A Glance Back is a Glimpse of Future Development

A history of The Ridge

Lots of people want to be “in the know” about Russell Lands development activity. As the owner of the largest amount of developable waterfront on Lake Martin, Russell Lands development plans can have a large impact on ownership opportunities. Since we are patient developers, our release schedule looks slow by “normal” standards.

For those trying to deduce where and when we are going to develop, it might help to look back at our development history. With so many neighborhoods to consider and limited space in this format, this article will focus on The Ridge, our largest development on the lake to date.

Where The Ridge began

In the late 1990s, it was clear that Russell Lands was nearing the end of the sales process for three different neighborhoods: River Oaks, Trillium and Willow Point. As the company considered the options available for development, a series of peninsulas in the center of the lake became the best choice.

The positives for the 850-acre property was that it was located near State Highway 63 on Windermere Road near the Windover and Windermere neighborhoods and large enough to supply developable property for the foreseeable future. The development team also noted that this area of the lake needed a marina, and a perfect site was chosen at the center of the property.

The decision was made to develop the northern peninsulas (Phases 1 and 2), the bridge to The Ridge Island and the marina with service facility, wet-slips, courtesy docks and dry stack storage in time for a 2001 release to the market. Right on schedule, the Phase 1 plat with 88 waterfront lots was recorded in February of 2001. Phase 2, with 109 waterfront lots, was opened to the market in March of 2003.

Initially, sales were slow due to internal competition with other Russell Lands developments, but with the advent of the Approved Builder Program and homebuilding program, sales for waterfront lots grew from nine in 2003 to 78 lots in 2004 and 62 in 2005. By 2007, virtually all of the Russell Lands-owned homesites in Phases 1 and 2 were sold.

In 2005, The Ledges townhome section began sales and construction, as did the construction of The Ridge Club. In 2006, construction began on Phases 3 and 4—south of the neighborhood’s entrance. During that period, Russell Lands also started planning for Russell Crossroads and The Russell Forest.

Recession Years

2009 through 2013 were challenging years for the national real estate market. For The Ridge, we created new home designs and were patient with sales and development. By 2012, we had perfected a popular product type, The Russell Cabins, and development of the cabin sector began that year with the final phase coming to the market in 2018.

Both the cabin product and craftsman designs found in Phase 4 proved to be very popular lake home styles, even in the recession years. These designs allowed The Ridge to continue to grow and maintain momentum in advance of the real estate recovery nationwide.

Recent Period

In 2014, we released Phase 8 and in 2015, Phase 7. Yes, we worked backwards. These phases started at the old Dixie Sailing Club property northward towards Phase 4 on the southern peninsula. That allowed us to build the full infrastructure (water, sewer, power) for the entire peninsula at one time. To date, we have not developed Phase 5, Phase 6, or The Ridge Island.

So far, 410 waterfront properties have been developed in The Ridge since 2001, with 300 homes built as of this writing and numerous projects currently underway.

Lot sales prices averaged roughly $265,000 in 2004 and rose to roughly an average of $430,000 in the last year (a 62.26% increase). As for house prices, in 2004, a local appraiser said that fewer than 10 properties sold for above $1,000,000 on all of Lake Martin. Last year, 20 homes sold in The Ridge for an average price of $1,275,000, leading the market in average price.

What to look for

As you can see, completion of The Ridge is on the horizon. The amenities are in place, the cabin sector is complete, and we have developed to the southern tip, leaving Phase 5, Phase 6 and The Ridge Island to be developed. It should be fairly easy to deduce what comes next.

To stay informed on what comes next, call one of our Sales Executives at 256.215.7011 about availability and future development activity.