The Puzzling Tale of a $15.675 Million Reg D 506 Offering Designed to Create a "Wasatch Back" Addiction Treatment Business ... I Think.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Before diving into this story, a bit of contextual flavor may be helpful for anyone who doesn't know me or my professional background.

During my career, I have primarily worked with (or for) hundreds of firms, of all sizes, across multiple industries typically trying to assist them in figuring out (and then sharing) their "stories" with prospective customers, partners, investors, and more.

Generally, the goals behind such undertakings have been to help these organizations drive awareness, better position themselves (and their products/services) into ideally chosen markets, and to work with their executive teams to determine their best Route-to-Market and Go-to-Market strategies to help them drive revenue — all with the intent of increasing the perceived value of said firms prior to raising capital, going public, and/or selling their organizations to other entities. {To learn more, you can visit The David Politis Company website or my LinkedIn Profile.}

In fact, I'd venture to suggest that 85—90% of the time I have worked with either pre- or post-IPO firms, enterprises that:

• Have already "gone public," or
• Have raised (or will raise) external investor monies, prior to
• "Going public" via an IPO and/or selling their firm at a future date.

Nevertheless, although I'm not an accountant or a corporate attorney, I'm quite comfortable in the financial world.

As such,

• I understand the differences between a SAFE Offering and a Reg D Offering;
• I've written (and published) Annual Reports and investor slide decks, as well as setting-up/coordinating Broker/Dealer meetings and sit-downs with/presentations to VCs;
• And yes, I know my way around EDGAR and understand what AUM and "materiality" mean within financial and legal circles.

So, when I write that something feels "off" about an organization, I'm doing so with a historical and professional background that traces back 40+ years.

That said, I tend to believe that all people are basically good, while trying to give people and organizations the classic "benefit of doubt" lest I unintentionally cause harm.

So now, this story.

THE NEWS: A $15.675 Million Fundraising and a Forthcoming Addiction Treatment Organization in Utah's "Wasatch Back"

On the surface, the notification that hit my in-box was pretty straightforward:

• A healthcare industry publication was reporting that a Park City, Utah-based organization had raised $16.7 million to help "... patients with addiction ... tap into outdoor activities, hobbies and recreation, while accessing care for their SUD (Substance Use Disorders)."

The publication, Behavioral Health Business, also noted in its writeup that "The Park City, Utah-based organization will open at the end of May, according to a countdown on its website."

However, as shown from the image captured last night from this company's website, that countdown clock has since hit zeros.

So I began digging.

First of all, the reporter got it wrong, at least according to the Reg D 506 filing of Hope River Ranch, LLC with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Specifically, according to its filing with the SEC, Hope River Ranch has raised $15.675 million from 30 investors, and not the $16.7 million reported by Behavioral Health Business.

Secondly, the SEC filing did not list a Park City address for the company (as reported by BHB), but rather one in Morgan, Utah, some 45-ish miles north of Park City.

{AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here again, I figured that for a non-Utah-writer like the BHB editor ... Morgan/Park City ... it's all the same, right? It's still based somewhere in the so-called "Wasatch Back." So I figured I'd see if I could come up with any info for Hope River Ranch in Park City.}

As it turns out, at first glance, Hope River Ranch has a pretty clean-looking website at www.hoperiverranch.org.

On the site, the homepage description says

"Welcome to Hope River Ranch, where we offer a unique approach to addiction treatment. Located on thousands of acres just outside of Park City, our facility combines evidence-based medicine with the healing power of nature. We believe that addiction is a family disease, and our program emphasizes family involvement to foster long-term recovery."

Sounded good to me, especially as someone who had a dear friend die from cocaine abuse and a nephew die from alcohol-poisoning.

Elsewhere on the site the organization defines its take on treatment as

• "... providing a holistic approach to healing and recovery ..." and,
• Providing an "... unwavering commitment to evidence-based medicine, compassionate care, and a comprehensive, family-centered approach ...." and,
• "Rebuild(ing) relationships and foster(ing) healing in a supportive and nurturing environment."

Yeah, it read great (at least as recently as last night when I wrote this piece).

Additionally, the website also pointed to its intention to deliver

• Individualized Treatment Plans, and
• Equine-Assisted Therapy, and
• Art Therapy, and
• Therapy Sessions, and
• Workshops, and
• Retreats, and
• Speaker Series, and even
• Annual Reunions.

The website even claimed that its founder is

"... a former anesthesiologist who experienced addiction firsthand, knows the unique challenges individuals and their loved ones face on the road to recovery."

In other words, on the surface, this messaging and the information shared about Hope River Ranch on its website came across as forward-thinking, comprehensive, holistic, and compassionate.

