News on the Verdae Development? (Greenville: home, neighborhoods, subdivision)

[g-man430]

New article: Developers seek sales jump | GreenvilleOnline.com | The Greenville News


Talked to Richard Parvey earlier today while taking a tour of Hollingsworth/Legacy Park at Verdae. Very interesting listen to him talk about the development. He is the CEO/President of Parvey Companies: The Parvey Companies (broken link) They are in charge of all of the home building going on at Verdae. After checking out Legacy Park, I can definitely say it is the second nicest looking park in Greenville County. Falls Park is obviously the nicest. If you haven't checked out the park yet then you are definitely missing out. I would say there were somewhere between 15-20 people at the park when I was there. This was at 7:00pm on a weeknight so that's pretty good for that time of day. It will get a lot more people use once the homes and other developments around the area get completed. One thing that really caught my eye was when I was taking pics, a ton of people in their cars kept driving by checking out the homes and park. There seems to be a lot of people interested in this development which is a very good thing. And now on to the pics:

[WeddingWoman]

Hi, This looks great, thanks for sharing and for the info. Can you please give me directions from I-85 North or better yet, an address so I can Google map and go look at this park and development? Thank you! Brenda ~ WeddingWoman.net

[gvillesc]

Originally Posted by WeddingWoman

Hi, This looks great, thanks for sharing and for the info. Can you please give me directions from I-85 North or better yet, an address so I can Google map and go look at this park and development? Thank you! Brenda ~ WeddingWoman.net

I don't know an address, but it's across the street from the Embassy Suites Hotel on Verdae Blvd.

I-85 North
EXIT 48-B __ Laurens Rd/US 276 toward Greenville
RIGHT at 2nd traffic light __ Verdae Blvd
LEFT at 1st traffic light __ Rocky Slope Rd

[Skyliner]

I saw lots of nice fireworks going up late last evening in the Verdae area. I assumed they were enjoying an early celebration.

[Sonrise]

Mrs. Sonrise and I took baby Sonrise there a little over a month ago; nice park. That being said, I'd never buy a home there because as anyone can see from the pics there is literally no yard and the homes are right next to one another ala sardines in a can; plus as per the norm the price is jacked up all due to the development being marketed as a TND (traditional neighborhood development), pass.

[Greenville]

Originally Posted by Sonrise

Mrs. Sonrise and I took baby Sonrise there a little over a month ago; nice park. That being said, I'd never buy a home there because as anyone can see from the pics there is literally no yard and the homes are right next to one another ala sardines in a can; plus as per the norm the price is jacked up all due to the development being marketed as a TND (traditional neighborhood development), pass.

I agree with you about the higher price tag because it's a TND, despite the smaller lot sizes. Most people don't want to pay more for a smaller lot, unless the offerings in the development make up for it. Until nice retail, restaurants, etc. are a reality there, it will be hard to justify paying more. The great thing about Verdae is that it will offer more. I don't know if any development in the history of South Carolina will be able to compare to what Verdae will be.

By the way, Verdae will include other home options as well - apartments, condos, nicer homes on half-acre lots, even estates. This is a high quality development that will really blossom over the next 15-20 years. It is far superior to Griffin Park, in scope, quality, and location.

[Skyliner]

The clustered nature of the homes is significant because it allows for the larger open space to build parks and trails for everyone's enjoyment. The typical American suburban neighborhood comes with yards that people rarely (if ever) use and sizable parks are usually considered by developers to be a waste of valuable land. I will take the cost for a neighborhood like Verdae every time over at least 95% of the generic, unsustainable suburban neighborhoods in the U.S. We Americans are so wasteful of nearly everything we own.

[gvillesc]

If I were not pursuing studies at the moment, and I had the money, I'd buy in Verdae's TND. I like the idea of the compact aspect and large open public spaces. Plus, you're not going to find anything like it in the City.

[Greenville]

I think most people like having a yard for the perceived "buffer" it provides more than anything else. My parents are this way. They refuse to live anywhere with less than half an acre lot, because they feel that they will be "on top of their neighbors" if the houses are too close together. They don't really use their yard for anything, especially since they don't have young kids anymore. But the idea of being so close to the neighbors, hearing them come and go all the time, and not feeling that they truly have privacy does not appeal to them. I see their point. The fact that some neighborhoods build beautiful homes, and put them on 0.2 or 0.3 acre lots, does not make much sense to me either.

Which is why I say that TNDs can work, but they have to offer something besides a normal subdivision. The marketing by some of these neighborhoods trying to be "TND" is deceiving. Some developers truly want to build a sustainable neighborhood with plenty of amenities while incorporating smart land usage, but others are just trying to cram more houses into a fixed amount of space to make more money. Parks, sidewalks, and clean common areas are nice. But it truly must be mixed-use, and in a safe location convenient to many other amenities, to work. That is why Verdae is unique, and will work. I would certainly not mind being a part of it one day.

[Sonrise]

Originally Posted by Skyliner

The clustered nature of the homes is significant because it allows for the larger open space to build parks and trails for everyone's enjoyment. The typical American suburban neighborhood comes with yards that people rarely (if ever) use and sizable parks are usually considered by developers to be a waste of valuable land. I will take the cost for a neighborhood like Verdae every time over at least 95% of the generic, unsustainable suburban neighborhoods in the U.S. We Americans are so wasteful of nearly everything we own.

This is one of the few times that we'll have to agree to disagree; but that's cool, different strokes for different folks.