New Construction

At a memorable meeting of the Steering Committee Patrick Alesse said that the business of Birch Bay is building homes, primary homes and vacation homes.

Last year new construction dropped off. New hookups for the Water and Sewer District – which only approximates the UGA – were less than a hundred, yet enough to match the minimum of 85 used by Berk Consultants in the tax-revenue estimates of the incorporation feasibility study. In previous years that average was about 200 per year.

At last Wednesday’s meeting (2.27) of the Steering Committee, Bill Grant, builder of the TrendWest and Whiskie Jack complexes, took the microphone to report that with the economy off he gained a two-year extension for the permit he has to build six to eight more condos. Lisa Guthrie, the smiling face of Homestead Northwest stood up to say they have broken ground for a 19-unit addition to the Grand Bay condos. Half of the initial units are sold.

Meanwhile three homes are being built in what we call the Terrell Creek District, between the Jackson Road and Alderson Road bridges. On the west side of the creek, Lee Barma and his wife, who’ve lived in Birch Bay more than 20 years, are rebuilding the cottage they’ve owned at 7540 Birch Bay Drive. Leaving only the front walls, Tandem Design & Construction is adding a second story. For now, the Barmas are living in the cottage they own next door.

Across the creek at what will be 7589 Wooldridge (although his sign, based on information he got from the county, says Morrison), Charlie Gorsak and his wife, Linda, poured a pad that will hold a modular factory-built whose exterior Charlie will cover with shakes and add other enhancements. Included in this long narrow strip will be a garden with native plants and evergreens. (Some from the free offer from A Lot of Trees.) Included in the landscaping will be the stumps now on the property that came from Birch Bay Village where they currently live. Yes, their home is going to be close to the creek as well as the road – Charlie persevered through three variance hearings.

Overlooking both at the top of the Sunset hill, Credo Construction is building a neat three-level house for Joel DiManno and his family. This home is the fruition of a dream that began six years ago when they visited friends of Mrs. DiManno’s parents in Birch Bay Village. They looked in the Village, but wanted a better view, then found the Sunset property on http://www.birchbay.com/. Mr. DiManno is pleased with the cement structure that he explains includes high-tech innovation to support the hillside home.

All of these projects are now farther along than the pictures indicate. The builders work faster than our photog.