Campground Owners Work Booths at RV Show

In preparation for the upcoming summer season, the 2012 RV and Boat Show took anchor at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington, W. Va., to showcase a wide array of recreational activities.

Jeff Scott, show coordinator, said the show catered to a wide demographic.

“This is a record-breaking year for vendors,” Scott told The Parthenon, the student newspaper at Marshall University. “There is plenty going on here for everyone to get into. Obviously, college-age students can’t afford a $75,000 RV, but there are activities here they can participate in.”

Charles Dameron, owner of the Kampgrounds of America (KOA) campground in Ashland, Ky., said visitors could do more than just camp at KOA.

“At my location, we have swimming pools, fishing, mini golf and cornhole tournaments,” Dameron said. “We are going to be adding a basketball court and a dance club will come to our site and instruct campers on different types of dance. We are open all year long.”

Dameron said about 25,000 to 30,000 people visit the Ashland campground each year.

Sheila Andrews, co-owner of the Huntington Fox Fire KOA campground, said her campground offers similar activities as the Ashland KOA site.

“We also have ‘banana bikes’ to rent and a game room,” Andrews said. “Another activity we offer is catch-and-release fishing, with no fishing license requirement. Every campsite also has its own fire ring.”

California Parks Look to KOA, Others for Rescue

Residents and business owners in northern Mendocino, Calif., met at Leggett Valley School  Jan. 16 to find ways to keep Standish-Hickey State Recreation Area open under community oversight.

A core group calling itself “Team Standish” began getting together in December to research and plan for local management of the park, which is slated to close June 30 of this year as part of one billion dollars in cuts to the California Department of Parks and Recreation, the Redwood Times reported.

“Standish-Hickey has a place in our personal dreams,” Piercy Fire Protection District Commissioner Jeff Hedin told the 30 people assembled in the Leggett Valley School library. “We need to find a way for our dreams to unite us to save this park from closure.”

Of 278 state parks and recreation areas in California, 70 were originally slated for closure as part of the state’s deficit-reduction plan, Leggett businessperson Jill Palmer explained, but the numbers kept getting smaller as the legislature struggled with this unpopular move.

Currently, 14 parks are on the closure list. Eight of them, including Standish-Hickey SRA, are in Mendocino County.

Last year, Standish-Hickey took in $157,000 in revenues but the cost of running the park came to $204,000, Palmer said. Palmer estimated that overall the state would save only $20,000 to $40,000 a year if the loss of tax revenue caused by the impact to local businesses and property values is included in the equation

Last year the state legislature passed AB42, which allows local governments and 501(c)(3) non-profit corporations to take on management of parks slated to be closed.

AB42 also created an opportunity for for-profit corporations such as Disney and Kampgrounds of America Inc. (KOA) to bid on providing concessions in parks that would otherwise be closed. The corporation awarded the bid would be able to run campgrounds and recreational facilities in a “bundle” of parks, which would undermine the ability of community groups or non-profits to manage the parks locally.

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KOA Marking 50th Anniversary in 2012

The following feature story is from the Outdoorhub.com.

Kampgrounds of America Inc. (KOA), a network of 485 campgrounds across North America, is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2012.

As part of the its anniversary festivities, KOA, in conjunction with Keystone RV Co. and the Coleman Co., will give away a $40,000 Keystone Vantage RV, along with 50 weeks of camping and eight monthly $500 Coleman.com shopping sprees this year. Those interested in participating should visit www.koakompass.com where they can enter each week to win.

The 50th anniversary of KOA is more than just an iconic company celebration; it commemorates a brand that has helped shape the camping industry, as pioneers in outdoor hospitality.

KOA has always managed to stay one step ahead and has evolved by giving campers exactly what they want. With the addition of Deluxe Cabins (complete will full bathrooms) and unique accommodations, such as tee-pees and Airstream trailers, KOA provides campers with unequaled experiences and appeals to people from all different walks of life.

KOA also evolved with the technology era by allowing campers to book reservations online. Microsoft Tag technology in all KOA directories allows campers to use their smart phones to access special deals. Today, camping with KOA is more than just pitching a tent; it’s everything from ice-cream socials to heated pools and on-site stores that carry the latest in camping essentials.

“KOA made it a policy to listen to our campers; their feedback is what has helped shape KOA into what it is today and what has helped us thrive for the past 50 years,” said KOA CEO Jim Rogers. “The giveaways that we have planned for KOA’s 50th Anniversary are to thank our campers for being so loyal over the years.”

