ON THE BANKS OF THE RIVER
River’s Gate offers every modern convenience surrounded by the beauty of the natural world
She wasn’t sure she wanted to build again.
But that changed when Deana Popowich unexpectedly fell in love with a tract of land in Sturgeon Valley.
“My husband was talking, possibly, about building another house,” said Popowich, noting she wasn’t certain she was ready to go through the process again.
“I remembered it being a lot of work.”
At the time, the couple were dropping off their teenage son at the Sturgeon Valley Golf and Country Club course for a golf program he was enrolled in.
Coincidentally, the golf club is right next door to what was then a brand new subdivision from Beaverbrook Communities: the Club & Residences of River’s Gate.
As the couple had heard about the area, they took the opportunity to check it out.
Then, once they entered River’s Gate, Popowich’s hesitation about building again slowly disappeared.
With the Sturgeon River as a backdrop, and accented by two large oval shaped stormwater-retention ponds and a central park space, Popowich was inspired by what she saw.
“It definitely made me start to consider it (building),” she said, and she soon had a specific lot in mind.
That lot was owned by Heredity Homes, one of four builders in River’s Gate, and was ultimately made available to them even though they had not determined with whom they would build — buyers in River’s Gate can either build with any of its group of builders or purchase a lot and bring in their own builder.
When they were ready to build they ended up going full circle and chose to go with Heredity.
“He (Heredity president Kevin Benson) was happy to meet with us, he’s a super nice man,” said Popowich, adding that even though there is a lot to take into account when building a home, they knew Benson would ensure it would not become a stressful process.
Nestled between Riverlot 56 — a provincially managed natural area where hiking and cross-country skiing are permitted — and the golf course, River’s Gate includes both a gated and non-gated section.
“River’s Gate offers a rare combination of scenic beauty and contemporary luxury,” said Nicole Wiebe, assistant development manager for Beaverbrook. “This impeccably designed development offers privacy within a peaceful ambience of natural land.”
Initially, the Popowichs were in no rush to build and considered a timeline of about a year to plan things out.
However, they shortened that substantially as they became quite excited about their new home to be.
It would become a two-storey walkout, done in a modern design, with three bedrooms on the upper level along with laundry and a home gym.
“We built it with the vision of staying here for many years with a couple of guest bedrooms in the basement so that when our children are grown and might have grandkids they’ll all be able to come and stay with us and enjoy this neighbourhood,” said Popowich,
who also finds the view from their home, featuring the ponds and the tree-lined Sturgeon River in the background, irresistible.
Just minutes from St. Albert, River’s Gate is comprised of gated estate homes, and executive bungalows on a non-gated side. It will have 146 homes when completed.
The first stage, with 45 lots, is selling well and is home to the large estate-style properties. Lots are available in the latest stage, all backing onto the ponds and walking trails.
Builders include Alquinn Homes, Henderson Quality Building and
Heredity.
River’s Gate also has 14 remaining executive bungalows in a secluded cul-de-sac available through Whisper Rock Homes — what Wiebe describes as a unique house style in rural estate communities. They’re on quarter-acre lots, and homes and yards are strategically designed for living in privacy.
River’s Gate, part of Sturgeon County for services and property taxes, is also looking to have some smaller estate lot options in the future. Lots in River’s Gate start at just under $370,000.