A new residental development in Omaha

futrecndvlpr · Post by **futrecndvlpr** » Sun Jul 03, 2005 5:25 pm

futrecndvlpr is a new home/condo/townhome/row house owener.

Something, as far as I know, new to the Omaha area, the Village at Sprague (http://www.tritonhomesusa.com). I think this is the type of development that many of us wish there were more, at least from the density perspective. They are obvisously very affordable and I don't think they look quit as cookie-cutter as a Celebrity Home.

Anyway, take a peak at the webiste.

eomaha · Post by **eomaha** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:16 am

Looks like a nice first home there futrecndvlpr. I would assume Ryan would have some input on Triton, being they're out of Des Moines (and obviously have several developments there already). I like what they're trying to do... hopefully this will turn on some lightbulbs in other area developers heads. I haven't been up in this part of town for a while... how far along is the development?

Big E · Post by **Big E** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 9:07 am

This type of development is pretty typical in the areas between DC and Baltimore, except not just in the starter home category. You can spend hundreds and hundreds of thousands on townhomes like these in that area.

I would love to see all future suburban development in/around Omaha "guided" (ie, incentives) towards this type of development. If there's ever going to be a real mass transit system, it will have to come out of, through and near these types of neighborhoods.

-Big E

OmahaChef · Post by **OmahaChef** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:27 pm

Big E is right. On the east coast, and definitely around Baltimore and DC, this type of construction is everywhere. There are even a number of them in my hometown in PA, and I've seen a lot of them in Phiadelphia and Virginia too. This is what people on the east coast refer to as a townhouse or townhome. Here that word seems to have a totally different meaning.

I like them! If they weren't way out in West O, I'd have to consider the possibility.

futrecndvlpr · Post by **futrecndvlpr** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:28 pm

I didn't count, but for memory, there are about 10 units completed or near completion. Another 10-15 are at various stages of construction. The first phase, roughly 1/3 of the development is supposed to be completed by '06. Thus far I would say about 70% of phase one is sold.

The only thing that is missing is some of that first floor retail. I harken back to my days in Portland where entire communites (grocery, gas, bookstore, Starbucks of course) were built in similar fashion.

lonnie · Post by **lonnie** » Mon Jul 04, 2005 4:34 pm

futrecndvlpr wrote:...The only thing that is missing is some of that first floor retail. I harken back to my days in Portland where entire communites (grocery, gas, bookstore, Starbucks of course) were built in similar fashion.

This concept was tried in southeast PA, "Stoudtburg Village".
http://www.stoudtburgvillage.com/SALES.htm

It was (is) a failure, some of which was construction problems (peeling EIFS for example), the location was more like Gretna than Omaha.

The biggest problem is you need a critical mass to make this work, like the size of Village Pointe. Then you have to figure out where the shoppers and homeowners will park. Unfortunately, parking was never an issue at "Stoudtburg Village", though a cool idea. My wife an I visited a couple of times, but no reason to go back.

More pics:
http://imageevent.com/ralf/pennsylvania/stoudtburg

futrecndvlpr · Post by **futrecndvlpr** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 12:19 pm

So what you are telling me is that the house may at any moment implode?

Swift · Post by **Swift** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 1:31 pm

I sort of like the concept, though I can't say I'm a big fan aethetically speaking.

Raraavis · Post by **Raraavis** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 2:55 pm

I like the idea, and I have seen areas in other cities where they look nice, but these are ugly. The color scheme is horrible.

OmahaChef · Post by **OmahaChef** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 4:29 pm

What is the pricing for these homes?

futrecndvlpr · Post by **futrecndvlpr** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 7:46 pm

I may have a jaded view, but I like the color scheme.

They go for around $120k, depending on the which of limited number of options you select.

I would agree with Icejammer, I am going to guess that any Celebrity or Hearthstone home in this price range is going to be constructed in a similar nature.

For me personally, it is really not an option to own a home, seeing that I am out of town 30-50% of the time. That leaves me renting or living in a condo. This worked out to be a great situation for a 23 year old single male.

Harpoon · Post by **Harpoon** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:20 pm

$120,000 would get you a decent house in the Midtown area. Not "new", but they used to make houses to last back then.