It Began With A Dream 50 Years Ago

Kampgrounds of America has been providing quality family camping to travelers from around the world for the past 50 years.

In those nearly five decades, the familiar yellow KOA sign has welcomed millions of campers to the 485 KOA campground locations throughout the United States and Canada.

KOA is proud of the role it plays in fulfilling the American dream – the freedom to travel anywhere you want, anytime you want.

KOA’s success story is a great story on many levels. Here’s how it all began:

The year was 1962. As Billings, Mont., businessman Dave Drum walked his cottonwood-shaded land along the Yellowstone River, he watched baggage-laden cars and RVs zip down U.S. 10 on the way west to the Seattle World’s Fair.

Always Ask Campers What They Want

Drum knew affordable places to stay were few and far between for those weary travelers. He saw an opportunity.

Drum quickly constructed a campground on his land that offered hot showers, clean restrooms, a small store and a patch of grass – all for $1.75 a night.

The campground was an instant hit. Drum was on the campground nearly every night, talking to campers about their desires. They told Drum they only wished they could stay in quality campgrounds throughout their travels.

By the summer of 1963, Drum had two partners and a vision to create a system of campgrounds throughout North America. The familiar logo was created and franchises started to sell. Kampgrounds of America was up and running.

By the end of the 1969 camping season, KOA had 262 campgrounds in operation across the U.S. In 1972, just 10 years after KOA’s creation, the franchise system had grown to 600 campgrounds.

Times were good. America’s love affair with the recreation vehicle was in full swing. Then came the Arab oil embargoes of 1973 and 1978. At a time when many travel-oriented businesses were failing, KOA was able to weather the storm due to the strength of its system.

Today, KOA remains strong because the company believes in asking campers what they think through its annual Kamper Satisfaction Surveys, and meticulously inspects campgrounds and works with owners and staff to ensure they all meet the high standards of quality KOA campers demand. KOA’s annual 600-point campground inspection is the most stringent in the business.

WCM Survey: Park Model/Yurt Builders Optimistic

Private park operators are continuing to increase their investments in park model cabins, cottages and yurts as they work to both diversify and fortify their business base in a challenging economy.

And even though private parks have been stepping up their investments in rental accommodations for several years, the parks themselves are still a long way from reaching the saturation point, according to both park model and yurt manufacturers.

“There’s no letup in demand for rental units,” said Joe Follman, sales manager for Ocala, Fla.-based Chariot Eagle, which is promoting new floorplans as well as more rustic cabin-style park models.

“I don’t think there’s saturation by any means,” said Alan Bair, president of Cottage Grove, Ore.-based Pacific Yurts, adding that demand for yurts as rental accommodations is coming from both public and private parks.

“Once a campground or park puts them in, they buy more,” Bair said. “People love the unique experience. It’s different than what they’re used to. It’s unusual and exciting and they remember it.”

Park model manufacturers report a similar experience. Small- and medium-size parks typically order one or two park models to start out, and then gradually increase the numbers based on consumer demand.

Some park operators say the level of demand for rental accommodations has surprised them.

Operator Surprised by Rental Demand

“It’s a market I didn’t plan on,” said Ken Butschek, who owns La Hacienda RV Resort near Lake Travis, Texas, who is seeing rising demand for park model rentals from RVers and non-RVers alike. His park model renters include Lynn and Gary Kingsbury of Vermont, who opted to leave their fifth-wheel at home this winter and rent a park model instead.

“One of the issues we have in leaving Vermont in January is that it’s quite an adventure with the cold and the snow and the roads,” Lynn Kingsbury said. “We love our RV. But we decided to see how we like staying in a park model.”

Liz Fisher of Seattle drove her Class B RV to La Hacienda RV Resort this winter as well, but she’s renting a park model instead of staying in her RV.

“One thing I like about park models is there are windows all around, so there is more light coming in, and I have a deck facing south, so I can enjoy the sun,” she said.

Butschek said Winter Texans are also renting park models because they offer an easy way for retirees to enjoy the Sunbelt during the winter months. “I’m getting a lot of people renting my park models this winter because they don’t want to rent an apartment or sign a lease,” Butschek said. “Here, they don’t even have to turn on utilities. They just bring their clothes and food, and they’re good.”

Butschek said he is considering adding eight park models this year to his stock of 21 because of the winter traffic.

Park model rentals, of course, also enable park operators to broaden their business base to include individuals and families who don’t have a tent or RV, which explains their allure to public and private park operators across the country.

