COTTAGE COUNTRY
Meridian Beach getaway
Growing up in Ontario, Paul Barbeau is no stranger to the benefits of cottage country.
Relaxing weekends by the water was something Paul wanted for his family and found just an hour and 40 minutes north of Calgary. Paul, his wife Catharine and their five children Jack, Isaac, William, Seth and Eva now have a getaway at Meridian Beach.
“We have a large family,” says Paul. “We were looking for a place where we could get away as a family and have extended family join us. But also a place that’s close enough in proximity to Calgary that we could go there every weekend. My job can be demanding and some- times I need to come back on short notice, and it accommodates that as well.”
Meridian Beach is an 84-hectare development by Calgary couple Norval and Nora Horner that stretches along Central Alberta’s scenic Gull Lake in a nod to Muskoka, Ont.
The community is approved for 240 lots, and 150 of them have been sold. Prices start from the $120,000s and lots on the lake are around $200,000. Since shovels first turned at the community, more than 100 cottages have taken root.
“People are surprising us by the size of the places that they want to build,” Norval says. “Originally, Nora and I envisioned that people would build cottages of maybe 1,000 square feet. But I would say our average size is probably over 2,000 square feet.”
The Barbeaus’ cottage is about 2,600 square feet with a fully finished basement.
“It’s really a home,” Paul says. "The thing about (cottages) is that they attract larger groups, including extended family. And when you start having extended family come, you need space.”
When the Barbeaus bought their cottage, it wasn’t just a short-term inventory, but something they hope to pass down through the generations.
“We bought it for now, so we could have extended family, but we also bought it for 20 years from now when our kids have kids and that can be a place for hopefully everybody to be together,” Paul says.
People who buy a lot at Meridian Beach are free to use the builder of their choice but the cottage has to fit within the community’s guidelines. Construction on their cot- tage has to start within four years of buying the lot and must be completed within five years.
Esthetics are an important part of the plan at Meridian Beach, including its charming craftsman architecture.
“Our architectural guidelines are working well ... that classic cottage theme,” Norval says. “We don’t allow vinyl siding. We look for steeper roof slopes and more of a classic style and that’s coming along very well. So, we’ve got a lot of very nice places built.”
But the homes are only part of the picture. The community has a spring-fed boating canal, two sandy beaches and looks out at 88 square kilometres of picturesque Gull Lake.
We bought it for now, so we could have extended family, but we also bought it for 20 years from now when our kids have kids.
“More than anything else, our community revolves around boating and being on the water,” Norval says.
“We, at this point, have 1.4 kilometres of canal. It’s very popular for all kinds of paddle boarding, canoeing, kayaking and the most popular thing people do there is wake surfing.”
Being on the water is also part of the appeal for the Barbeau family, who have a boat of their own.
“We have no shortage of people who want to join us on it,” says Paul.
“We do everything behind it from skiing to surfing to wake boarding to tubing.
“And then just going for rides on it, so there’s a little something for everybody.”
Meridian Beach also features tennis and basketball courts, pavilions, a community hall reminis- cent of an old railway station and three eye-catching bridges.
The bridges include a concrete bow-string, red pony truss and timberframe pedestrian.
And being along Gull Lake, another perk is the quick access to what Norval calls “excellent fishing.”
“The other day I counted that we had 14 people fishing from docks in the canal,” says Norval.