NANTUCKET-STYLE DEVELOPMENT AT LAKE NORMAN
The selling point is smaller homes
Sconset Village is designed for buyers over 55 seeking less square
footage at The Point
DOUG SMITH
The selling point is smaller homes
Sconset Village is designed for buyers over 55 seeking less square
footage at The Point Eight years ago, Crescent Resources started
selling lots in a 1,200-acre Lake Norman residential development on the
northern fringe of the local market.
Even experienced real estate agents wondered whether buyers would
embrace The Point, a planned 900-home golf course community in southern
Iredell County, about 30 miles from uptown Charlotte.
Every home site in the initial phase sold out the first day.
Now, Crescent's last 40 lots have been acquired by Simonini
Builders, which has started work on a gated community named Sconset
Village.
The sellout occurred two to four years ahead of projections.
When Crescent officials realized that, they departed from the
standard practice of selling lots individually to builders so they could
work with a single builder in creating a separate, themed community within
The Point.
Sconset Village is a gated, Nantucket-style village designed mainly
for active, over-55 buyers looking for smaller homes and lower prices than
The Point's $1 million-plus houses.
What makes this a Next Big Thing is how Crescent is creating a niche
within the upper-end market while adding a crowning touch to one of the
region's most successful upscale communities.
One hot trend in the housing market is parents who move here from
elsewhere to be near their children and grandchildren.
"We heard over and over that the houses in The Point were too
big" for that group of buyers, said Mike Burnett, senior vice
president at Crescent.
Crescent presented the idea of smaller sized, less expensive houses of
The Point's same style and quality to Simonini Builders, an award-winning
custom builder active in The Point and other Crescent projects.
"We had a need, and we had the infrastructure in place to do it
together, so we crafted a deal to make it work," Burnett said.
Simonini Builders CEO Ray Killian Jr. saw similarities between Sconset
Village and the builder's Heydon Hall gated community in south Charlotte.
His team then met with Crescent's, he said, "to collaborate and
refine the concept."
They concluded that the village should focus on security and lifestyle.
Every resident would be able to own a boat dock and enjoy access to the
golf course and all other amenities at The Point.
The median size of a house in The Point is 4,500 to 5,000 square feet.
The average lot size is about an acre, and the average home price is more
than $1 million.
In Sconset Village, houses range from 2,300 to 3,300 square feet on
roughly three-quarters of an acre lots. The price of a house and lot
ranges from the upper $500,000s to the low $700,000s.
Killian believes that as buyers add optional features such as finished
bonus rooms, extra closets and storage rooms the average price of a house
and lot in the village will be closer to $725,000 to $750,000.
Simonini Builders has completed almost a dozen first-phase houses,
including two model homes. About a half dozen houses are occupied.
The $35 million village will be gated on both sides of Brawley School
Road. A second phase will have 10 lots, including two on the waterfront.
Even though all The Point's lots are spoken for, home building there is
by no means finished and houses are still available.
Killian expects to continue construction in Sconset Village through
2007 and complete work probably in early 2008.
About 100 houses are under construction throughout The Point, and
custom builders plan additional homes on 40 lots they've acquired.
Individuals eventually are expected to build on about 150 home sites
purchased from Crescent.
Burnett said Crescent has always required builders to offer speculative
houses for sale at The Point and tries to ensure at least four are always
available.
DEVELOPMENT
Sconset Village
Simonini Builders' new gated community at The Point was inspired by
houses in a Nantucket village named Siasconset but referred to by locals
as Sconset.While the architecture hearkens to the former whaling outpost,
Charlotte's Meyer-Greeson-Paullin designed the houses with modern floor
plans, two-car garages and outdoor kitchens.
Features include 10-foot ceilings, hardwood floors on the main level,
marble fireplace hearths and granite kitchen counter tops.
Houses range from 2,300 to 3,300 square feet. The price of a house and
lot ranges from the upper $500,000s the low $700,000s.
Home sites average about 33,000 square feet. Homeowners can purchase a
boat dock.
Sidewalks wind through the community and a boardwalk meanders along the
Lake Norman shore.
Simonini Builders' Design Studio assists buyers with interior and
exterior selections.
Crescent Communities Realty is handling sales.
Information is available at www.crescent-resources.com/communit/charlott/lake_norman.
The Point
Crescent Resources announced plans for The Point in Iredell County near
Mooresville in the late 1990s and began selling lots there in 1998.
So far, residents have occupied almost 600 houses in the 900-lot golf
course community on Lake Norman.
"It's a signature development that has left a positive mark on the
Mooresville-south Iredell area and the region as a whole," said Tim
Brown, Mooresville planning director. "It's no secret the Lake Norman
region is a fairly affluent playground, and The Point lives up to
that."
Crescent has themed the community as a Nantucket village that includes
club facilities, a tavern, a general store, a village green and a meeting
house.
A Greg Norman-designed golf course has 13 holes that play along or over
the lake.
The Point is a popular abode of NASCAR drivers, sports figures, medical
professionals and executives from Lowe's Cos. headquarters at nearby
Interstate 77 Exit 33.
The community also is among the burgeoning Brawley School Peninsula
developments government agencies cite when trying to cope with traffic
congestion and delivery of public services such as police and fire to area
residents.
Those are issues to be dealt with, Brown said, but he doesn't pin the
blame specifically on The Point.
"It's one of many developments that have affected service delivery
over time," he said.
Development Team
Simonini Builders, led by Alan Simonini and Ray Killian Jr., has more
than 30-years experience in custom home building.
In 2002, the company received the America's Best Builder Award, and in
2005, it was named National Builder of the Year.
Crescent Resources was formed more than 40 years ago by Duke Energy as
its land development and management arm.
Crescent has developed more than 50 communities in nine southeastern
and southwestern states, including The Peninsula on Lake Norman and
Ballantyne County Club in south Charlotte.
Crescent also has developed office buildings, business parks,
industrial parks and shopping centers.
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