THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 9, 1994 TAG: 9407080481
SECTION: REAL ESTATE WEEKLY PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARK DUROSE, SPECIAL TO REAL ESTATE WEEKLY
LENGTH: Long : 135 lines
Twelve years ago, Bayberry Woods got off to a grand start. The neighborhood was the site of the first Homearama, now a yearly housing showcase.
More than 5,000 spectators showed up on the first day, in June 1982, to tour the 15 showcase homes. In all, roughly 60,000 visited the two-week event, sponsored by the Tidewater Builders Association.
Today, the community remains home to an eclectic blend of 58 custom houses. Contemporaries, Colonials and ranches - with brick, vinyl and cedar exteriors - sit on lots ranging from one-third to half an acre.
Bayberry Woods' three cul-de-sacs lie east of Greenbrier Mall, along a man-made lake bordering a country club. The small neighborhood is part of the large Greenbrier development, which covers more than a dozen subdivisions and nearly 2,000 single-family houses.
Developers bought the 2,900-acre Greenbrier tract in the 1970s from a family that kept a nursery on the site, says William E. Judah, head consultant for Greenbrier Development. Bayberry Woods, along with two similar neighborhoods, was named for the abundance of bayberries in the area.
``It was Homearama that really helped put Greenbrier on the map with a lot of people,'' Judah says, ``especially with the builders of the area.''
One resident likes Bayberry Woods so much that his car's personalized license plate reads: BAYBERY.
``We like it real well,'' says Dennis Samford, the license plate owner. ``It's a real quiet, well-kept neighborhood.''
Samford and his wife, Georgana, own a 3,200-square-foot house with four bedrooms that borders a half-acre park by the lake. They paid $119,000 for the home eight years ago - today, it's worth $149,000, he says.
``It's pretty much the only house like it in Tidewater.''
Samford, a Navy chief warrant officer, praises Bayberry Woods' convenient setting.
``It's centrally located to just about everything from Suffolk to the beach, with immediate access to the interstate,'' he says.
``And plus, it's real convenient to a shopping mall.''
As a member of the Greenbrier Property Owner's Association, Samford has access to three private lakes in the development. He keeps a canoe handy, he says, to fish on the one near his home.
Though Sanford was wary at first of the association's regulations on home exteriors, he has come to appreciate them, he says.
``I had problems when I first moved in. It's funny, having to get approval (for) changing the color of your house.
``Now, I understand,'' he says. ``They don't want purple houses popping up, and neither do I. It would hurt the area.''
Every household in Bayberry Woods, along with the other Greenbrier neighborhoods, is required to be a member of the property owner's association. Dues are $90 a year, and residents comprise the board of directors.
The association publishes a 30-page guidebook, which covers such items as approved house colors, required yard maintenance and permitted fence styles. Ron St. John, the association's office manager, says he sends 80 to 100 letters a month reminding Greenbrier residents of the various rules.
``It's the same sort of thing as a civic league, except for two things,'' St. John says. ``It's professionally managed and participation is not voluntary.
``Our mission,'' he says, ``is to protect, maintain and insure property values, and to tend to the 67 acres of common land in and around the communities.''
Another resident who appreciates the property owner's association, though she had mixed feelings at first, is Kathleen Miller.
``You think, `Who are you to tell me what I can do with my house?' '' she says. ``But what if your neighbor wanted to do something outrageous?
``Plus,'' she says, ``they cut all the grass in the common areas, keep it real clean, replant when and where it's needed and keep up the signs.''
Miller, a resident for a year, is quick to praise her neighborhood.
``It's beautiful,'' she says. ``The size of the plots are much larger than I've seen elsewhere, and we have so many more trees. It's really the trees that drew me here.''
Miller and her husband, Robert, share a 2,700-square-foot home with her son, Daniel, and her mother-in-law, Catherine Miller. The couple bought the five-bedroom, 3 1/2-bath home, with a backyard deck, for $136,000.
Since then, Miller has made some changes that she calls ``just face-lift stuff.''
Miller, who moved from New York, has just one complaint about her new location, but it's more an indictment of the entire region than of her small neighborhood.
``I miss the pizza,'' she says, smiling. ``The pizza here is terrible.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color photos]
IAN MARTIN/Photos
Georgana Samford and her husband, Dennis, own a 3,200-square-foot
house with four bedrooms that borders a half-acre park by the lake.
As members of the Greenbrier Property Owner's Association, the
Samfords have access to three private lakes in the development.
Robert and Kathleen Miller bought their five-bedroom, 3 1/2-bath
home about a year ago. ``The size of the plots are much larger than
I've seen elsewhere,'' Kathleen Miller says.
Kathleen Miller, right, lives in Bayberry Woods with her son,
Daniel, center, her mother-in-law, Catherine, left, and her husband,
Robert. ``It's really the trees that drew me here.''
AT A GLANCE
Map
ABOUT THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Schools: Greenbrier Elementary, Greenbrier Intermediate and
Indian River High schools.
Shopping areas: Greenbrier Mall and surrounding shopping centers
are less than a mile away. Quick access to Interstate 64 puts the
neighborhood within reach of shopping districts throughout Hampton
Roads.
Recreation: Within Bayberry Woods, common areas along a man-made
lake offer paved walkways and grassy fields for joggers, strollers
and bikers. The lake, along with two others in the larger Greenbrier
development, is stocked with fish and accessible to all members of
the Greenbrier Property Owner's Association. Boats without gasoline
engines are permitted. Also, Greenbrier Country Club is nearby.
Assessments: The range is from $112,600 to $180,400, reported the
Chesapeake city assessor's office.
FOR SALE
A sampling of current listings:
At 1305 Sage Court, a three-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath house is selling
for $124,900.
At 1329 Thyme Trail, a four-bedroom, three-bath house is selling
for $142,500.
At 1304 Thyme Trail, a four-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath house, with an
in-ground swimming pool, is selling for $166,200.
SOLD
A sampling of recent sales:
At 1308 Sage Court, a five-bedroom, 3 1/2-bath house sold for
$136,000 in July 1993 after 48 days on the market.
At 1300 Sage Court, a three-bedroom, three-bath house sold for
$113,000 in November after 64 days on the market.
by CNB