New Homes & Lifestyles
Arizona Village Communities - What We Call Standard, Others Call Luxury
Arizona Village Communities (AVC), founded in Scottsdale in 2003, finds and acquires ideal sites to be developed into special private residential communities. Sometimes the company develops the homes itself.
Take, as a prime example, The Villas at Ocotillo, a private, gated, waterfront residential neighborhood situated on 10 acres within Ocotillo, one of Chandler’s most-acclaimed master planned communities.
Richard Harkins, AVC president and CEO, wasn’t content to put anything but the best into this choice Ocotillo parcel, virtually the only land remaining in the full-up community. The Villas at Ocotillo features 45 custom-quality homes inspired by Santa Barbara. Designed by Carson/Poetzl, the homes are reminiscent of Spanish, Mediterranean and Moorish architecture. The style evokes the balanced simplicity of a seaside villa. Best of all, the designs are “four-sided.”
“Many homes are built with the focus on architectural details only on the front of the home,” says John Schnaubelt, director of marketing. “The sides and back are often plain vanilla. Note that at The Villas we have considered the architectural view from every angle. This improves the neighbors’ views of one another’s homes.”
Quality construction elements are legion, but not always obvious to the less discriminating home buyer. Wood-clad casement windows have a true baked-on finish with dual panes, and double-glazed energy-efficient glass. Look closely at the inside and you’ll see the real wood frames are stained to complement the interior wood of the home. And the handsome carriage garage doors are fashioned from cedar plank.
Many builders use one-piece roof tile made of concrete rather than authentic clay, and a low-quality underlayment. Not The Villas, which is topped with genuine two-piece Mission clay tile and a commercial-grade underlayment, where the roof gets its true weather protection. Also walls are of a greater thickness than the norm, allowing for more insulation and for windows to be inset.
“This is authentic, four-sided architecture,” says Harkins. “It’s the real deal. These homes are so far from production-quality homes—they’re really custom quality homes. We don’t know of another product that is as refined in this particular narrow niche of the market. Villas at Ocotillo will be our legacy—a place to show investors and builders how we think about building communities.”
The homes were costly to build, as reflected by the price range of $650,000 to $1.4 million. But The Villas is aimed at a particular kind of home owner — affluent, pre- or post-child, who prefers a lock-it and leave-it lifestyle with close proximity to a golf resort, pool, health facility and the convenience of the shops and restaurants of downtown Ocotillo. Easy access to major highways is another plus. This brand of home buyer would also value the outdoor aesthetics of The Villas’ blue lakes, paved stone walkways and landscaping, lush with palms and bougainvillea.
A few spec homes are still available, including waterfront properties, and Harkins advises would-be buyers to take advantage of the opportunity to buy them now, at today’s adjusted prices but replete with opulent details; the second phase of the Villas will be slightly scaled back to accommodate more competitive pricing to meet the “new market.”
Villa del Lago
Villa del Lago, AVC’s second project in Ocotillo, is still in the planning stages. Situated adjacent to The Villas, it will be a higher-density community with pricing estimated at $450,000 to $600,000. Schnaubelt describes the architectural concept as Tuscan with a strong Spanish flair, designed to create the look and feel of an Italian village. Once again, AVC has taken care with locale; the property sits across the water from The Villas at Ocotillo.
The 100-unit Villa del Lago incorporates an “auto courtyard” concept, in which few garages are seen from the street. The owners of six homes will access their garages from a shared courtyard, and the garage itself will become part of the elevation design of the home. Construction is planned for the first quarter of 2009.
Rockridge Estates
Other AVC land acquisition and residential development projects include Rockridge Estates in Carefree, The Villas at Mountain Ranch in Goodyear (Estrella), property in the Desert Ridge area and ongoing plans to purchase additional land that will be developed by the company for its own use and the sale of parcels to other builders and developers.
Rockridge Estates, on Cave Creek Road bordered by Mule Train and Windmill, awaits final plan approval from the town of Carefree. The development is expected to feature 32 custom home lots, some of which AVC will likely build, selling the rest to other custom home builders. “We anticipate breaking ground in late 2008,” Harkins says.
The gated community of Rockridge Estates, which incorporates a natural wash, will afford amazing views of Black Mountain, its own 5-acre park on the west side, and a trail leading to a gazebo.
Estrella
The AVC development team is now fine-tuning the floor plans for Estrella Village, its planned 28-acre, 86-home development. The current site plan calls for a combination of one- and two-story units made up of Colonial and Tuscan-style elevations.
“It’s a wonderful spot—impossible to duplicate because it’s surrounded by a top-ranked golf course on three sides,” says Harkins.
Desert Ridge Bidders
As most Valley residents know, Desert Ridge has proven to be the most sought-after locale in the north Phoenix Metropolitan Area because of its convenient location to major freeways and quality retail.
Only two parcels of residential land in Desert Ridge remain, and when the state of Arizona puts those 202-acres on the auction block in early 2008, AVC will have its eyes set firmly on the prize.
“We intend to be at that auction, compete and buy the property,” Harkins says, acknowledging competition for it will probably be less intense than would have been the case a year ago.
Residential development is not for the faint of heart, especially in today’s market. But Harkins, an old Navy man, has guts aplenty. He figures once he gets the property, it will take the better part of two years to get a development plan through the city of Phoenix, then another year to bring in streets and utilities.
“The timing would be right,” he says. “In three years, public and private builders will be beating down our doors.”
While today isn’t a great time to be building, Harkins says this is a time of precious opportunities to buy and hold onto investments.
“When one door closes, another one opens.”
INFO LINK
Arizona Village Communities
8777 N. Gainey Center Drive, Suite 152
Scottsdale, AZ 85258
480.607.8332
www.arizonavillage.com
