In recent years, destination resorts have repeatedly missed deadlines to build overnight lodging units. Buffeted by the effects of the Great Recession, the projects saw only a fraction of the construction they expected and went through complex changes in ownership.

Developers sought and received approval to extend those deadlines, and local government decisions to grant them are looking smarter than ever today as prospects have started to improve for the surviving resorts.

Pronghorn’s owners announced last week they’ll start construction in the spring on a hotel and other renovations. Hotel construction is planned in two phases, starting with 67 rooms followed by a second phase with 38 rooms. Although the resort northeast of Bend already has some lodges for guest accommodations, the hotel was part of the original plan delayed by the economic downturn. The new hotel rooms will range in size from 470 square feet to suites of 940 to 1,430 square feet. The hotel will be called The Huntington Lodge, harking back to a 19th-century wagon trail that once crossed what is now Deschutes County.

Meanwhile at Tetherow west of Bend, construction is underway on a 50-room hotel, long delayed since the development broke ground in 2004. Both resorts have seen an uptick in home construction.

Destination resorts have long been controversial, with critics seeing them as a way around state land-use planning laws designed to eliminate sprawl. Others see them as important drivers of economic growth, dating back to Sunriver Resort in the 1960s and continuing with Seventh Mountain Resort, Black Butte Ranch and Eagle Crest.

Of the nine destination resorts proposed in Central Oregon since 2000, only Pronghorn, Tetherow and Brasada Ranch have survived the tough economic climate, although they still have a long way to go to meet their original visions. Along the way, in addition to missing deadlines to build overnight lodging, there have been problems with bonds and road construction requirements, among others. The Deschutes County Commission repeatedly rejected the argument for strict enforcement of timelines, for example, deciding not to take over Tetherow’s road building in 2012. Those were wise choices for the region’s prosperity.