WELCOME TO EDEN WYLDE
Adult-lifestyle bungalows and so much more in the rapidly expanding west end of Stittsville
Sandy Sanderson is the first to admit that she’s picky. Very picky, actually.
When someone comes to the door with something to sell, she says, her next-door neighbour will tell them: “If you can talk the people next door into getting it, we’ll get it, too.
“My husband and I do exhaustive research; all our friends laugh at us,” she says. So the fact that Sanderson and her husband, Randy, quickly signed on for an adult-lifestyle semi-detached bungalow by Tamarack Homes at the new development of EdenWylde when it launched in September amounts to a ringing endorsement for the builder and the community.
“We’re so excited about the move that it’s nice to talk about it,” she says.
Granted, their journey to buying a new home was not a snap decision — it was two years in the making — but having done all that groundwork meant that when they walked into a model home of the floor plan they ultimately bought, they knew it was the right home and the right time.
“I’m not an emotional buyer, neither my husband nor I. Yes, I wanted to move and, yes, I was driven to do that, but we researched and we looked at the specifics very carefully,” she says.
For these 70-something snowbirds, it was important to make the move on their terms and before they were forced to by circumstances. While they live in a bungalow nearby now, it is a larger one, with a pool and extensive gardens.
“We wanted to continue living the way we live, we just wanted the scaled-down version of it,” says Sanderson. “You don’t know what health issues you’re going to have in the future.”
But while Tamarack is offering adult-lifestyle bungalow singles, semis and townhomes (two-storey towns will come later), EdenWylde is not just an adult-lifestyle community. Builders Tartan Homes (a longtime collaborator with Tamarack) and Cardel Homes are also selling at EdenWylde, offering two-storey singles and towns.
Located in Stittsville, in the city’s booming west end, EdenWylde will ultimately see about 770 homes spread across 93 acres along Fernbank Road near Shea Road. It’s an area that has seen rapid growth recently, with several other builder developments either recently launched or already established.
The community takes its name from the farm that used to be on the property, called Glen Eden, says Anisa Smith, sales manager for Tartan, which is the site’s developer. But unlike many former farmer’s fields that are flat and featureless, this property offers variations in elevation, which means there will be some back-splits and walkout basements for variety.
It also benefits from the green space of the hydro corridor along Shea Road, a large park that’s to be built and two adjacent stormwater ponds.
“Stormwater ponds turn into these central beautiful features within communities,” says Smith.
“They’re necessities in terms of the management of drain water runoff, but then you put a park around them, you have a path around them and they become these really nice natural features throughout the community.”
EdenWylde is also central to the plentiful amenities, schools, recreation and services of both Stittsville and Kanata. What makes it special is how it’s tucked into existing residential development, says Tanya Buckley, Cardel’s vice-president of sales and marketing. “It’s its own little pocket, its own sort of intimate little community as opposed to being part of a big master planned overall community.”
All three builders launched within a couple of weeks of each other in September and interest has been strong, they say.
Cardel, which launched with primarily townhomes, almost sold out the first week, prompting another release of townhomes a month later.
“Our towns have flown off the shelf,” says Buckley. “I’m not surprised to see the success of the towns because there’s been pentup demand and little inventory.”
Sales have been a little slower for both Tartan and Tamarack, but that’s to be expected, they say, particularly since all three builders are selling from other sites while they wait for servicing of the land, which is underway.
Both Tartan and Tamarack are selling from their nearby development of Poole Creek, while Cardel is selling from Blackstone in Kanata.
None of the builders sees opening another development so close to their existing ones as competing against themselves. Tamarack, which opened yet another project almost kitty corner to EdenWylde a week after the EdenWylde launch, is selling only the adult-lifestyle homes at EdenWylde, while its other new community — Westwood — offers singles and townhomes, and the project where sales of all three are centred — Poole Creek — is close to selling out.
Tartan is also winding up at Poole Creek, which will make EdenWylde its only west-end community.
Cardel also has Blackstone nearby, but the current phase is almost sold out and the new phase — Blackstone South, which will open soon — will have different homes and price points than EdenWylde, says Buckley.
The builders expect it will be next fall before they are able to relocate sales to the EdenWylde site, at which time they should also have models ready to open and the first closings for buyers.
Cardel has new designs of its single-family homes at EdenWylde to fit the slightly narrower lots, and its Forest series of townhomes from Miller’s Crossing in Carleton Place are being introduced here.
Tartan is tweaking its lineup of homes ahead of an expected change in the building code in the next couple of years that will require 10-inch treads on staircases, says Smith. “It actually requires in some cases quite a redesign of the home.”
Tartan’s new Apple series of townhomes, introduced at Findlay Creek a couple of months ago and available at EdenWylde, already have the 10-inch treads, she says. “The nice thing about it is it really makes the staircases feel a lot more spacious.”
And while Tamarack’s adult-lifestyle lineup is similar to what it released last year at Cardinal Creek in Orléans, the floor plans have seen some tweaks.
Another perk is a dedicated community building, which will be used by the adult-lifestyle residents for activities and functions of their choice.
“It’s really a great venue; it’s a lovely place to gather,” says Tamarack sales associate Deborah Denison. The semis in particular “are extremely popular. We made some adjustments from our last semis — they’re two feet wider, including more space in the garage — and people are really loving them.”
The homes tend to appeal to downsizers seeking lower maintenance, like the Sandersons.