WT · Post by WT » Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:25 pm

Big E wrote: I would love to see all future suburban development in/around Omaha "guided" (ie, incentives) towards this type of development. If there's ever going to be a real mass transit system, it will have to come out of, through and near these types of neighborhoods.

-Big E

I hope that you were speaking about the density of these things and not the aesthetics. These things are dogshit. The density is nice, but if Omaha gives incentives for this kind of development there needs to be some codes for some of the building material and orientation of the garages.

Is the exterior photo on the website the front or the back? When I look at the "facades" of these "rowhomes" I am reminded of a Storage Unit facility. Lines among lines of garage (with a Celebrity Home on top of it). These things might be kind of cool if the exterior shot of these are the backs of the homes and the alley rather than the front.

WT · Post by WT » Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:28 pm

Harpoon wrote:$120,000 would get you a decent house in the Midtown area. Not "new", but they used to make houses to last back then.

Good point Harpoon. You could get a kick-|expletive| home in Midtown for $120,000. And, you wouldn't have to live in the "newly constructed projects."

OmahaChef · Post by **OmahaChef** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 8:35 pm

Celebrity has those duplex townhomes which are in a similar price range, but I think the floor plan of the Triton homes is far superior. I think you made a wise choice given your situation. I really like the floorplans, as well as the exteriors. Of course, as mentioned in a previous post, coming from the east coast, I am very used to this style of home. I like the density. It's the main reason they are popular back east. To keep the price affordable connected townhomes use far less land. And the fact the landscape is maintained can be nice too.

As for colors...I haven't seen the specific color palate of this project, but given that all suburban homes here are painted in those muted earth tones to match the color of the land in winter, any splash of color would be a bit refreshing.

eomaha · Post by **eomaha** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 9:43 pm

futrecndvlpr, I think this fits your needs well... and it is a basic concept which will just continue to grow in demand. At a very minimum, it is a decent investment which, should perhaps you get hitched and look for something larger, could either go a long ways towards a down payment... or better yet, you could hold onto it and rent it out.

Uffda · Post by **Uffda** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 10:14 pm

futrecndvlpr, These sound like a good fit for your lifestyle right now. If you are traveling that much having a yard to take care of and a driveway to shovel in one of those midtown houses just wouldnt work for you.

DMRyan · Post by **DMRyan** » Tue Jul 05, 2005 11:05 pm

I thought one of the coolest features of the Triton homes was the 10-12 vaulted ceilings on the top level. Look at the way the roof is pitched, that equals a lot ceiling space for the upstairs bedrooms.

I can testify that these homes aren't built the best and they may not be perfect from the outside, but for a person in their early 20's actually building equity, I would say they're pretty damn good. The interiors are fresh, the appliances new, and you don't have all the maintenance issues/landscaping of an older single family home.

Also, if the Omaha development is anything like the ones in Des Moines, the garage doors unfortunately face the fronts of the buildings. The looks of these things from the exterior would be improved quite a bit if they would tuck the garages in behind with access from an alley instead.

Finn · Post by **Finn** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 11:04 am

I think they look fine! Town homes are becoming more prevalent all over the country. I am working on a town home project in the Shreveport, LA area. Another place that has very little multi-family for sale product, but developers are seeing the benefits and it is gaining in popularity. I think you made a wise investment futrecndvlpr.

futrecndvlpr · Post by **futrecndvlpr** » Wed Jul 06, 2005 5:21 pm

Hey, I am not buying by dream home. Thanks for the feedback everyone and thanks for the email Ryan. I

think in the future we would all like to see more developments of this type of density with some first floor retail and perhaps a little mass transit to boot.

From the hometown of Garth Brooks, I am out.

Raraavis · Post by **Raraavis** » Wed Aug 31, 2005 1:41 pm

I like the density, but the colors are horrible.

Swift · Post by **Swift** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 12:03 am

Are these the ones in Omaha?

I also like the density and am not a big fan of the colors. I also wish they were a little closer to the street. They're not bad though.

Raraavis · Post by **Raraavis** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 8:50 am

These are the ones in Omaha at 145th and Sprague (two blocks north of maple).

Big E · Post by **Big E** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 9:52 am

Great function. Terrible form. How come development around here seems to always sacrifice one for the other?

