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Interesting Lake Travis Articles

Lake Travis community survives boom along RM 620

Traffic moves briskly these days on RM 620, the four-lane road that winds through the heart of the Lake Travis area. Impatient drivers coming up in the rear-view mirror probably won't allow you much time to slow down and take in the changes to this area, but quick glances will reveal shopping centers and subdivisions popping up everywhere along RM 620 from the once-remote outpost of Bee Cave to the once-rural RM 2222.

In the midst of this dizzying explosion, the Hudson Bend community, first built up in the 1940s, offers a respite of sorts, as well as a reminder of the way much of this area felt before the recent boom. Driving deep into the peninsula along Hudson Bend Road, you see wildflowers and cactus set behind metal mailboxes and cedar fenceposts. Modest low-slung homes are nestled behind oaks, and the occasional somewhat grandiose architectural experiment sits perched on a bluff. Lake views beckon all the while.

"It's an eclectic area," says Roxann Johnson, a Hudson Bend resident for more than 20 years and the on-site proprietor of the Bed Rox, a bed-and-breakfast on a wooded 5-acre site.

Life here is still a bit looser than in the neighboring city of Lakeway. A grizzled old lake character in an RV with cars on blocks in his yard might live down the road from a million-dollar mansion. Good-time places include the legendary funky Carlos' N Charlie's on the water and the elegant restaurant Hudson's on the Bend. One minute you're passing ubiquitous boat repair places, the next you're nearing the Austin Yacht Club.

About Hudson Bend:

Location: North of RM 620, northeast of Lakeway, on a peninsula jutting into Lake Travis, across the lake from Lago Vista.

Schools: Lake Travis Independent School District

Amenities: Boating and marinas, with scenic views and eclectic dining

The market: In May, sales of single-family homes in the real-estate zone that includes Hudson Bend were down about 5.8 percent from a year ago. The median price was $361,500, up about 1.7 percent from a year ago. On average, it takes 150 days to sell a home there, according to the Austin Board of Realtors.

A Different Side of Lake Living

People are discovering northern shores of Lake Travis for small towns, gorgeous views at affordable prices

NORTH LAKE TRAVIS — Looking ahead to retirement, Dan and Laurie Sullenbarger thought they'd find their second home on the Florida coast.

But two years ago, hurricanes Rita and Katrina altered the game plan for the couple, who live in Spring, on Houston's north side.

While at their second-home getaway, the Sullenbargers live amid the deer, roadrunners, wild turkeys, quail, jackrabbits and other wildlife that inhabit the lake's environs.

"It truly is a back-to-nature experience," says Dan Sullenbarger, who's familiar with gridlocked HOV (high-occupancy vehicle) lanes but who, on a recent 45-minute walk through Waterford with Laurie, 54, saw only one car.

The gates aren't closing behind the Sullenbargers.

From its boating, sailing and other water sports and recreational activities to its well-regarded schools and nationally recognized golf courses, Lake Travis is seeing growth push to its northern shore.

Not everyone is happy about the changes transforming this rural lakefront community. Some property owners say the new development isn't being handled responsibly. They are concerned that some of the higher-density projects will detract from the area's character, quality of life and schools that are ranked among some of the state's best. But with the southern shore largely developed and with selling points such as new toll-road access and relatively moderate prices, the Lake North area designated by the Austin Board of Realtors is seeing heightened activity from developers who are building or planning hundreds of new homes and condominiums. They are seeking to meet current and anticipated demand from the growing number of retirees, families and vacation- and second-home owners who are being drawn to the area's waterfront charm and amenities.

More than 7,000 acres are under development along the RM 1431 corridor, west of U.S. 183 toward the lake, said Mark Sprague, a partner in the Austin office of Residential Strategies, which tracks the housing market.

Just as the Lakeway and Steiner Ranch areas to the south saw a tremendous growth spurt several years ago when the bridge under Mansfield Dam was completed, "we are seeing the same dynamics happen with the north side of the lake and the opening of the toll roads," Sprague said. Drive times to downtown Austin, for example, have decreased from two hours to about 30 to 45 minutes, Sprague said.

