LakePlace.com in the News

Cabin Developments...
Cabin Life / Cabin Living - June/July 2005
By Christy Heitger-Casbon

Title: Coming Soon... 
Cabin developments are springing up across the country to meet the demand for no-maintenance getaways. And to allay fears that lakes and lands are being threatened, some developers are doing all they can to preserve natural treasures for future generations.

You know how it goes. You're dying to get to the cabin so you can dip your toes in the lake, lace up your hiking boots for a walk in the woods or hunker down on the porch swing for an evening of deer-watching. But you know you must first tackle your cabin Honey-Do list.

Imagine, however, if all you had to do was show up and start having fun. These days, more and more people are discovering such a Utopia within low-maintenance developments in which household tasks like leaf raking, repairing the dock and snow shoveling are provided by the developer or the cabin owners' association.
Of course, one persons Utopia is another's anathema. For every cabin owner who finds solace in community, there's another who finds deep satisfaction in the pioneering spirit of going it alone, who doesn't want to share the lake with anyone, much less a 40-unit development.

Likewise, for every project buff who doesn't mind a long to-do list at his cabin, there's a person who recoils at the thought of picking up a hammer or paint brush when they're in relaxation mode.

Developments are oriented for that hammerless crowd. "Owning a lake place can be a lot of work, and while many people enjoy their chores at the lake, it seems a growing number would prefer to do without," says Dave Gooden of Richfield, Minn., co-founder of LakePlace.com, the largest online marketplace for Minnesota and Wisconsin lake properties.

Jennifer Fortune, a realtor from Sandpoint, Idaho, agrees. " There seems to be a great trend toward cabin communities," notes Fortune, "because people want more time to play." And more room in which to play.

That's precisely what some developments are striving to offer. And in an effort to show "development isn't a dirty word, they're observing best practices when it comes to the environment, their neighbors and their construction standards.

High Demand, but not Highly Crowded.
Just as individual cabin property sales are booming around the country, vacation homes in developments are selling as quickly as they're being built.

To avoid overcrowding and to maintain open spaces, a common strategy is to cluster home sites relatively close together (cluster development), leaving the majority of the land undisturbed in its natural state.

Here's how it works. Each individual purchaser buys a small piece of land and builds a cabin on it (usually with the developer's builder). But he/she is granted access to and use of a much larger tract of land, which is shared with the other homeowners within the development. Although the purchaser does not incur any of the direct costs, concerns or maintenance associated with the ownership of the larger tract of land, he/she gets to enjoy it for fishing, hiking, biking, skiing, horseback riding, etc.

In many cabin developments, residents also reap the benefits of a shared infrastructure - water supply, electricity service, sewer systems and roads - without the headaches and out-of-pocket outlay for establishing these services themselves. Ongoing maintenance often is funded by maintenance fees charged to residents. Some of the cabins in these developments even come fully furnished.
It's a concept that appeals to many, which is why developments are springing up all over the country — not only on lakes, but also in mountain and ranching areas.

While an abundance of open space and the promise of maintenance-free living have certainly contributed to the high rate of sales of developments, it is clear that these are not the only-features that have attracted home buyers. There is a larger movement afoot.

Attitudes toward developing wilderness land are shifting as individuals and groups place a higher value on land conservation. There is a strong interest in preserving open spaces among the ranks of cabin owners, lake and land associations, conservation groups, professional organizations like the National Association of Realtors, university think tanks and government agencies.

Responsible Building
Land preservation has always been in the heart of many cabin enthusiasts - those who have repeatedly expressed their vision and desire for a place where nature will remain undisturbed so their great great grandkids can enjoy the same land, lakes and lovely views that they do today. It only makes sense that when these environment-minded consumers decide to build within a cabin development, they would seek developers with similar values.

Leaders in the movement to conserve land hail cluster developments as a responsible way to build. Don't assume that clustered homes are squished together, however, like so many suburban town homes.

An ideal model might look like this: A 1,000-acre development and 50 contiguous home sites are planned, each built on a 2-acre plot of land. These homes would take up a total of 100 acres - a small amount of land relative to the entire available acreage and yet still plenty of space between homes.

