Answers to Important Questions

With the foreclosures on Churchill properties in Belvedere, Bret and I have been fielding phone calls and emails about how this affects us. We have also been, as always, listening to criticism of the project. I have tried to come up with some explanations for those who want to know. Here goes:

About the Foreclosures:
What I understand is that Churchill foreclosed on properties to protect potential buyers because some liens were being put on the properties that had nothing to do with the houses (called "judgments"). These were judgments are connected to other Churchill issues, not in Belvedere. AND there are mechanics liens on the properties, too. There were 19 on ours. I have no idea what is on the other properties (and it is not my business, really). Churchill got into financial difficulty because of the times we are in, like many other home builders. Yes, Bret and I are affected by the foreclosures in several ways.

• It is difficult to watch people we care about stress out. This includes Churchill owners AND the staff. We got attached to builders, as many of you who have built houses know, the carpenters and foreman become part of your family for a time. Josh Goldschmidt is amazing the way he stays balanced and upbeat despite many personal and professional difficulties. He and Jamie fought bankruptcy and saw foreclosing as a way to protect buyers instead of entangling the sales further.
• My neighbors are suffering, too. When a house goes to foreclosure it can be bought from the bank but AS IS. Those who got started with Churchill expected a finished house with a warranty. Who wants to buy a house that doesn't have a warranty and a long punch list? Josh has extended himself to say he will help finish houses and provide technical support through whatever means he can, but promises at this time are a little hard to take to the bank, so to speak. We are just in difficult times. Sometimes I just want to go to the builders and say, hey, cut it out, just do your job and finish the houses! But my savvy neighbors have put money in escrow that won't be paid until the work is complete. We have yet to see how potential buyers will complete the purchases of the houses sold to the bank on Friday.
• Is my house worth less than I paid for it in July? Probably. But, I am here for the long run folks. I am not turning my house around to make some money. I bought into Belvedere for the lifestyle, especially the connection to nature and health. This neighborhood is experimental, it is a model of living that brings many different kinds of people together. I am here for the health of it and I am watching to see how it shakes out. When people come at me with criticism of the project, how much the houses cost, etc., I say, it is a start in what I think is the right direction. People living close together sharing amenities and sometimes meals (definitely child friendly and pet friendly. It is nice to have someone watching over our house and cat when we go away.) Yes, I took risks when we became the pioneer and I am like that. This neighborhood design is sustainable and tries to include nature and health in the equation. It is my type of idea, and while the house is a lot fancier than anything I thought I would ever own, I decided that I was going to support this idea, better yet, I was going to live it. I decided. If you have criticisms then search yourself and wonder why.
  

The bottom line for me is that we are all concerned about whether or not Belvedere will be what it said it was going to be. As my neighbor has said, I didn't buy into Belvedere for the lot! We all signed up for whole package, the mix-use walkable neighborhood, and those of us who are pioneers have paid a hefty price tag. If the town center is not built, the organic farm not put in, the health programs not launched, then I will consider selling and moving on (Take Note Stonehaus.) Which leads me to another point:

"Expensive" and "Self-Segregating." Let's talk about this for a few minutes
We are living in times that might make a few of us pause and think maybe there are other ways to live. It is not comfortable to change. I recently went back up to Vermont where my friends said (and I have heard this here in Cville, too), isn't that going to be self-segregating community of people who can afford to live there? You know what, America, for all its rhetoric as a great melting pot, is self-segregating. I have never been in a more self-segragating arena than some of the communities I was in up in Vermont. In fact, they wanted to secede from the nation during the Bush presidency. It is not about money. I think people are just afraid of difference and want to take someone to task. Face it, we all want someone like us next to us, but if we are going to learn to live together then maybe a new model of living needs to be unrolled. Maybe now we are going to be forced to make a change.