KOA, LSI Still Growing Park Model Segment

“We’re going to continue to grow (the rental) segment of our market,” said Pat Hittmeier, president of Billings, Mont.-based Kampgrounds of America Inc. (KOA), adding, “I don’t think we’ve hit saturation by any stretch.”

KOA corporate and franchise parks purchased several hundred park models during the past two years, including 340 in 2010 and about 230 in 2011, Hittmeier said, adding that KOA parks plan to purchase another 230 park models this year, which the company plans to market as “deluxe cabins.”

Milford, Ohio-based Leisure Systems Inc. (LSI), parent company of Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resorts, also expects its franchisees to continue to broaden their rental base with park models this year. “We saw revenues jump 13% in the rental business (in 2011),” said Rob Schutter, LSI’s COO. “We don’t see that abating any time in the near future.”

Aside from broadening a park’s business base, park models can significantly increase a park’s income, said Dick Grymonprez, vice president of marketing for Athens Park Homes in Athens, Texas. He added that park operators can pay off their units in less than two years in some locations.

“In my campground, it’s about 20 months,” said Joe Moore, general manager of The Vineyards Campground and Cabins in Grapevine, Texas, adding that park models can generate two to three times the revenue of a typical RV site. “It depends on how well you market the product and what your clientele is and your location,” Moore said, adding that he’s been purchasing units from Athens Park Homes in recent years.

Ken Lawrence, production manager for Indianapolis, Ind.-based Yurts of America, which featured a yurt at the Outdoor Hospitality Conference & Expo in Savannah, Ga., sponsored by the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC), said the payback can be even faster with yurts, given their lower cost. He added that 24- and 30-foot-wide yurts are also available, which are ideal for large groups, such as children with chaperones.

Builders to Market Product at State Shows

Increased park operator interest in rental units has also generated increased competition among manufacturers as they compete for sales in a challenging business environment.

“It is a fairly competitive market,” said Daryle Lambright, North America sales manager for Woodland Park in Middlebury, Ind. “We really see the rental market opening up to more floor plans as well as some units with nicer features and residential style appointments.”

Despite the competition, growing numbers of park model manufacturers are stepping up their involvement in the rental market. “We’re going after the rental market more than we have before,” Lambright said.

Larry Weaver, sales manager of Goshen, Ind.-based Dutch Park Homes, whose product offering includes a log cabin style park model, said his company is also stepping up its involvement in the rental accommodations market. “We’re going to be a lot more aggressive at Dutch Park than we have been,” he said. “We’re going to attend the Ohio and Michigan state shows,” he said. “By being at the state shows, we’ll find out what (parks) want and we’ll build it. Rental units are really coming on strong. You need to be where people are looking for rental units.”

ARVC has also weighed into the market, offering park operators significant savings on rental units through a preferred provider agreement with Elkhart, Ind.-based Skyline Corp. Skyline, in fact, is expected to showcase a new rental unit for the campground market in March during the Wisconsin Association of Campground Owners (WACO) conference and trade show.

Solar-Powered Park Model Unveiled at Tampa Show

Phoenix, Ariz.-based Cavco Industries, for its part, has increased its competitive edge by acquiring other companies, including Palm Harbor Homes, Fleetwood and Nationwide Homes, which provide Cavco with the ability to produce park models in every region of the country. “Our direction has always been to work outside of the box and create products that are conducive to the property that wants rental cabins or cottages,” said Tim Gage, Cavco’s national vice president of park models, cabins and specialty products.

Cavco’s latest park model designs include a new off-grid solar powered park model cottage, which the company showcased at the KOA convention in Las Vegas, as well as the nation’s first “net zero” park model, which was shown by its Palm Harbor Homes subsidiary in January at the Florida RV SuperShow in Tampa.

“This is green to the point of being ‘net zero,’ which means you typically have a ‘zero dollar’ utility bill or in some cases end up selling power back to the utility company,” said Mike Wnek, Palm Harbor’s senior vice president, adding that the unit’s 3.2 KW photovoltaic panels generate more than enough electricity to use each day.

Dubbed the Staniel Cay Eco Cottage, after an island in the Exuma Cays archipelago east of the Bahamas, the 399-square-foot unit is designed for use as a part-time residence or vacation cottage in Sunbelt RV resorts as well as on private property in the Caribbean and Central America.

Builders Say Lending Environment Improving

About the only thing putting a brake on park model sales is the availability of financing. “I could list 10 campgrounds who will tell me they’ll buy five park models right now if we could find them some financing,” said Grymonprez of Athens Park Homes. “We need some new lenders out there.”

