Captivated. That is probably the best description of the first-look reaction of two purchasers of Murray’s Landing townhouses. ‘We just looked at each other, and knew, that this was it,’ one buyer says of her first visit to the showhome. ‘I just opene
Mary Frances Hill
Sun
The Murray’s Landing households in Langley will reside under a roof of 30-year asphalt shingles and behind exterior walls clad in three material finishes: board and batten at the gables above windows and doors, above; plastic shingles,and fibrecement horizontal siding. Trim, too, is fibre cement. Exterior doors are fibreglass. There are power outlets on the balconies and patios. The wide garage door speaks to the spaciousness of the townhouses. Those who make their home in them can garage their vehicles side-by-side and not nose-to-nose. ‘Nose-to-nose . . . there’s no comparison . . . it’s difficult to move vehicles in and out, in and out,’ real estate agent Luana Matteazzi comments. ‘People on different shifts especially have problems with this … .’ The Murray’s Landing developer has also supplemented the new-home warranty with a five-year exteriorinspection program, its cost included in each household’s maintenance fee. ‘Few developers do this, but it is for the buyer’s benefit,’ Matteazzi says. Murray’s Landing is located in one of Langley township’s most historic areas – and oldest subdivisions. EuroAmerican occupancy goes back 140 years. Suburban residency goes back far enough to have generated two public elementary schools and one high school, and a private Christian elementary and secondary school.
For Martin and Jennie VanDriel, the Murray’s Landing showhome was a persuasive profession of the possibilities of residency after 25 years of big-home, big-yard ownership – and maintenance. ‘When we walked into the show home here, we didn’t need to say a word,’ Jennie VanDriel reports. ‘We just looked at each other, and knew, that this was it. We didn’t have to look any further.’ As Jennie VanDriel says of the morning walks she and husband Martin take: ‘One side is country living, just horses and pasture, and the other side is lovely homes. We’re really enjoying it.’
Developer and designers have specified a stainless-steel-clad appliance package from Whirlpool for the Murray’s Landing kitchens.
Granite will top counters and tile will face the backsplashes. The ‘Shaker,’ or framed, cabinet doors speak of country proximities.
The Murray’s Landing ensuites are shower-only bathrooms. The tubs are to be found in the main and basement bathrooms. As in the kitchens, granite tops counters.
Retirees Martin and Jennie VanDriel had been looking for a new home for months. Indeed, their search for a townhouse to replace the comfort of their longtime North Delta family home had become an exercise in frustration.
“So many of the homes we saw were quite narrow, and very, very small,” recalled Jennie VanDriel in an interview at her new home at Murray’s Landing in Langley.
“When we walked into the show home here, we didn’t need to say a word. We just looked at each other, and knew, that this was it. We didn’t have to look any further.”
Local history blends with contemporary touches in Murray’s Landing, a new townhome development that is quickly being called home by a diverse group of neighbours, says Luana Matteazzi, a realtor overseeing the Platinum Group development.
Though many buyers are “down buyers”, there are no patterns or shared traits among those who move into Murray’s Landing units, reports Matteazzi.
“There are a lot of people selling their large homes and making it easier for themselves,” says Matteazzi. Buyers have included couples without children, single women, grand-mothers, and middle-aged parents with young children or teenagers. “I have noticed that they’re from all walks of life. It’s a very interesting mix.”
Phase one of the project has sold out, while five of the 32 units in phase two are still available.
The units are large, at more than 2,000 square feet, and all come with standard crown moldings, natural stone fireplaces, and granite counter-tops in the kitchen and three bathrooms. Three spacious bedrooms are on the upper floor.
The finished basements can be used as an additional living area or bedroom or converted easily into an in-law suite.
The VanDriels‘ instant reaction to the project surprised them both. They knew that a move from the large home where they’d raised five children over 25 years would be a big adjustment — on them and on their grown kids and 21 grandchildren.
But their new home at Murray’s Landing — it has a double garage and a finished basement —proved to be enough, and then some.
After more than two decades of dealing with home maintenance and arduous yard work, the VanDriels needed to relax in their retirement, and downsizing to a smaller place was the only option.
The VanDriels‘ new neighbour Myrna Isaac took on her search for a new home after similar frustrations with maintenance after many years in a large house.
Isaac had grown tired of yard work that she estimates took at least six hours every weekend.
“You’re really tied to that work on the weekends,” she says. The townhouse option was right for her, and she’d seen many of them in Langley.
And when she turned her attention to the details and finishes of Murray’s Landing, she was sold.
“I looked at the quality of the craftsmanship…the finished basement, the tall ceilings, the crown molding, granite, just the attention to detail in the rock fireplace, the look of the whole development,” she says.
Every year, Martin VanDriel would stain sections of the couple’s former home. “Here, there’s a 25-year warranty on the exterior, so the carefree maintenance is a relief.”
The new development sits in the middle of one of Langley township’s most historic areas.
Pioneer Paul Murray settled in the region with his four sons in 1870, eventually coming to own a quarter section of land on each of the four corners of Yale Road and what is now 216th Avenue, an area now known as “Murray’s Corner.”
Named “Murrayville” in 1925, the area between 216 Street, 216A Street, 48th Avenue and 48A Avenue is one of the oldest subdivisions in Langley, with two public elementary schools and one high school and a private Christian elementary and secondary school.
By the end of her new-home search, Isaac was torn between two developments: a similar one nearby was competing with Murray’s Landing. And while the finishes left an impression, the deciding factor was the basement.
“I liked the layout in the other complex, but the basement wasn’t finished.”
The costs of building a comfortable living space on the ground floor would have been prohibitive. “It would have cost me at least another $20,000,” she says.
“I just opened the door and I was home. All I did was paint a couple of bathrooms, and add some drapery.”
Isaac has found her new freedom from home maintenance has changed her lifestyle.
“Now I don’t have all that evening and weekend yard work, so I’ve filled my time with my hobbies. I’m pursuing other avenues with my free time.”
The four bedrooms — that includes a bedroom and full bathroom in the basement — were a draw for the VanDriels, as well.
Like Isaac, the VanDriels were drawn to the workmanship: not only the crown moldings and natural stone fireplace, but the open kitchen that adds more warmth to entertaining.
“Our biggest gathering included about 30 people. We can put about 12 adults in the open room; two of my sons were enjoying the balcony, a few children were downstairs in their grandpa’s office, colouring.”
In their more peaceful moments, the VanDriels take advantage of what Jennie calls the two worlds of her new neighbourhood.
“We go for our walk every morning in Murrayville, to 222nd Street, south of Fraser Highway, then walk down to a natural bend in the road to 224th,” she says. “One side is country living, just horses and pasture, and the other side is lovely homes. We’re really enjoying it.”
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MURRAY‘S LANDING
Project location: Langley township Project size:73 homes
Residence size: 2,044 sq. ft.-2,158 sq. ft. Prices: From$404,900 Developer: Platinum Group
Architect: Barnett Dembek Architects Inc.
Interior design: Marie-Anne Lenko and Michelle Herlihy Sales centre:2-22225 50th Ave. Murrayville, Langley Hours:1p.m.-5p.m. Sat -Thurs Telephone:604 630-9030 Web: www.platinum-group.ca
Occupancy: First phase, July 2009 (sold out); phase 2, February –March(five units remaining)
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