My home and healing arts center in Vermont was bought by two families. The mothers were both healing arts practitioners, the fathers both very handy men. The men made a workshop out of the garage and the women work in the center. They are raising their children together. When people come at with me with this attitude that only rich people live in Belvedere then I say, well, there are town homes, there are duplexes, there will be apartments. But people don't want to give up their single family lifestyle or their land. Then, I say, accept the responsibility of that. The builders here are coming up with new designs, smaller homes. They are listening. Personally, I want one of those 800 sq. foot cottages. If you are truly interested in Belvedere, come on down and lets talk. If you have this argument that we are exclusive here, let's look at that. Yes, in some ways we won't have immigrant communities here or people who live below the poverty line, unless of course they decide that apartment living is okay with them, or even renting one of the carriage units. It is quite possible for two families to buy one of these big houses together and learn to live, love, and raise children together. How nice it would be to have another mother in my house. If I my life comes to that, I would definitely consider it.

A Model Of Health
We have a distinct approach in biodynamic craniosacral therapy that honors we call the health in system. As James Jealous, DO says, "The embryo does not make a mistake." As native peoples have said, we have Original Instructions, all of us human and more than human (nature). My first experiences with Belvedere were through Stonehaus and the philosophy behind the design that includes nature instead of looking to control or worse, just destroy it. While Stonehaus had to cut down the trees, they have planted many many more. This development company is trying very hard to do something different (and sell it, too, I might add, but what do you expect, they are businesspeople). I am a big picture person (and detail oriented, too). I saw Belvedere as a chance to consider a different way of living, one that is about WE, humans and nature. It is not perfect. I just hope that all the fear will not squelch it.

I miss my life in Vermont, the nature, the peace, the fire, the life close to the edge. And I am trying something different now.


What to do from here?
I am concerned about the current state of my neighborhood. Hauser has laid off people and work at the company's homes is at a crawl if at all. This has been a very difficult beginning to a new life. I have likened the building of this home to a difficult birth and my neighbors laugh and say, my home has a low Apgar score (the score given to babies at birth, the higher the score the better the condition of the baby.) That is how it is here. So, here are my questions for myself and anyone else, How do we make a repair with these pioneer families to keep them resourced and in good health? What do we do when a community starts out with such difficulty, under-resourced? How can I help increase the health in this system?

I have clearly planted my feet and, in a healing metaphor, am holding Belvedere and waiting for the health in the system to reset. Maybe we all doing that in these times for ourselves, our communities, our country. As a practitioner, I have learned to sit, hold and wait. It takes faith and belief in something larger than myself to continue. That's where I am at. Where are you?

Addendum

With the advent of September, it seems that a whole new crew of workers floods Belvedere every morning. Oh My God. It is amazing. And while I did write that the construction noise is irritating, ( or can be!), the presence of the new crew is energizing. Like Bret said, it means that work is being done and we are closer to completing the vision of Belvedere each day.

The Connexion people have been putting in the fiber optic system over the last few weeks. They camp out, in the rain, and in the sun. There is a box on the corner near our house and I have been watching them. One of them stopped us the day it rained to comment on the mud. And now the blaizng heat. What troopers.

The sidewarlk ends are filled in and the alley is going to be complete soon. Yay!

So, while living in a constuction zone is low-level stressful, it is also inspiring and exciting.

Home at Last

I has been a while since my last post and I apologize but we've been a bit busy (see Kate's post below). Between monitoring the finishing of the house to packing and moving, then closing, unpacking working out new schedules and routines...whew...well, I finally am starting to feel settled.

One balm has been the almost daily spectacle of the hot air balloons floating by in the early summer mornings. One day I'll be on one of them looking down I guess but for now it is a nice reward for getting up early.

Then come the sounds of Hauser and Church Hill workers starting in on the unfinished houses. For some that might be terribly annoying, but to me it is the sound of - completion - and I can't wait to have the houses and townhomes finished and occupied. As I tell people "I hate my neighbors", but now that another owner is moving in I can't say that any longer. It has been a trying and difficult time, certainly more challenging than I would have ever dreamed, but I feel strongly that we have turned a corner and things are only going to get better - much better.