But while the limited availability of financing has limited the park model industry’s growth in recent years, some park model manufacturers tell Woodall’s Campground Management they are starting to see some improvement in the availability of financing.

“The market has started to loosen,” said Lambright of Woodland Park. “We’re hearing a lot less complaints from the dealers (about the availability of financing). There are a couple more lenders that have entered the market, which has helped as well.”

Andy Davis, national sales manager for Pinnacle Park Homes in Ochlocknee, Ga., is also seeing some improvement in the availability of financing.

Manufacturers are also working to increase their sales of park models to consumers, who use them as weekend retreats or vacation cottages at private parks across the country. “This time of year, most of our sales are in Florida and Texas, but there is still business going up north,” said Follman of Chariot Eagle.

Some park model manufacturers are seeing rising demand for their units in Canada and overseas as well. “We’re actually building units for China,” said Dave Hostetler, sales manager for Bridgeview Manufacturing in Elkhart, Ind. “A lot of our business is overseas.”

Bair of Pacific Yurts is also seeing rising demand for yurts overseas, particularly from vacation resorts in Europe. “We expect to see a continuing trend of (sales) improvement,” he said.

KOA Work Kamper Boot Camp is March 28 in Branson

Kampgrounds of America Inc. (KOA) is offering a free one-day session of its popular KOA Work Kamper Boot Camp training March 28 at the Branson, Mo., KOA Campground.

“Our KOA Work Kamper Program provides our KOA owners with a well-trained, experienced work force, so keeping our Work Kampers up to date is a top priority,” Mike Booth, assistant vice president of franchisee services for KOA, stated in a news release.

The KOA Work Kamper Program currently has approximately 1,500 active two-person Work Kamper teams who are matched with KOA owners offering jobs on their parks. KOA Work Kampers who complete a full camping season are eligible to become KOA All Star Work Kampers with increased benefits, including travel vouchers for KOA stays when traveling to a campground for work.

“We train KOA Work Kampers to be fully versed in top-level customer service practices and we make them familiar with our proprietary KOA KampSight campground operating system,” said Booth. “Once they know how to operate KampSight and become familiar with KOA’s service culture, it’s very easy for Work Kampers to move from one KOA to the next.”

A portion of the March 28 Branson training session will include a “Virtual Job Fair,” where KOA Work Kampers will be able to meet via the Internet with KOA owners throughout North America.

The KOA Work Kamper Boot Camp session at the Branson KOA is free for subscribed KOA Work Kampers, and will include a free breakfast and lunch. To register for the March 28 training or to learn more about the KOA Work Kamper program, go to www.workatkoa.com or contact Leah Estep, KOA’s Franchisee Services Programs coordinator, at lestep@koa.net, (800) 562-0899.

No Need to Go Primitive When Camping

Frederic Lepitre and wife Chantal Theriault rented a condo when taking their first family vacation in Florida several years ago.

It was comfortable, but not the ideal environment for the couple’s four active offspring, he said.

This week, the family from Quebec is ensconced in a 12-foot-by-33-foot park model trailer at the Naples/Marco Island KOA. It rents for $145 a night this time of year, and boasts a flat-screen TV, full kitchen, bunk beds — and separate master bedroom, the Fort Myers News-Press reported.

“Nobody wants to do primitive anymore,” said Ted Mangels, manager of the KOA off State Road 951, east of Marco Island.

The campground setting, with its swimming pool, shuffleboard and bicycle rentals, makes it easier for Lepitre’s children, ages 13 to 17, to play outside.

“We don’t want to pull an RV here all the way from Canada,” Lepitre said. “That’s a 27- to 28-hour drive. And, it’s really good to have a cabin with a full bathroom.”

Like Lepitre and family, more people are spending weekends holidays and vacations in campgrounds. And, because not all guests own RVs or care to rough it in a tent, many commercial campgrounds are responding by purchasing and installing cabins and cottages with all the comforts of home.

More than one-third of the nation’s privately owned campgrounds offer upscale rental accommodations, according to Bill Garpow, executive director of the Recreational Park Trailer Industry Association (RPTIA).

The trend includes independently owned campgrounds and some of the biggest chains in the country, including the Billings, Mont.-based Kampgrounds of America Inc. (KOA).