Lake North home prices historically have lagged the southern shore. But the Lago Vista and Jonestown areas have seen significant appreciation in the past two years, Sprague said.

Still, local real estate agents say the area's comparative affordability continues to attract buyers.

The median new home price is $500,000 to $700,000, Sprague said, a far cry from where it was in the past.

Existing home prices also are climbing. The median price rose to $255,000 last year, up 64.5 percent compared with $155,000 in 2003, though still below Lake South's 2006 median of $335,000. One-acre lots in the Lake North area have jumped from $50,000 to $400,000 in the past few years, Sprague said. Dan Sullenbarger says he experienced "a bit of sticker shock associated with all of Lake Travis," but says it didn't deter him and his wife from buying. And he is realistic about the coming changes, saying it's "only a matter of time until the north side is populated as well."

"The folks are going to be coming this way more and more because people are attracted to the water. It's a beautiful lake. That's a mixed blessing, to be honest."

Good deals still to be found As someone who owns a condominium and several rental properties on the lake's north side, Risé Johns has a front-row seat to an area at a crossroads.

Johns, a transplant from Illinois who has lived in the Austin area since 1980, settled with her husband in Lago Vista in 2002.

"We spent about two years looking all over the lake, and we just kept coming back to Lago Vista," she said. "It was the best bang for the buck."

And despite the recent sale of a $5.5 million estate in Waterford, there's plenty of more moderately priced properties, she says, pointing out on a recent tour a three-bedroom, 1,850-square-foot home in "pristine" condition on a golf course that sold for $200,000.

Newcomers run the gamut, from primary- to second-home owners, and Central Texans to out-of-towners. "We're flooded with people from Houston," Johns says.

The new U.S. 183A toll road and this year's arrival of a Super S Foods grocery in Lago Vista "have had a massive impact on our market," Johns says.

Strict ordinances in Lago Vista — from rules limiting commercial zoning to ordinances requiring homeowners to plant a tree elsewhere for every one they remove — have helped protect the area's beauty, Johns says.

"They're trying not to become like some lake developments that have uncontrolled commercial growth and a billboard on every corner," Johns says.

But some residents aren't pleased with the direction growth is taking.

The grassroots Lago Vista Citizens for Responsible Growth and Government recently formed to protest the Sunset Harbor development, which would bring 200 condominiums and a hotel next to an existing residential community. The developer is seeking a zoning change.

Maureen Raymond, a member of the group who lives nearby, says the project would bring a high-density commercial development to an area where zoning prohibits it. In addition to the anticipated increase in property values, some residents are concerned about the increased noise and traffic Raymond says the project would bring.

The group also is concerned about the environmental effects of that and other developments on the landscape, including clear cutting and disrupting the habitat of herons and golden-cheeked warblers, a federally protected endangered species.

Sunset Harbor developer Jeff Dolen did not return calls seeking comment.

"(Development) is definitely at a turning point," says Raymond, adding that she and her husband, who moved to the area in 1999, have persuaded their son and daughter-in-law, Gary and Carrie Markham, to move there with their five children, ages 4 to 14.

Raymond stresses that she and others opposing Sunset Harbor are not anti-growth, and support other projects that are "well-thought out."

"We are among the fortunate few who have been able to move to this area, and we want other people to do the same thing," Raymond says. "We want them to move here and come visit and relax and enjoy the beautiful, natural surrounding of Lake Travis and have the same quality of life."

Eye on growth About 60,000 people now live in the Lago Vista-Jonestown-Cedar Park area, up 82 percent from 33,000 in 2000, according to Brian Kelsey, assistant director of economic development for the Capital Area Council of Governments.

Although most of the population growth is concentrated in Cedar Park, which nearly doubled in size from 2000 to 2006, both Lago Vista and Jonestown are growing quickly, about twice as fast as Travis County as a whole, says Kelsey, who tracks migration patterns across Central Texas for the agency.