We haven't gotten any bills yet (there has been a little glitch with the post office not handling our mail properly) but I promise to post them as they come in so we can get a sense of exactly how energy-efficient this house is. I won't make any conclusions for awhile as the season is turning, and we are still getting our house routines down, but it will be a nice long-term project.

One thing I can say is that the house (as Josh Goldschmidt had assured us) is very comfortable. It has a lovely airy feel to it, and whether the windows are open in the mornings or evenings or closed in the hotter afternoons it never feels stuffy or "artificial". It is also always a pleasant surprise to go to the top (attic) floor and have it be only a degree or two warmer than the one below.

So if you drive by in the evening and we're sitting on the porch chatting and looking peaceful it is because we are happy with where we are living.

One Month Report

Okay. As requested. Here is my one month report.

It has been exactly one month since we moved in. While the environment has been tough (no rain, subcontractors going on temporary strikes, businesses bought and sold, neighbors having to delay moving in), I have just loved living here. And we are not the first family to move here. I have met a family of crows (they are quite communicative), a herd of deer, and a flock of blue birds. Here is a short of list of the good and the bad.

The Bad first:

Living in a construction zone: It's not too bad but I don't like it much. The hammering and the generators can be loud but we knew that. And I really hate it when the construction workers whistle at me. Look, I am an old married lady (our 20th wedding anniversary is this week), definitely a maid, not a maiden, nothing to get too excited about. I run a lot, and yesterday when I ran by the crew working on the Hauser homes and I got that whistle, I thought, I am going go up close to those guys and give them a hard time. I didn't though I thought about it. I don't like that.

The Red Mud: Really, I like the mud. The tracks here are amazing, and my daughter loves the mud, too, but it gets on everything. We have to be careful to not track it into the house. Our shoes are probably going to be permanently stained (who cares?). I can't wait until the landscaping for the first phase is complete. The red mud is on the sidewalks, the grass is not growing anywhere. Ack!

Not Many Neighbors: Finally, the second home owner moved in yesterday. We can't wait for more people.

I am sure Bret has his short list, too, but over all, the development company has just been awesome, helping us every step of the way. The fiber optic communications is not in yet but the builder and developer, and the communication company Connexion, have been great.

The Good:

The Land: Whenever I think that maybe this was a mistake and I should have stayed in my private little sheltered life in Vermont, I go and sit on the land. It is a spiritual practice of mine anyway, and I have chosen a high spot on the land that stays a secret to you all because I don't want you finding me. Anyway, I sit there in the early morning in awe of the mountains and the trees. The view of the sunrise and the moonset is amazing, and then there are the hot air balloons. They come floating slowly over Belvedere and you definitely get the sense that, Toto, we are not in Kansas anymore. I feel imbued with a sense of magic and awe when I am out there.

The House: The house just rocks. I can't wait until more people move in to experience the feel of the structural design, the porches, the sidewalks. The light is awesome, the window treatments have been intense; what to choose? I am not really a house person, but my husband is, and the neighbors are. I just adore listening to them love their house, too. I look forward to really being a neighborhood.

The Trails: I am out on the trails everyday. I am told that the Belvedere trail system will be revealed shortly by the developer, Stonehaus, so I won't say too much here except that Dan Mahon and the Rivanna Trail people did an awesome job with the trail through the Dunlora woods. I run and walk down there all the time. My daughter and I spend time looking at all kinds of things along that trail, from the massive mastcrop trees to the spiders to the creek system and animal tracks and sign. Bret and I run along the trails down to Dunlora. The other day, massive amounts of grasshoppers flew up ahead of me as I ran through the Dunlora field trail. I will often find sign of animal behaviors in the flood plain, like coyote kill sites and deer paths, and of course, lots of frogs. The Zone has beautiful trails, if only I could keep the four-wheelers out. There is much to explore and love about the trails and the land.