Naturally, I was intrigued, so I figured I'd try to arrange in interview with one of the principals.

From Intrigued to Puzzled

As I poked around the Hope River Ranch website, I did notice that there was no one listed on the site as founders or executives.

However, because I had access to the firm's filing with the SEC, I wasn't concerned as the filing included two names and a phone number.

So I called the listed number, got an answer, introduced myself to Julie Dee (the person named on the SEC filing as Manager of the firm), and asked if I could go over some questions with her about Hope River Ranch and its recent fundraising?

She responded that she was in the middle of something at the time and asked if we could talk later.

I agreed and (before hanging up) confirmed a call for 5pm (MT) that evening, 06 May 2024.

Below is the copy of the email I sent her shortly thereafter.

Then, a little over two-and-a-half hours later, I got this email back from Julie.

Later in the year? Really?!?!?! LOLOL

I just kind of chuckled and figured I'd see if I could pull together enough info to write a story without speaking with her or her partner.

So I went back to www.hoperiverranch.org, but this time with a more "jaundiced eye."

This is what I found.

ONE: Not totally unusual, but as I mentioned above, there was no information about any individual (executive or otherwise), on the website.

To be clear, this is not weird, per se. But I did "file it away" as a "data point."

TWO: More importantly, when I looked closer, I realized that the website had a bogus phone number listed on its Contact page: +1 (555) 123-4567.

As just about anyone knows who has ever watched movies or TV in the United States, it's a bogus phone number because of the use of the 555 area code.

In other words, it was another "data point," and that got me thinking ever more.

Sure enough (as anyone can discover for themselves by following the same process I followed), the street address shown on the Hope River Ranch Contact page is bogus too, at least according to Google Maps, Apple Maps, and Mapquest.

In fact,

... there is no Hope River Rd. found anywhere in the United States, let alone in Park City.

At least that's what I discovered when I entered the address above into my Waze app.

{NOTE: Waze does show that there's a Hope River Rd. in Chilliwack, British Columbia in Canada, roughly 50 miles due east of Vancouver. LOLOL 🤯 🤯 🤯}

So, yeah, that's another data point, so kept digging.

And then I found this:

Apologies to anyone who may find reading the image above due to the size of the size of the font shown in the image (depending upon what device you're using to read this article.

But if you look closely, you'll see that the wording to every single answer is identical, regardless of the question asked.

In other words, it appears that whoever wrote the copy for the site took the answer to the first question and then just "pasted it in" as the answer to the other five questions.

Yeah, really?!?!?!

Ergo, another data point. (Or is that five additional data points?)

So, what did I know now?

• As reported with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Hope River Ranch, LLC has raised $15.675 million in a Reg D 506 offering.
• The company has a website: www.hoperiverranch.org.
• The address used on the SEC filing was in Morgan, Utah, although
• The street address on the website does not match-up with the address in the SEC filing.
• More importantly, the street address on the website doesn't exist in Utah, let alone in the U.S.
• Additionally, the phone number listed on the company website is completely bogus.
• Last of all, each Answer to the Frequently Asked Questions on the website are identical, meaning that Answers 2—6 are completely worthless.

So I ended-up doing more digging.

Turns out the company is registered with the state of Utah, according to the Utah Department of Commerce website.

And when I spoke with a member of the compliance department of the Utah Division of Securities, I was told that

• It had not received any complaints about Hope River Ranch,
• Its Manager (as listed on its registration with the state), or
• Either person listed on the company's filing with the SEC.

Last of all, I confirmed with the Electronic Filing Depository website of the North American Securities Administrators Association that starting on 11 April 2024, Hope River Ranch had registered to raise monies in three states — Arizona, Utah, and Washington — but that it had completed its fundraising by April 30th.

One more thing: The NASAA EFD website also showed that Hope River Ranch was formed in 2023.

A Conclusion? Maybe?

So, in summary, where has this month-long research effort led me? To this:

• Morgan, Utah-based Hope River Ranch, LLC has raised $15.675 million in a Reg D 506 offering from 30 investors.
• Its founder was an anesthesiologist who (at one time) suffered with addiction.
• The company plans to create an addiction treatment facility/center located on thousands of acres just outside of Park City.
• The specific location has not yet been disclosed, and beyond an email form on the website, there is no official way to contact the company.
• The Hope River Ranch website has problems, ranging from bogus contact information to inaccurate data and more.
• Nevertheless, I suspect Hope River Ranch is a legit company, website challenges notwithstanding.

And in that regard, I look forward to being able to speak with its founder and/or executives at some point in the future to learn more about the full story behind/about Hope River Ranch that, for now, remains untold.

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