the entire vacation.
Mike Marburg is the founder and creative vision behind the project. He lives in Aldie, VA with Jennifer and three children. He is a former investor and grew up in Maryland. He plans to live in the area when the resort opens. His co- General Partner is Omani and Jeannie Carson, an avid hunter, farmer, and entrepreneur described more in this blog.(https://www.thenatureretreat.com/post/up-schitt-s-creek-i-met-ron-carson)
There are over 30 other aligned individuals and families from Virginia and various parts of the country who are part of the ownership team. They are committed to wellness, regenerative development, and preserving the region's natural heritage. There is no institutional capital who made an investment, allowing us to take a long term perspective focused on impact.
On the North side of the property, we are planning a campus area that will include an arrival space, a spa, a food and beverage building, a meeting facility, and a fitness/yoga building -- as depicted on the home page. All buildings will be placed within the forest and cannot be seen from the road.
A short walk from the campus are the guest cabins on a separate ridge lines. There will be 6 modern cabins, each with roughly 16 guest bedrooms and private bathrooms. We will also have 4 treehouses tucked into the side of a third ridge.
We will also have an area for a private group to stay on the South side of the property, along with a vast array of trails and outdoor destinations (e.g., hammocks, ropes course, meditation platform, etc.).
We are NOT an event center or convention space. Outside of a few community events per year, we will not host events involving non-guests like festivals and concerts. We are focused on minimizing noise and light pollution. There will be no outdoor speakers or bright lighting on the campus affecting the beautiful Star Tannery sky.
General7
We will have a neighborhood membership program giving access to certain amenities like trails, dining and meeting space as well as services like massage and acupuncture.
This project will also diversify the tax base away from property tax revenue by adding sales and occupancy tax dollars from tourists without further burdening the education system.
Over our first decade, we believe that over $200M will stay in the regional community, and are excited to work with local construction partners, farmers, artisans, etc.
Finally, in addition to creating over 250 full and part-time jobs, we will co-promote other local tourist attractions. See the Community tab and many of our blogs for more information.
Protecting the current Shenandoah way of life is very important to us. We will take many steps to preserve this, like limiting commercial traffic through consolidation efforts and requiring that guests stay on-site to restrict car traffic.
One of our major activities is silence, something we will practice multiple times every day and in many different types of activities, so maintaining a peaceful environment is in our best interest as well.
During the construction process, we will do our best to minimize stress and headaches for our neighbors. We have shared many details on this with our local neighbors, please reach out directly if you would like more information.
No. We support the hunting and fishing heritage of the surrounding lands and will provide a buffer on our property to ensure safety. We plan on offering wilderness survival skills and bow training workshops on the site to reflect this heritage.
No! Mother Nature is the only “guru” for our retreat, and all of our activities are based on things that are obviously healthy (e.g., eating well, hiking, yoga, swimming, etc) or areas that have recently been proven by western science as being very helpful for leading a healthy and balanced life (e.g., yoga, meditation, myofascial release massage, breathwork, etc). The resort has no religious affiliation. We are not a Nudist Colony, despite offering (fully clothed) forest bathing experiences! : )
Regardless of Mike Marburg's ongoing involvement, the special use permit limits any future owners from meaningfully changing the wellness and nature resort concept. It also limits growth and creates boundaries around what can and cannot happen in the future, regardless of new ownership or management.
If you are interested in working at the resort either during construction or afterwards, please feel free to send Greg McCarley an email with your contact information and background. We will not open until late 2027/early 28, so our hiring process does not start in earnest until the summer of 2027. Thank you for your patience!
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