In south Lee County, the San Carlos RV Park stretching along Hurricane Bay has eight one- to three-bedroom manufactured homes available for rent. It used to have 19, “but we traded them out for big-rig sites,” said Carolyn Morrissette, who owns the park with her brother, Dave Kline. Those big rigs mainly are 40- to 45-foot-long motorhomes that campers bring in for their stays.

For campgrounds in Florida, park model cabins are a win-win, according to Garpow: First, they attract snowbirds and vacationers during camping’s high season from December through mid-April.

And, when the weather gets hotter and more rainy, these cabins “extend the camping season into the summer, when Florida families go on weekend getaways,” said Garpow, a former Tampa resident who now lives in Georgia.

A growing number of seasonal Florida residents also are buying park model trailers to install on property they rent or purchase from an RV resort or campground.

Retail prices range from about $25,000 to $60,000, with an average in the mid-$40,000s, Garpow said.

A recreational park trailer with wheels is considered an RV if its area is less than 400 square feet. However, in Florida, bigger models are permissible in campgrounds if they are built to current hurricane wind codes, said Joe Follman, Ocala-based sales manager for Chariot Eagle Inc., a maker of park model homes.

Said Follman: “We’re seeing growth all over the state.”

KOA Touts South Florida Camping Sites

Despite the impending loss of a South Florida KOA campground on Lake Okeechobee, campers who frequent the large, popular lake just northwest of Miami still have plenty of KOA camping options.

“We were obviously sorry to hear that our Pahokee/Lake Okeechobee Outpost KOA will be closing at the end of January,” KOA Vice President of Communications Mike Gast stated in a news release. “It was a great location for us, and we’re sad to see it leave our system.”

Gast said Lake Okeechobee campers still have two other wonderful KOA options among the 24 Kampgrounds of America locations in Florida.

“Our Okeechobee KOA on the north shore of Lake Okeechobee is one of our premiere locations, with two huge swimming pools and its own golf course,” Gast said. “The Okeechobee KOA is one of the jewels in our 485-campground KOA system.”

Gast said campers looking for great camping near Lake Okeechobee can still camp at the Clewiston/Lake Okeechobee KOA on the southwest corner of the lake.

“It’s a big lake, but we still have it surrounded with great KOA camping,” Gast said.

KOA’s Brownfield to Address Today’s Camper Expectations

People’s expectations have changed so much in recent years that simply providing good service is no longer good enough to maintain a competitive advantage, says Larry Brownfield, a senior business development consultant for Kampgrounds of America Inc. (KOA).

“The mindset of today’s consumer has changed,” Brownfield maintains in a news release. “We have to move beyond providing good customer service to create a ‘Wow!’ factor.”

Brownfield will help park operators understand how to do this during his seminar on the experience-based economy at the Outdoor Hospitality Conference & Expo, which takes place Nov. 30 to Dec. 2 in Savannah, Ga. The conference is sponsored by the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC).

Brownfield will provide park operators with a template they can use to evaluate their current amenities and services and identify areas for improvement.

Improvements can be made even in the simple things, he said, like showing a guest to their site. “Do you escort people to their campsite and simply point to it or do you do something extra? Do you make sure everything is working properly? Do you provide them with disposable table cloths or other unexpected items that could enhance their experience?”

And if you offer activities, do they start on time? Are your activities properly staffed? All of these things can make a difference between a good experience and an exceptional experience, he said.

Held at the Westin Savannah Harbor Resort & Spa and the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center, ARVC’s Conference and Expo will feature 43 educational seminars, more than twice the number of any previous ARVC conference.

Other seminar topics will include marketing through social and mainstream media, Google analytics, risk management and prevention, employment and cyber liability issues, as well as electric car charging and other green opportunities for campgrounds. It will also feature the campground industry’s largest tradeshow, with vendors showcasing the latest products and services for park operators across the country.

Based in Denver, ARVC is the national voice of the outdoor hospitality industry. For more information, visit www.arvc.org.

KOA: Getting Outdoors is Prescription for Americans’ Ailments

Kampgrounds of America Inc. (KOA) park owners will benefit from America’s renewed interest in the outdoors, according to KOA CEO Jim Rogers.

During his annual “fireside chat” to more than 500 KOA franchisees at the company’s 2011 convention Nov. 7-9 in Las Vegas, Nev., Rogers said the best is yet to come for businesses in the outdoors sector.

“When times are tough, people want to avoid pain and stress, and we can help with that,” Rogers stated in a KOA news release. “Getting people outdoors is the prescription for what ails North Americans. It’s in our favor that the outdoors is becoming a more important feature in most peoples’ lives.”

