| Sales of new and existing homes may be falling in Plymouth (and statewide), but at The Pinehills, the largest community being developed there and perhaps all of New England, sales were up last year, and 40 sold houses are under construction. It may not be a boom, but for the dead of winter in a tough economy, it ain't a bust. |
| Among the new crop is this condominium home in the Winslowe?s View neighborhood. The Pinehills is planned for 3,052 homes and 1.3M SF of mixed-use commercial space along with water, sewer, and roads. Since '01, it's leased 130k SF of offices and built and sold 1,340 residences at the 3200 acre community. Building this one is The Green Companies, one of nine builders putting their own stamp on the homes, from condo to custom built. Pinehills? Tony Green (whose family also happened to start The Green Companies) says having several builders ?offers buyers more choices and sets us apart.? As does sales growth. Priced from $300k-$2.5M, about 125 homes sold last year, five more than ?08. In '09, new and existing home sales fell 9.5% in Plymouth and 1.4% statewide, according to Banker & Tradesman. |
| Here's the sales center, aka Summerhouse, built to look classic Yankee, where prospective customer Marcia Barry sits with builder Bill Wennerberg of Barefoot Cottage Co. and Pinehills sales rep Paula Ariza. Many new residents, often working empty nesters, come from Plymouth and nearby South Shore towns. Others migrate from as far as CA and Saudi Arabia. This is far from the ?05 boom, when sales were double today, but Tony says he's hopeful about '10, with three homes already under agreement and eight reserved. |
| At Pinehills? new supermarket, manager Mark Guinasso (back left) rearranges a display. He's one of 80 people who work at the store. On the other side of the entry (with yellow scarf) is Pinehills' Mary Swan, one of about 20 on the real estate staff. The community, where two acres of open space is preserved for every acre developed, also has a new post office, caf, two restaurants, dry cleaner, liquor store; offices for doctors, a lawyer, financial planner, insurance agent, and a fire station, just like you'd expect in a small town. |
| We snapped Tony working his most important job, spending time with son Matt, 16, at a high school gym where brother Ben, 13, was playing in a b-ball tourney against visiting Needham. Like our Pats, they lost but look good doing it. About developing a 20 plus-year project, Tony says it's like having a family, ?You have to be set up to withstand the tough times, so you can thrive in good times.? |
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