This is not Riverwalk

Over 20 home sites are available in the grid of downtown Davis for two-story, energy-efficient homes with 3 baths, 4 bedrooms, 9ft ceilings, modern and open layouts, hardwood floors, Hardie plank siding, 50-year storm-rated roofing, front porches with Trex decking, stone counters and more. These homes will be engineered: blower-tested, have conditioned crawl spaces, vented attics, engineered trusses and joists. And before all those features, they are DESIGNED for Davis...Victorian boomtown venacular meets lumber mill pragmatism to yield layouts that support today's casual mountain recreation lifestyle. They are designed for Davis' climate as well: extra glass on south facing walls, low use of valleys and dormers, drainage design not requiring gutters, full ice guard wrap under roofing and more.

The expected timeline is: 4 weeks option selection and ordering; 5 weeks production; 6 weeks with finishing out. 15 weeks from signature to move-in. We expect to require 20% down and pre-qualification on financing when ordering. Total home price is now estimated to vary from the mid $100s to high $100s for most homes. Each site+home+options will have a custom quote, provided after a siting and design consultation.

BTW, I say this is 'not Riverwalk' because the sites offered are in the town grid, on streets such as Thomas, Blackwater and Fairfax. Davis Riverwalk is the undeveloped 7-acre tract between main street and the Blackwater River, expected to coincide more closely with the Corridor H Highway and a general economic recovery for the metro areas on which Davis' economy depends.

Thank you Mr Udall

Stewart L. Udall, 90, interior secretary was guardian of America's wild places
By Matt Schudel
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, March 21, 201

Davis is top 10 of best mountain biking areas

But then we knew that.....You can see this article here.

You can buy the issue at

http://www.zinio.com/browse/publications/index.jsp?offercode=PH01&productId=307332098&rf=osc288&pss=1&bd=1

Under the weight of snow-ice...Kaboom!

Old buildings that could not be built today per national and state construction codes....this relic went down in Thomas today. Let's hope the owner properly demo's or repairs the building!

Google 'before' shot and photo of aftermath courtesy of Randy Schmiedeknecht and friends, Davis High Valley Realty.

Glimpsing back at the skiing connection between early Davis and Canaan

A few posts back I published part of an interview with Riley Worden, taken by WVU researchers at the Worden Hotel in downtown Davis in 1958. This nice little piece (below) about Eddie Worden, the grandson of Worden's owner, shows us an example of the deep connection between Davis and the Canaan ski scene. Eddie Worden talks about the department store run by his grandfather across from Worden's, called Belmonts. I am not certain, but I believe Belmont's stood on the lot I own across from the old Worden's lot.

Sometimes it is too easy to see Canaan skiing as the activity of outsiders, and Davis life as the activity of locals. There is a common ground and we celebrate it.

His life tells story of skiing in West Virginia

The Green Premium

Professional Builder magazine researchers reported recently that 26% of those they surveyed said they would pay no premium for a house certified as green (eg Energy Star or LEED certified). 35% said they'd pay 1-2% more, ie less than the price of a good road or mountain bike. 25% said they'd pay 3-6% more than for a typical house. And only 11% said they'd pay 6-10% for green certification. 2% said they would pay more than a 10% premium.

That would suggest that if our houses were more than about $8K higher than a similar looking non-Energy Star house with the same square feet, that there wouldn't be much of a market. From what I'm learning so far working with the modular vendors, this looks doable. ...more to come on exactly what measures we will take to meet the Energy Star new construction criteria in Davis.

Ready when you are...

Well, not quite ready yet... But we're putting together base pricing, options, and terms so that we can offer new home construction in the old Davis grid. Looks like there will be three models offered, several lots to choose from (some lots limited to certain models) and a finite list of options/upgrades. This is not the market to build spec houses and see what happens and when. That said, we have an attractive design and can deliver elegant and energy-savvy homes at impressive savings compared to the Valley. We are attempting to carve out a middle ground, where the house has wood floors, granite counters, 9ft ceilings, 3 baths, real tile, hardi plank siding instead of vinyl etc -- ie of a quality you'd find in new construction in the Valley or in the city -- but the price is much lower than those found in the Valley. Starting in April there will be a marketing campaign with signage, email, brochures and advertising. There are many (I mean many) people who voice support, who think it is great to build quality homes in Davis. There are some who kid or badger me about schedule. This is not a project that is watched as a spectator sport. This is project that entails having a buying public, and for the moment, no one is buying much of anything in Canaan Valley or Davis. The exceptions for the most part are sacrifice sales, sales under duress, short sales, auctions and bankruptcies.

If the market is not ready to move, you won't see one of these being built, but I think this Spring/Summer is a good time to make the offer. I would like nothing more than to see a happy family step through the door of a new house on Thomas Avenue or one of the other available streets.