Lago Vista grew from 4,600 residents in 2000 to 5,800 residents in 2006, and Jonestown increased from 1,700 to 2,100 people during that time.

"It's not a lot of people numerically, but definitely enough in percentage terms to feel like the areas are growing very rapidly," Kelsey says. "It's very similar to what is going on in many of the 5,000- to 10,000-population cities in our region."

George "Bam" Look, who opened Bam's Roadhouse Grill in Lago Vista in 2003, said there's no doubt the area is "on the map."

Unlike some of its waterfront counterparts, "it's laid-back and unpretentious here," Look says. "When you've got this to offer, growth is inevitable."

Look's eatery is distinguished by its chef, Tommy Williams, formerly an institution at the Night Hawk, Onion Creek Country Club, Green Pastures and the Westwood Country Club, where he fed the likes of George W. Bush and Ann Richards during their Texas governorships. Both Look and Williams commute daily from Austin.

Lago Vista resident John Vohs says he and his wife, Charlene, traveled far and wide before retiring, and knew nothing about the lake area until one of Charlene's sons moved to Austin.

"When we visited in 1998, we were told to check out Lago Vista and found it to be ideal for us, even though it was out from North Austin, where my stepson lived," John Vohs said. "We liked the friendliness of the people, and the costs were better than we had seen in other areas."

The couple bought a condominium in the new Vista Villas project. Checking into the new condo high-rises in Austin, they faced prices of up to $400 a square foot, John says.

"We decided we could still get into Austin for the cultural events we like, and move into the Vista Villas condos for a lot less cost and still enjoy the benefits of a small friendly community," he says. "Lago Vista is currently experiencing some rapid growth that has and will continue to change its previous sleepy nature. But we like most of what we see happening."

 Furniture exec building landmark mansion on the lake

Family says water has peaceful effect on daugher, who has obsessive-compulsive disorder
Sunday, July 15, 2007

Jim and Linda McIngvale were drawn to Lake Travis by the same qualities that are attracting other people: the beauty of one of Texas' most pristine lakes.

But for Linda and her husband, the high-profile Houston furniture-store owner known as "Mattress Mac," the lake's beauty has an added benefit: the calming, therapeutic effect its clear blue waters hold for their 20-year-old daughter, Elizabeth.

Elizabeth is the national spokesperson for the Obsessive Compulsive Foundation. Diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder at age 12, Elizabeth later founded Peace of Mind, a nonprofit group that raises money for research and education for the disorder.

"She does well when she's on water," says Linda McIngvale.

The couple's other daughter, Laura, 21, who attended college in Austin, steered her parents to Lake Travis "because it's the prettiest lake in the state," Linda says.

Two years ago, the McIngvales began building a palatial 26,000-square-foot estate and 6,000-square-foot guest house on the lake's northern shore.

Construction is expected to wrap up in August, and neighbors say the home is sure to become a landmark in the area.

Featuring marble columns and window casings, the Italianate-style house is being built for about $8 million to $10 million, Linda says. The builder is Chanely Homes LLC.

"It's a great area, and we're thrilled to be there," says Jim McIngvale, the pitchman in his Gallery Furniture television advertisements.

The couple had scouted properties in the area, including the lake's south side, before stumbling on a point that water surrounds on three sides. They bought the six-lot site from a friend.

"It was such a phenomenal piece of property," Linda says. "We're told it's the only private point on the lake in Lago Vista, and the view is fantastic."

The main house will have seven bedrooms, seven full bathrooms and three half-bathrooms. It also will include a four-lane bowling alley, plus exercise, theater and game rooms.

The grounds will have a tennis court, a putting green, a driving range and a firepit, among other amenities.

The estate was designed "to make it to where when we go down there, there's no reason to leave," Linda says.

The spread will provide plenty of opportunities for entertaining. With 10 bedrooms, the guest house will serve as a hotel of sorts, allowing the McIngvales to accommodate up to 20 of their employees.

The McIngvales hope to be at their new home on weekends, and eventually might retire there, Linda says.

*Information herein deemed reliable but not guarnteed. Articles written and published by Austin American Statesman.