Rogers said KOA’s efforts over the years to collect extensive data on camper behavior, as well as very specific camper satisfaction data on individual campgrounds, is paying dividends.

“Our data allows us to get to know the wants and needs of individual campers, and that is very powerful,” he said. “It allows us to make our campers ‘markets of one.’ That special recognition we can give campers drives them to us. A stay at KOA is like a hand written thank you card. It is unique and valued.”

Rogers urged KOA franchisees to use all of the specialized tools at their disposal to both simplify their workdays, and create more time to interact with campers.

“Being part of the KOA system gives you a rebate of time,” he said. “Other campground owners may have the same dreams as you, but they don’t have the KOA tools to make it all happen.”

“Share KOA with others, and your dreams will follow.”

During his opening remarks at the convention, President Pat Hittmeier told franchisees that KOA, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, will continue to invest heavily in the KOA system, including launching a major new version of KOA’s KampSight proprietary campground operating system. KOA is working with BIG4 Holiday Parks of Australia (see below) to evolve KampSight into the most robust campground operating software on the market.

“Technology will become KOA’s competitive advantage,” Hittmeier told the group. “Our mobile device technology, as well as the www.KOA.com website and our marketing database will all be about providing the right message to the right guest at the right time.”

Hittmeier also said KOA will continue to add lodging units, now called KOA Deluxe Cabins, which feature full bathrooms and often kitchens.

“We are adding new floorplans to our units this year that better fit the needs of this new camper market and our KOA operators,” Hittmeier said. “Our owners are becoming much more professional in their management of this roofed accommodation segment.”

He said the key to KOA’s continued success is to use all of the varied tools available to allow campground owners to serve guests “one at a time.”

“The personal touch, based on all we’ve been able to learn about each camper, will continue to set us apart,” Hittmeier said.

Click here, here and here to read earlier stories posted on woodallscm.com about the KOA convention.

Cutler Receives First KOA Lifetime Achievement Award

Recreation Adventures Co. President Richard Cutler was honored Monday (Nov. 7) with the first Kampgrounds of America Darrell Booth Lifetime Achievement Award during KOA’s annual International Convention at the South Point Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

Cutler, a native of Wessington Springs, S.D., and a founder of the Cutler and Donahoe Law Firm in Sioux Falls, S.D., owns and operates 10 KOA campgrounds in North America, more than any other single franchisee. He has been instrumental in making the KOA campground system the largest and best system of family campgrounds in North America, and he and his management team have played integral parts in several of KOA’s industry leading programs, according to a news release

The Darrell Booth Lifetime Achievement Award was created this year to honor those who dedicate a large part of their lives to the advancement of the KOA system in particular, but also to the camping lifestyle in in North America. Booth, who died in 1980, was the first president of Kampgrounds of America. He was hand-selected by KOA founder Dave Drum shortly after the company was created in 1962. Booth oversaw the rapid growth of the KOA system during the 1960s and 1970s. His leadership and foresight allowed Kampgrounds of America to grow and prosper even during harsh economic times.

“Richard Cutler epitomizes all that Darrell Booth stood for during his career with KOA,” said Kampgrounds of America Inc. CEO Jim Rogers. “It’s because of people like Darrell Booth and Richard Cutler that a company like KOA can look eagerly ahead to our next 50 years.”

Rich Cutler graduated summa cum laude from the University of South Dakota in 1963, where he majored in history, served as Cadet Colonel for the ROTC unit, and was a member of the championship track team. He went on to graduate summa cum laude from USD’s School of Law in 1965.

Following law school, Cutler served in the JAG Corps and attained the rank of major, spending his last three years assigned to the United States Embassy in Bonn, Germany. Cutler is fluent in German. After leaving active duty, Rich returned to South Dakota and began practicing with Davenport, Evans, Hurwitz & Smith in Sioux Falls.

In 1997,he  left the firm and joined his son, Kent, and Brian Donahoe, to establish Cutler & Donahoe. Cutler takes great pride in the fact that his family has practiced law in South Dakota since 1906, beginning with his grandfather.

In addition to practicing law, Cutler has been active in starting and operating cable television companies. His civic interests include serving as chairman of the Sioux Falls United Way Campaign 1993, chairman of the National Music Museum and co-chairman of USD’s Campaign South Dakota. He also serves on the board of the South Dakota Community Foundation and other boards. Cutler is a member of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers and past chairman of the Real Estate and Probate Section of the State Bar of South Dakota.

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