SAM Magazine—Wilmington, Vt., March 20, 2018—The members-only Hermitage Club, which until yesterday operated a ski area on Haystack Mountain in southern Vermont, was closed by the Vermont Department of Taxes on Monday for failure to pay a “progress payment” on taxes it owes to the state. Last Thursday the state took the same action, but the club made a payment of $112,000 for unpaid meals, rooms, and sales taxes in time for it to be allowed to open for the weekend.

A public notice posted yesterday at the entrance of the base lodge at Haystack and other properties the company owns in the area said the Hermitage Club “failed to post the bond required by the Vermont Commissioner of Taxes ... and may not conduct any business at this location.” According to reports, an official with the state said “the business is not in good standing.”

Next to the public notice, the Hermitage Club posted a sign of its own with a message to members: “We have been operating under a temporary agreement with the state tax department which required us (to) make a progress payment today. Unfortunately, we were not able to make this payment as planned and have been ordered to remain closed for operations until it is paid. We are working diligently to secure the funds to allow us to open for this coming weekend and will keep you posted.”

A report in the Deerfield Valley News said according to liens filed by the department of taxes at the Wilmington Town Clerk's office, the taxes owed by the Hermitage may amount to as much as $1.2 million.

Hermitage employees told the Brattleboro Reformer they were escorted from the base lodge by police. But Hermitage spokeswoman Meridith Dennes disputed that. "We are just trying to work with the state on some issues," she told the Reformer. "We have a payment forthcoming. We have a very good relationship with the state."

In February 2015, the state charged Hermitage Club with 15 counts of violating land use and water quality regulations between 2011 and 2014. A settlement of $205,000 was reached in April 2015.

In addition to a long list of permitting and construction issues, this is just the most recent financial debacle for the private club. On Feb. 23, Berkshire Bank filed foreclosure complaints against the Hermitage Club for its failure to make payments on more than $17 million in loans.

For a rundown of how the Hermitage Club got to this point, see this earlier report.

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