Vineyards developers voice confidence in housing picture
New Kent Vineyards developers label the 1,450 age-restricted houses planned for a section of their billion dollar plus project on more than 2,500 county acres as “the engine that drives the train.”
But due to the bottom falling out of the housing industry in recent months, the train has been diverted to a siding where it waits for the economic picture to improve. Developers, however, expect to be back on track this spring, and that’s the message they imparted to about 30 current residents and neighbors gathered on Jan. 21 at New Kent Winery for discussion on proposed revisions to the county ordinance governing the overall development.
K. Hovnanian, the company charged with building the age-restricted community, dubbed Four Seasons, in Land Bay V has taken an inactive roll in the project since September 2008 due to slumping sales brought on by the economic downturn. The company has yet to break ground.
“It’s not anybody’s fault,” said Jim Evans, senior vice-president of Republic Properties, concerning the K. Hovnanian situation. “You can’t expect them to dive in without sales and a market here.”
But Evans expects the company to renew its sales effort by early spring, a prediction echoed by Pete Johns, one of the partners in the New Kent Vineyards development.
“This economy has had a major effect on them moving forward,” he told the crowd. “But we feel confident K. Hovnanian will start here soon.”
Johns said New Kent Vineyards plans to embark this spring on a major marketing strategy aimed at the project’s commercial end.
“By the second quarter, we expect an economic surge and willingness of banks to free up money,” he said. “We’re out marketing this area to commercial prospects.”
Johns and his partners, meanwhile, are requesting modifications to the 2005 Farms of New Kent Planned Unit Development agreement with the county. New Kent’s Board of Supervisors is hosting a public hearing on the proposals this Monday (Feb. 8) during the board’s monthly meeting that gets under way at 6 p.m. Supervisors could take final action afterward.
Topping the list is a proposal, requested by K. Hovnanian, to reduce from 1,550 square feet to 1,200 square feet the minimum floor space for up to 25 percent of single-family, age-restricted houses in Four Seasons. Unchanged in the document is that up to 700 of the 1,450 age-restricted homes could be multi-family, attached, cluster, or assisted living products.
Developers are also seeking to reduce a minimum 2,000 square-foot requirement for a portion of single-family detached houses in Land Bay IV, site of a 450-unit development known as The Arbors. The proposal for up to 25 percent of the houses seeks minimums of 1,500 square feet for lots 65 feet in width and 1,750 square feet for 85-foot wide lots. The number of lots affected totals 112.
Several residents already occupying houses in The Arbors sat in on last week’s meeting, expressing concerns that the development is not building out as fast as promised and downsizing homes could lower their property values.
Johns said lots 85 and 65 feet in width are clustered in separate sections within The Arbors so that larger, more expensive homes will not have a 1,500 or 1,750 square-foot house as a neighbor.
“We are not putting affordable housing next to homes in Land Bay IV,” Johns said, adding that any affordable units bound for the land bay will be apartments or lofts built above commercial and retail stores.
Other revisions before supervisors include:
–Allowing affordable housing in land bays other than Land Bay III that are now under development. (Developers must build five affordable units per year.)
–Limited flexibility for shifting up to 15 percent of housing between land bays. (Developers are looking to move 15 percent of units out of Land Bay III.)
–Avoiding duplication of recreation facilities in Land Bay I where the winery and a golf course now exist and a Mirbeau inn and spa is planned.
–Allowing recreation facilities in Land Bay V to be built in phases.
–Permitting the Farmer’s Market slated for Land Bay III to be built in phases in IV and V and ultimately moved back to III.
Evans said if development under the PUD revisions comes to fruition, New Kent stands to receive about $1.16 million less in revenue over the next 21 years. Developers had projected almost $83.4 million in revenue for the county back in 2005.
Johns said the proposed PUD changes provide developers with flexibility in dealing with the current market situation. If the market turns around, however, plans for smaller houses will be scrapped, he said.
“We live in a different world than we did just a few years ago. We want to try to do what’s right and try to create a product that’s marketable,” he said. “We’ve made a commitment to the county to do everything possible to achieve our goals.”