LAKE LIVING NEAR HOME
Cottageclub community at Ghost Lake puts families back in touch with nature without a long drive
Summers with friends in the Shuswap Lakes area of British Columbia were special times for Brad Sanesh as he was growing up.
The lake lifestyle was something he and his wife Kirsty wanted for their children.
Finding a similar lake community in Alberta with a place to build their dream cottage was tough going, until one fateful night at the games table.
“A friend of mine said to check out Cottageclub at Ghost Lake. He'd just sold his cottage north of Calgary to buy a place there. He said it's so close to Calgary that you'll go two, three or four times more often,” says Sanesh, a junior high school principal.
Cottageclub is a 92-acre gated community on Ghost Lake, 45 kilometres west of Calgary on Highway 1A.
The lake was created in 1929 when then-calgary Power Ltd. dammed the Bow River.
The adjacent year-round resort development was founded in 2010 by developer Lamont Land.
For Brad, Kirsty and their children, ages 10, six and two, the drive to Cottageclub from their home in Airdrie was ideal.
“Most weekends, we'll stay over Sunday night and drive into work and school in the morning, which gives us a three-day weekend every weekend. If we'd chosen a different location, that wouldn't be possible,” Brad says.
Don Stengler, Lamont project manager, says there have been many changes and improvements to the resort since 2010.
Originally, cottages were built on piles and potable water came from holding tanks. The developer has since added natural gas service to each home site and water comes from an on-site treatment plant.
“We evolved fairy quickly from piles to crawl spaces and kept going from there. Our buyers also wanted foundations and basements,” he says.
There are a few remaining lots in Phase 4 and another 55 lots coming in the final phase to be released later this spring. Lots are priced from $109,000 to more than $500,000 and there is no commitment to build. Owners purchase their lot from Lamont and can use their own builder, who must follow strict architectural guidelines and build on a 950-square-foot foundation.
They can also choose from a list of preferred builders.
Stengler says the community's concept of building smaller, highend homes is new for Alberta.
“Calgarians are used to larger homes. When we started, building something 950 square feet above grade, to the quality that we're building, was unusual,” he says.
Brad and Kirsty used Braemyn Homes to build their one and a half storey cottage on a lot with lake and mountain views. With three levels of developed space and a suite over the garage, the Sanesh family has maximized their small footprint. Through smart design and a three-foot overhang on the second floor, they've managed to pack in five bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, a rec room and an Irish pub in the basement.
“It's the best 24 square feet in Cottageclub. It has certainly accelerated meeting new friends, outside of COVID,” Brad says with a grin.
His 10-year-old daughter Faith says she loves the view of nature from every window.
“We usually see deer and cute baby fawns, too. There's no `boredness' here. There's something to do every single minute you're here,” Faith says.
Ghost Lake is technically a reservoir, but swimming and water sports are permitted. Lamont has turned the resort into a recreational paradise with private docks, tennis, pickleball, basketball and beach volleyball courts. There's a
recreation centre with a pool, gym, library, commercial kitchen and dining hall.
“There's an observatory because it's a lowlight community (Dark Sky) and the stars are amazing to see,” Brad says.
Monthly condo fees are $195, which includes amenities, maintenance, garbage and recycling and upkeep of the water treatment plant.
As a gated community with restricted speed limits, kids are free to roam. Stengler says the goal was to bring back the type of freedom he personally had growing up in the 1960s.
“There are kids hanging out everywhere, from six to 16, girls and boys. They're down in the coulee building forts. We strive for that safety factor,” he says.