History tells us there have been many famous secrets like the building of the atomic bomb during World War II.
Britt Mathwich, general manager of the Homestead Resort, feels his historic inn is one of Utah's best-kept secrets.Mathwich considers the Homestead on a par with such resorts as Sun Valley. Under Mathwich's direction, the Homestead's gross revenues have increased 800 percent since 1986.
Even though the Homestead has done well financially, Mathwich is planning to build more conference space, add 32 more rooms before the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, expand the property management part of the business and make some major improvements to the indoor and outdoor pools and fitness center.
Those who haven't been to the Homestead recently may be in for a surprise on how much activity is going on. Perhaps the single most outstanding new development at the resort is the opening of the crater that sits in the middle of the property.
Years ago it was fun to climb the crater during a swimming outing, but recently Great Inns of the Rockies Inc., the company that has owned the Homestead since 1986, allowed the blasting of a tunnel into the bottom of the crater to expose the heated water inside to the public.
That let the Homestead offer scuba and snorkeling lessons in the 96-degree water, tours of the crater tunnel and bathing in the mineral water.
Mathwich said Great Inns purchased the property with the idea of keeping it a small, privately held hotel company, but in 1988 he was approached by Lem Stroud about building a golf course. A separate company, Homestead Golf Club Inc., was formed. The public is welcome at the course.
Forty-nine rooms were added, a pro shop was built, the parking lot was paved, an activity center was added and a new restaurant more than doubled the facilities when Great Inns took over. Since then, all of the rooms have been redecorated, services have been upgraded and the gift shop was redone, Mathwich said.
After the golf course opened in 1990, the Homestead built a conference center, 17 more rooms, more bathrooms for the indoor and outdoor pools and in 1997 added 22 more rooms, 18 of which are luxury suites. Other fairly new changes are pool upgrades, addition of a fitness center and a move to make the resort an all-year getaway.
Under construction now is a 3,600 square-foot pavilion near the golf course that can be used for a variety of activities, and the Homestead is just getting into the property management business by managing nearby condominiums, townhouses and individual houses where guests can stay.
In the winter, the Homestead offers its indoor pool and sauna, sleigh rides, snowmobiling and in the past two years was named one of the 10 top ski destinations in North America by Conde Nast Traveler Magazine. Its proximity to skiing and Park City is important and will play an important part in the 2002 Winter Olympics.
The land on which the Homestead sits was farmed more than 100 years ago by Simon Schnietter, but his most abundant crop was pot rock, mineral debris from the warm springs. Neighbors began dropping by to bathe in the hot water and Schneitter's wife started frying chicken to feed them.
Starting as Schneitter's Hot Pots, the property since has changed ownership several times, with each owner adding something to the facilities, but when Great Inns came to town the situation really changed. The 43 rooms have grown to 146, the number of employees has gone from 40 to 285 and the conference space has gone from 3,000 to 12,000 square feet.
With all that and fine dining Simon's Restaurant and Fanny's Grill Room, Mathwich is trying to convince the public that the Homestead is worthy of a vacation or conference look.