The Builder and the Developer: The builder, Church Hill, has been just awesome. Even though they have clearly struggled, they have stayed in touch and are very gracious to us. And Stonehaus, you have also been great. I ask a lot of questions, and have tried to be measured in my approach to your vision but sometimes, I can't help myself. The potential is just too amazing and I tend to be exuberant anyway. I really think things have just begun here and are going to get better.

My Yard: The Permaculture Garden is still planned. I plan to put in a fence and some more plant beds. I hope to have the fruit trees planted this fall.

Other Amentities: The Fairview Swim Club was great this summer, just walking up and jumping in the pool. I hope my kids want to be on the swim team. SOCA is still planning the soccer field house, the Village Green will one day be green with the activities promised by Stonehaus, and there are plans for classes and other health-related activities that are not my place to say just yet. I know they are coming down the pike, though.

"We Need Powerful Rain"

The day the rain began to fall, the rain barrel man, Bryan Buckley called me about our rain barrels. He said, "The blessed rain has fallen." A perfect thing for the rain man to say. We have had no rain for almost 2 months, and the drought is keenly felt in Belvedere. Our lawn is green because Bret nurtured it like a newborn calf. We had been warned and worked over by the people who put it down. Everyone was concerned about landscaping in August. The seed/straw combinations put down in Belvedere did not produce much green, and the trees are suffering.



But the words, "We need powerful rain," came from my little girl, Eleanor, age 4. My husband asked her why. "Mud," she said. She is a mud specialist and I let her revel in it. With the recent rain, she donned her raincoat and boots and went out to find the muddy places. Also, she loves frogs. I went down to the Zone after the rain and said, "Eleanor, I saw many frogs down in the Zone," hoping to pique her curiosity so that we would go down there together. "What kind?" she asked. Wow, I thought, she is mentoring me. This is a mentor's question, getting the student to think about species identification. "Mainly tree frogs, " I said, "and some leopard frogs."

"Oh," she said. "I want a green frog." She paused. "And toads. . . . they are my favorite."

She's four years old and knows the frogs. Awesome.

We Set A Record

We set a record in Albemarle County with the number of liens on our property. Our closing date was set to be July 31, a Thursday, and move-in was that day, too. We had business in New England the week previous, and we knew that something was not quite right when we began to get emails from the settlement lawyer about the title. The first title we saw had about 5 liens, all filed from subcontractors who had not gotten paid by Church Hill. By the time we went to settle, there were 19 liens on the property, a record in Albemarle County. Bill Tucker, our most excellent settlement attorney worked his legal butt off the get that title clean as a whistle, because not only were there liens for people who were owed money, there were conditions that required Church Hill to get signatures from subcontractors who had not filed liens saying they would never file liens. Church Hill had to go around and get signatures in July when many people were on vacation, and well, the delay was intense.

I was still in New England when Bret called me and said, "I just had a conversation with our lawyer that a new home owner never wants to have." I had those conversations, too. Bill Tucker started calling us the Belvedere Poster Child, and amid threats that we were not going to close, we persevered. It was difficult though. But once the papers were signed and filed, Bret and I finally could relax and really be in our home.

Now, the second home owner has moved in to Belvedere. Church Hill properties in Belvedere have been bought by Eagle and new energy is flowing into the project. Things are moving in many different ways. Our esteemed realtor, Jim Duncan, says, "Belvedere will survive." It may be awhile, but I think Belvedere will thrive. Just watch.

We Have Met the Future

And it is us, to paraphrase an old saying.

Two recent articles in major newspapers about "development" could be about Belvedere.

Gas Prices Apply the Brakes to Suburban Migration

and

Gas prices drive push to reinvent America's suburbs

These say that urban development with businesses and residences are the wave of the future, Belvedere just adds Earthcraft homes, green space, community and organic garden, soccer fields, and cool nature-based activities.