‘CLOSER TO EVERYTHING’
Nolan Hill convenience a big time saver for buyer at Carnaby Heights
With her home and job on opposite ends of Calgary, Sunday Wihnon’s commute was starting to add up.
Not just time from her day, but cost-wise, too. Even before the current uptick in local gas prices, she’d pay more than $425 at the fuel pump each month.
The commute from Wihnon’s place in southeast Calgary to her office in the northwest was 45 minutes to an hour one-way. But a recent move — also motivated by an interest in relocating to a lower-maintenance home — has cut down her time behind the wheel significantly.
Wihnon has moved to Nolan Hill by Anthem United in northwest Calgary, buying a townhome at Carnaby Heights by Jayman Built.
“I feel like I’ve reclaimed a lot of hours in my life, because everything is so close and convenient,” says Wihnon. “I feel like I’m closer to everything.”
Her job is now an easy seven to 10 minutes away. But that’s only part of how she’s lightened her driving load. For example, from her previous home, she was 15 to 20 minute drive from her gym.
“Then you work out and you’re another 15 minutes home,” Wihnon says. “It was a lot of kilometres back and forth just to get my exercise in. My gym right now is literally five minutes from my door. And it’s a 20 minute run if I want to run it.”
Her gym is located at Beacon Hill Shopping Centre, which is stocked with a wide assortment of places to shop and dine, including a Costco.
“Everything is literally walking distance from my townhouse,” she adds.
Nolan Hill is also near retail complexes such as Creekside Shopping Centre, anchored by a Co-op grocery store, Sage Hill Crossing, and — within the community, itself — the Gates of Nolan Hill.
One of the businesses at Sage Hill Crossing is a Loblaws City Market, which Wihnon calls “gorgeous.”
“Nolan Hill has all of the amenities there,” says Hal Pike, area sales manager. “It has great access to Stoney Trail and Shaganappi Trail, everything is there.”
Nolan Hill, as a location, also appealed to Wihnon, because of how much quicker it lets her leave the city. She singles out weekends in the mountains, where she enjoys hiking and snowshoeing.
Also, with family in Edmonton, relocating to the north end of Calgary removes the prerequisite cross-city drive before she reaches the highway.
“I’m saving 45 minutes ... to get out of town,” Wihnon says.
Lowering the stress of leaving short-term also played a role in her decision to buy a new home. Before her move to Nolan Hill, Wihnon was in a four-level split singlefamily home on a large pie lot.
“I had a huge yard,” says Wihnon adding the aim was to “downsize my world.” With the move to a development that shoulders exterior upkeep through the payment of condo fees, she looks forward to “no more yard work.”
“(I can) vacation more, lock the door and walk out,” Wihnon adds. “Not have to deal with anything.”
Carnaby Heights is a development with 112 townhomes that’s down to its final stretch of sales, all available for immediate possession. The townhomes currently available include two-bedroom formats from 1,100 square feet, two bedroom plus den from 1,300 square feet, three bedrooms from 1,479 square feet, and three bedrooms plus a den from more than 1,700 square feet. This includes heated garages in a single-car, tandem, and double car format.
The current starting price on the remaining townhomes is $329,900, including GST. Some of these back on to an interior courtyard.
Wihnon picked the 1,308-squarefoot Serendipity model, which has two bedrooms and a den.
On the surface, Wihnon was pleased with its “modern” style. She points to its “beautiful flooring,” and “huge kitchen pantry.”
Overall, the kitchen — which features quartz countertops — attracted her attention with its large windows, the quality of the appliances included, and what she describes as “more cupboards and drawers” than other townhome developments she considered.
Then there are the elements below the surface that contribute to the performance of the home.
“I do not hear my neighbours,” says Wihnon. “They put a lot of time, effort and knowledge into building these properties. The triple pane windows — in my room, if the window is closed, it’s silence, the minute the window is open — you hear the street noise,” she adds. “It’s shocking how quiet it can be when you close that window.”
It’s part of the overall value buyers are finding at Carnaby Heights, says Pike. “With all of the energysaving components, whether it be the triple-pane windows, and the tankless hot water systems, the heat recovery ventilators, these are all going to save you money every month,” he adds. “The LED lights, even all the plumbing fixtures, the toilets, the sinks, they all have water-saving devices on them.”