WILMINGTON, Vt. (AP) - A ski industry veteran with ties to southern Vermont is taking the helm of the former Hermitage Club, the private resort at Haystack Mountain in Wilmington.
The appointment of Bill Benneyan as executive director and general manager of the Hermitage Members Club came a week after the bankruptcy sale of the Hermitage Club’s assets
Benneyan will oversee all management and operations of the non-profit private club, which currently has 182 members.
“You know it’s a whole different ball of wax, not just that it’s private but that it’s focused on what’s important to the members, which is a great southern Vermont ski experience and good hospitality in their clubhouse,” he said.
The Brattleboro Reformer reports Benneyan served as president and chief operating officer of Mountain Creek Resort in New Jersey for 24 years. He grew up in nearby Greenfield, Massachusetts, and once lived in Brattleboro.
The Hermitage Club was a private ski resort that included a golf course, inns and restaurants. The state shut down its business operations for failure to pay sales and use taxes.
In March, the ex-members of the Hermitage Club submitted an $8 million bid Friday for Haystack, the six-person bubble chairlift, the golf course, several inns and some undeveloped land.
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