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Perfect timing
Posted by Sothebys International Realty Canada on Wednesday, October 14th, 2009 at 5:02pm.
Project within B.C.'s Pender Harbour located on peninsula
Project within B.C.'s Pender Harbour located on peninsula
By Kathy Mccormick, Calgary Herald
Sometimes, things are just meant to be -- and life takes unexpected turns to bring you where you should be.
Just ask Connie Ruben.
It'sironic, she says. "My husband, Peter, is an adventurer who has sailedaround the world and been to so many wonderful places, but although hegrew up in Calgary, he had never been to the West Coast."
That first trip was to the Sunshine Coast north of Vancouver -- and it changed the lives of the Calgary couple.
"We fell in love with the area and bought the resort, Lord Jim's, in Halfmoon Bay near Sechelt," she says.
Nowknown as Rockwater Secret Cove Resort, the luxury spot was just thebeginning of the new adventure for the Rubens, who have been involvedin various aspects of development for years.
Peter is the chair of Alberta Mining Corp., a Calgary-based company founded by his grandfather in 1948.
Althoughit now centres on commercial and industrial real estate development,the company pioneered the development of the natural resources industryin Alberta and built the province's first pulp mill.
The purchaseof Rockwater Secret Cove Resort was the start of a new direction forthe company, which partnered with hotelier Kevin Toth, former generalmanager of Fairmont Chateau Whistler, to form Rockwater Properties.
"Whenthe realtor showed us around the resort area, another piece of propertywasn't even for sale, but we fell in love with it," says Reuben.
The area that caught the couple's eye was "at the mouth of the harbour and bordered by an old growth forest," she says.
Soon, a sale was made and the Rubens embarked on their new adventure -- one that was to take a further, unexpected twist.
Whittakersat Pender Harbour is a luxury, architect-designed oceanfront communitythat's been master-planned to ensure exclusivity, privacy and a chanceto commune with nature.
The recreation property is located on apeninsula, with homes following an outer ridge of the shoreline tomaximize 5.7 hectares of land and 305 metres of shoreline waterfront.
Itsprivate, scenic cove is bounded to the east and west by higherprotruding peninsulas, ensuring privacy and unobstructed naturalscenery.
"We built a show home and at that time said we didn't want to move there," says Reuben.
But the couple fell in love with the beauty of the area. "Now, we said we want to be there," she says.
The couple have taken possession of the show home as their summer house and can't wait to get there, she says.
"The timing was where it needed to be," says Ruben. "We went out there and fell in love with this piece of land."
That's not surprising, says Cindy Luntley, who was brought up on the Isle of Wight in England.
Luntley and her husband, Jerry, emigrated to Canada six years ago, where they now live in Canmore and commute to Calgary.
"Muchas we love the mountains, the first time I went out to Rockwater SecretCove and stayed in the hotel and sat by the sea, I realized we had tohave a place there," says Luntley.
They soon found the Whittakers project. "It was a very expensive afternoon of sightseeing."
Butthe couple love it, she says. "It's gorgeous, there's brilliant seakayaking, starfish by the hundreds, snorkelling, and we are very, veryhappy with the design of our home there," says Luntley. "The quality ofworkmanship and attention to details is incomparable."
Whittakers is a $33-million, master-planned gated community that features high-quality, detached homes.
Theyare built are low to the ground to blend better with the naturallandscape. The waterfront homes face southwest and southeast with aprotected bay, deepwater marina, grassy meadow and the small old-growthforest framing it.
"We could have knocked down some of the forestand put in 25 more lots, but we kept of as many of the old trees as wecould," says Ruben. "Instead, we created a walkway through the forest."
The development has 25 lots with each home designed specifically to fit the lot and face the water.
"Weput together a strata type of ownership so everyone can own a piece ofthe entire property, including the forest and the private marina," saysRuben.
Strata are the B.C. equivalent of condominiums.
Sixteenof the 25 lots have sold -- "and it's a surprise to me, but four orfive are from Alberta, and not even people we know," says Ruben.
Lots are priced from $269,000 to $399,000, each with deep water moorage and optional architectural drawings.
Thedetached homes have been custom-designed by architect Drew Rose ofStill Point Architecture, which specializes in coastal properties.
Finished homes are priced from $700,000 to more than $1.5 million.
Lotpurchasers have the option of constructing their own home subject tothe strict architectural controls. Homes are designed to fit the area'sunique topography and follow two architectural design styles --WestCoast Arts and Crafts, or West Coast Contemporary.
Each home site has about 15 metres of frontage and views of Pender Harbour and the ocean.
Homeowners are able to access an optional resort concierge service, which is operated out of Rockwater Secret Cove Resort.
Itoffers elite hotel services, including property management, rentalmanagement, security and service checks, house cleaning, and grocery,laundry and catering services.
Whittakers is 30 minutes north of Sechelt in Pender Harbour.
Whittakers can be reached by ferry 40 minutes from Horseshoe Bay to Langdale and 70 minutes to the Whittakers' site.
Thearea can also be reached by float plane, as regularly-scheduled flightsfly from Vancouver to the dock at Rockwater Secret Cove. Homeowners mayalso fly from the Calgary Airport to Whittakers dock in 2.5 hours.
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IN SHORT
PROJECT: Whittakers at Pender Harbour on the Sunshine Coast in B.C., a high-end, a master-plannedand gated community of 5.7 hectares with 305 metres of oceanfront.Twenty-five single-family homes make up the development and 16 havesold. Homes have been designed by Still Point Architecture orhomebuyers can build their own homes following the strict architecturalguidelines. Each home is custom designed to fit the area's uniquetopography and follows two architectural design styles--West Coast Artsand Crafts and West Coast Contemporary. Homes are in a strata (condo)title so homeowners also own part of the old-growth forest and marina.Concierge services through Rockwater Secret Cove Resort are available.DEVELOPER: Rockwater Properties. PRICES: Lots are priced from $269,000to $399,000. Complete homes are from $700,000 to $1.5 million.DIRECTIONS: Whittakers is located 30 minutes north of Sechelt in PenderHarbour. It can be reached by ferry 40 minutes from Horseshoe Bay toLangdale and 70 minutes to the Whittakers' site. The area can also bereached by float plane, as regularly-scheduled flights fly fromVancouver tot the dock at Rockwater Secret Cove. Homeowners may alsofly from the Calgary Airport to Whittakers dock in 2.5 hours.INFORMATION: Visit www.ownoceanfront.com.
Kathy Mccormick, (2009, Oct 09). Perfect timing. Calgary Herald. Retrieved fromhttp://www.calgaryherald.com/Perfect+timing/2089182/story.html
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