If those 100 acres are nestled within one corner of the community's total property, that leaves 900 acres of unspoiled land. With 90 percent of the land left untouched, ecosystems can thrive because they are not broken up by home sites spread out across the entire property.

Considering Neighbors - in Nearby Woods and Towns
Meriwether Ranch, situated in the Big Hole River Valley near Melrose, Mont., is a leading example of a cluster development in the West. In 2001, when Dave and Emilie Ellingson bought Meriwether Ranch with a vision to turn it into a cluster site development, they had a grand plan that wasn't driven by the bottom line.

Instead of immediately building a lodge to generate additional revenue, the Ellingsons' turned their attention to preserving and restoring the waterways, wetlands and scenic views and to rehabilitating grazing areas.

Their first step was obtaining old satellite photos and topographical maps that documented the location of channels and wetlands. Then the Ellingsons' conducted engineering studies so they could excavate the channels and wetlands and restore them to their natural state. They consulted with the USDA Forest Service and other agricultural management professionals to determine the types of native grasses and trees that should be planted.

The wetlands restoration has encouraged geese and sandhill cranes to nest on the property. Bighorn sheep, bald eagles, antelope and beaver also roam the ranch in greater numbers than before. In addition, the owners instigated a cottonwood sapling rejuvenation program, which has flourished. Restoration efforts have cost the Ellingsons' $1 million.

"Our vision at Meriwether is to balance agricultural integrity with natural resource preservation, restoration and community development," says Emilie. Clearly, their vision is being realized. Although home site owners have access to more than 120,000 acres of mountain, meadow, wetlands and rivers, 96 percent of the open land remains undisturbed, and ranching in those areas continues as it has for the past 175 years. This, in turn, helps sustain the nearby communities of Melrose, Butte and Dillon by the economic benefits flowing from the ranching operation.

The Ellingsons' mission is guaranteed to continue over time as a conservation easement (a legally binding covenant) will soon be placed over the private lands of Meriwether to prohibit future development.

A Look at Some Developments
Beyond Meriwether, other developers also are observing "best practices" in the great outdoors:

· Spanish Peaks is a private second-home community in a secluded valley of Big Sky, Mont., 17 miles northwest of Yellowstone National Park. The first phase of 13 cabins sold in six weeks and the second phase of 13 were snatched up in just 24 hours. Eighty more are planned.

The master plan for Spanish Peaks was devised so that overcrowding will not be an issue in the future and outlines exactly where the golf courses, ski runs and open space will be upon project completion.

"I can tell you what this community will look like 5, 15 or 55 years from now," says Peter Forsch, president of Spanish Peaks. Forsch has spoken to cabin owners from some of the more established mountain communities like Vail and Aspen who say they didn't anticipate the level of growth and development that occurred over the years, resulting in crowded ski slopes, hiking trails, parking lots and fishing streams. Having an official community master plan (approved by the county) in place, however, helps limit such frustrating surprises years down the road.

"Residents know we won't erect a high-rise condo where open space should be," says Forsch.

Developers at Spanish Peaks consulted with environmental experts to delineate wetlands, spot soil instability and identify vegetation that should be maintained. And throughout the development process, Spanish Peaks will employ on-site environmental specialists such as biologists or wetlands advisers to manage/monitor development and to give resident cabin owners recommendations including how to treat wildlife, what to plant and how to landscape.

· Developers at Boyne Mountain in northern Michigan also consulted professional land planners throughout the planning phase of their Mountain Cabin development.

"We wanted to ensure preservation of old growth areas and native undergrowth and vegetation," says Steve Matthews, Boyne's director of real estate and development. And although they have room to build up to 110 cabins, developers may reduce that number by as many as half in order to provide more open space — something buyers greatly appreciate, and are willing to pay for.

Dave and Michelle Hogarth, from Commerce Township, Mich., were mesmerized the moment they stepped foot on the property. "When I saw this place, I immediately yelled out Sold!'," recalls Michelle, whose family bought a 2,000-square-foot, three-level mountain villa two years ago.

It was the area's tranquil setting and abundant wildlife that most appealed to the family. "Its so neat to sit in our deck's hot tub and watch the deer run between the cabins," says Michelle. 

