John Cullen founded the Grand Heritage Hotel Group, which manages or owns over twenty luxury hotels and resorts around the world, including the Stanley, which he bought out of bankruptcy court for $3.14 million in 1995. He runs his international company from his home less than a five-minute drive from the hotel and told Westword in February that he wants to sell the hotel to a nonprofit to preserve its legacy.
That nonprofit was originally Community Finance Corporation, based in Arizona, and the plan was for CFC to purchase the hotel using bonds issued by CECFA. Founded in 1981, CECFA was established by the state legislature to “provide affordable capital financing for colleges and universities,” according to its website.
The organization's reach has since expanded to museums, sports facilities, schools and performance spaces. It has issued over $7.6 billion in state bonds but has never owned any of the facilities it has worked with before.
But, according to executive director Mark Heller, CECFA will be a natural fit for the Stanley.
“CECFA is already a strong partner in the proposed financing of the Stanley Film Center,” he says in a statement. “Becoming the owner of the property builds on the many other contributions from the state for this project.”
Up to $450 million in bonds could be issued by CECFA for the project. It plans to create a subsidiary through which it will be the borrower of the bonds and eventually own the Stanley outright.
However, the organization will need the state legislature to expand its role, as well.
“By expanding CECFA’s permitted operational activities, the proposed legislation will enable the organization to engage in a wider range of community revitalization projects,” Heller says. “That’s a win for the Colorado communities that will benefit from its important work.”
The bonds would fund the purchase of the Stanley and the Fall River Village Resort in Estes Park, which is also owned by Grand Heritage. Additionally, the bonds would contribute $54 million to the Stanley Film Center. Heller says CECFA plans to speak about the proposal with legislators, who wrap up the 2024 session on May 8, and is "targeting late spring or early summer for closing."
Horror Movie Museum and Film Center
Cullen has been developing the plans for the nearly 70,000-square-foot film center since 2015. It will honor the Stanley’s connection to Stephen King, who based his book The Shining on his experiences at the reportedly haunted hotel. There will be a 10,000-square-foot exhibit space dedicated to horror-movie history curated by horror-movie production giant Blumhouse, known for movies like the Halloween reboots, The Purge, M3GAN and Get Out.The door-splitting ax Jack Nicholson used in The Shining before his iconic “Here’s Johnny!” moment has already been donated to the project, and Cullen says artifacts from Get Out may be coming, too.
The Stanley Film Center will also have a 1,200-person concert hall, an auditorium and an event center. It was approved for state funding back in 2015 under Colorado’s Regional Tourism Act, which aims to attract out-of-state visitors. It originally received $12 million but struggled to raise additional capital, which stalled plans. But now the state has updated the project’s financing structure and will contribute $46 million.
Under the state's timeline, the Stanley Film Center must be completed by November 2025.
“The vision for the property, including an exciting new partnership with Blumhouse, has incredible potential to attract new, out-of-state visitors to Estes Park and Colorado, and strengthen CECFA’s ability to support educational and cultural facilities across the state,” Heller says.
Cullen told Westword that he wants to convert the Stanley to a nonprofit model to get the film center finished, and to complete his vision for the hotel by redoing the lobby and adding 58 guest rooms.
Plus, he wants the Stanley to be his lasting gift to Colorado, so CECFA may prove an even better fit than CFC.
“The idea that I can now donate it to the State of Colorado this way to preserve not only the legacy of what I've done, but preserve the Stanley itself — I can't imagine what I would feel if we did anything else,” Cullen said in February. “Selling it to some rich person that screws it up would be a terrible waste of my 28 years and money.”
Now it’s up to state lawmakers to get the deal done.
