Sunday, January 11, 2009

Pier View Townhomes

Mark Dragonchuck is a genius. He has done what very few other local developers have achieved.

He got it right.

Mr Dragonchuck has managed to place a group of townhomes where they ought to be, at a price that is very competitive and with a quality of workmanship and superb styling that we seldom see. This is very cutting edge stuff. This is Pier View Townhomes.

Nine units only, no pool or recreation center and hardly anything else that a buyer can be charged for in addition to their home. These are just small, really, really nice homes. Very energy efficient and very tech friendly. Wow, what a concept!

There are only four units left, but they represent some very comfortable offerings. The basic home layout is a 2 car garage with built-in laundry on the first floor and a very long straight staircase to the living areas on the second and third floors. These homes are not designed for folks with weak legs. You drop your newspaper at the top of the steps and it’s going to bounce all the way down to the street.

When you enter the living area you are going to be surprised at the level of workmanship and attention to detail you see everywhere around you. Take a look at the limestone flooring. It’s not just well executed, it’s breathtaking in design and colors used as well. All of the gorgeous tilework is framed by 5” dark natural wood floor trim and matching door frames. There are no two units that share designs or colors.

Everything you touch is nice. The doors are solid panel fir. The door knobs and hinges are oil rubbed bronze. Light fixtures are shaker style and sized for the home. The staircase banisters are varnished hard wood and installed on both sides of the steps – a nice touch.

The second floor has the kitchen, dining area, living room and 1 bathroom. There is a two chair deck off the dining area which may or may not have a view and which usually has a gas plug for your barbeque. You may have to give up a chair if you elect to have a barbeque on your deck.

The kitchens are mostly small with no islands, but with very high quality, hand finished natural wooden cabinetry, stainless appliances, and some marvelous granite counter tops that were evidently selected with great care. Under cabinet lighting and recessed room lighting keep everything comfortably lit for food preparation. Most kitchens have a window but the kitchen views may not always impress.

The stairways to the third floor may or may not be carpeted, but all are limestone or flagstone framed with hardwood trim and banisters. The top floor has one or two bedrooms and a bath. The bathrooms are masterpieces of stone work flooring and colorful granite vanity tops.

The smaller bedroom usually is rather compact with few frills, while the master bedroom will have an outside deck and a larger closet. There were a few master bedrooms that had absolutely wonderful views of the ocean and pier. One of the units we visited had a good-sized walk-in closet in addition to the deck and larger bedroom size. Another unit, had both bedrooms sharing the outside patio with their own separate access.

Everything you see runs counter to the normal new home trends. Bigger here is not better. The units are compact and scream efficiency, quality and high tech. No plastic anywhere, no built-in entertainment nooks and no 1000 square foot two story entryways. There really is no wasted space anywhere.

What you will find are dual pane PELLA windows, water saving shower heads, low flow toilets, set back thermostat controls for FAU, exterior house doors weather stripped and the list goes on. Hard wired smoke detectors, garage door safety sensors, fire sprinkler systems, HDTV ready, pre-wired for security system, pre-wired for On-Q network systems. Very impressive, very smart, very green, very nice.

Usually on one of the floors of each unit there is a view or partial view of mountains, ocean or some of the nearby Victorian Style mansions which have been converted to apartment or business use. There are several units which have a parking lot view of the next door restaurant and which absorb a bit of the loud music that it plays. There are also a few very poorly maintained rental homes just over the fence on both sides of the development. It just adds to the inner city ambiance.

People who like downtown Ventura with all it’s shops, restaurants, playhouses and clubs will find this a marvelous, convenient place to live. These homes are 1 block from the pedestrian bridge that crosses the 101 to the ocean front walkways, surfing beaches, restaurants and fairgrounds. You would have a difficult time finding another single location with such extraordinary access to the best attractions Ventura has to offer.

I give this enclave an A for style, A for quality, A for execution, and an A for location.
I like it! I want to see more from Mr Dragonchuck.

Warmest Regards,
Mark Thorngren

Find out more at
http://www.pierviewtownhomes.com/

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http://www.blogger.com/www.MarkThorngren.com.