· At Waters of Vermilion, a 33-acre cabin community on Lake Vermilion in northern Minnesota, developers Joel Schurke, Stephan Tanner and Greg Erickson are committed to utilizing a model of land development based on environmental responsibility.

The project, which will eventually accommodate 45 year-round, luxury cabins, required ample work from the get-go. In 2003, Schurke and Tanner, principal owners of Waters of Vermilion, spent $480,000 to re-naturalize the area by converting the sites gravel pit to a 3-acre swimming pond, and they returned the water of a wetland area to its natural circulation path. In addition, they left more than 75 percent of the existing plant life intact, moved and replanted mature trees and planted thousands of saplings, shrub seedlings and native meadow grasses. They even created a bird sanctuary in the middle of one of the area's ponds, which has attracted multiple species of birds.

· At Powder Ridge ski cabin development in Big Sky, Mont., efforts to preserve and enhance the ecosystem included lakescaping. This practice involves the creation of a buffer zone of native vegetation that extends both lakeward and landward from the water's edge. Used for lakes, streams, ponds and wetlands, lakescaping controls shoreline erosion and preserves and improves water resources and wildlife habitats.

· Another area gaining increasing popularity is Pronghorn, located on 640 acres just outside Bend, Ore. Developers at this second home/golf community, which is surrounded by 20,000 acres of protected federal land, are planning to build 120 custom-designed villas, ranging in size from 2,400 to 4,400 square feet.

Downing, Thorpe and James Land Planning of Boulder, Colo., created a detailed master plan for the community that highlighted the areas topography and natural character. They transplanted more than 300 junipers, replanted 400,000 trees and grasses and encouraged wildlife to settle on Pronghorn's property by planting nesting boxes or houses for swallows, owls and bats. Even the golf courses have helped draw in animals. "Originally, there was no water on site," says Thomas Hix, managing partner of Pronghorn Development Company, Inc. "But with our golf course water features, we have attracted deer, pronghorn, osprey, ducks, hawks and geese.

Building Green - Renewable and Efficient
Cabins built in developments are often constructed by designated builders, with prospective cabin owners typically offered a relatively narrow menu of choices. So the questions naturally follow: Is this a good builder? Does this builder adhere to, or surpass, contemporary construction standards? Will this builder enhance, not detract from, the surroundings?

At Pronghorn, developers followed the master plan that requires natural building resources such as rock and opted for handcrafted stucco over heavy timbers.

Similarly, Waters of Vermilion in Minnesota is being built by Schurke and Tanner with "green" principles. They hired local contractors to build the cabins using and installing renewable construction resources, high-efficiency appliances and water-conserving low-flush toilets.

"We consider each material from a variety of angles and make choices that deliver multiple benefits," says Tanner. For instance, the cabin's metal roofs aren't just attractive; they're also durable and recyclable, which will in the future save local landfills from tons of asphalt shingles (non-renewable material that is not biodegradable).

Similar efforts were taken at Powder Ridge in Big Sky, Mont., where Corbond insulation and R40 roof panels were used because they offered great durability and high energy efficiency. The R40 roof panels separate the hot and cold, thereby acting like a giant Styrofoam sandwich.

The Future Looks Good
The trend to low-maintenance cabin living continues. Some of the development will be sound and responsible. But how much of it?

Schurke and Tanner of Waters of Vermilion are optimistic about the future, predicting that the market will shift toward sustainable, responsible design once consumers are aware of their options. Schurke summed up Waters of Vermilions developmental approach: "We've chosen to focus on building communities that respect natures delicate balance."

That's all any cabin owner wants, really. A beautiful place to stay and a natural place to play.

And the cabin lifestyle is in high demand. It is projected that Americans will purchase 3.6 million vacation homes (about 1,000 a day) in this decade alone.

Where will all these cabin owners go? Well, some of them will buy into low-maintenance developments. And as long as the developers are forward-thinking, maybe that's not so bad. 

Christy Heitger-Casbon, a freelance writer from Noblesville, Ind., loves to explore the beautiful surroundings of her family's northern Michigan cabin with her husband, Todd, and their 1-year-old son, Kyler.