-Big E

joeglow · Post by **joeglow** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 9:56 am

I hope these take off. That way, the prices of nice looking homes, where my children have room to actually play OUTSIDE (what a concept today) will, hopefully drop as people move into these.

loyalomahan · Post by **loyalomahan** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 1:22 pm

Open your mind nimwit. These are being marketing to single people and couples without children. Given they sell for only about $115k, they are a great alternative to renting an apartment.

And if families and the American society as a whole would have gone this route (within nearby mass transit) instead of sprawling single families dwelling neighborhoods, maybe we wouldn't be in the gasoline/transportation crisis we're in today. Given no one can easily walk to the store and/or entertainment, we'll likely see a plunge in spending on such things, as people become more sensitive to their driving habits. The economy will take a hit, jobs will be lost, and dumb SUV driving Americans will be left scratching their heads wondering what happened ("Open up the Alaska wildlife refuge for drilling!", "Release the strategic oil reserves!", "blah, blah, blah!").

joeglow · Post by **joeglow** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 2:25 pm

I figure paying $6 a gallon would cost me about $3,000 a year. While that is a lot, it certainly will not break me. That is worth it for to not have to live on top of someone else and to provide my children with the means to go outside and play, without competing with the other 50 kids crawling on the slides and using the 6 swings at the park.

loyalomahan · Post by **loyalomahan** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 2:35 pm

Well of course, we're Americans, more than happy to rape the earth of it's resources to a far greater extent than anyone else in the world so as to benefit ourselves and our children.

Post by **Brad** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 8:31 pm

They look like three Hearthstone homes smashed together

OmahaChef · Post by **OmahaChef** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 10:06 pm

You are right, the colors on these are horrible. They should be the muted colors of mud, which almost every suburban development in Omaha sports. The one thing I most noticed when I moved here. Everything is the color variation of dirt. Makes for a great brownish, tannish look. Matches the farmland in Fall, Winter, and early Spring. Darn these developers that think white, a blueish tint, and a mud color is a good thing!

the1wags · Post by **the1wags** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 10:33 pm

I guess I'm one of the few that also thinks that these are not bad. I'm also sick of the brown tan sand for miles look. I like the ones on the west edge of West Des Moines best looks wise. Hopefully they will build more here with that decor. Im actually thinking of looking into one of these. Now I'm paying about 5 bills to own jack squat, I might as well pay 6 fiddy towards owning something.

eomaha · Post by **eomaha** » Thu Sep 01, 2005 10:36 pm

I love the concept... I can live with the colors.

Swift · Post by **Swift** » Fri Sep 02, 2005 1:49 am

joeglow wrote:I figure paying $6 a gallon would cost me about $3,000 a year. While that is a lot, it certainly will not break me. That is worth it for to not have to live on top of someone else and to provide my children with the means to go outside and play, without competing with the other 50 kids crawling on the slides and using the 6 swings at the park.

You do understand economics, right? $6 per gallon of gas would cost you a lot more than $3,000. For example, the wholesale prices of coffee, lumber and tires have all gone up simply due to the rise in gas prices. It might only cost you $3000 to buy the actual gas, but everything else you'd be buying would be much more expensive as well.

loyalomahan · Post by **loyalomahan** » Fri Sep 02, 2005 6:58 am

Oh, I'm sure a little inflation won't break him either.

Finn · Post by **Finn** » Fri Sep 02, 2005 10:01 am

I like the blue color to add a little life to the development. Everywhere is using the muted tones, not just there. Even here in the DC/Baltimore area new residential developments have boring, muted tones - often required per the CCRs! (Covenants, Codes and Restrictions for the development).

Swift · Post by **Swift** » Fri Sep 02, 2005 6:44 pm

heck most of the homes here in SF are muted earth tones. Of course you get the occasional outrageously painted hot green and purple with yellow trim victorian.

eomaha · Post by **eomaha** » Tue Jul 18, 2006 11:09 pm

The Village at Falcon Ridge, Triton's 3rd development, is well underway at the NWC of 180th and Harrison. In case you missed the first two... they're at just north of 144th and West Maple... and off 168th north of Fort.

the1wags · Post by **the1wags** » Wed Jul 19, 2006 5:39 am

I wish Triton would pick up some property farther in the city and do some infill. I really don't have an interest in commuting from 180th to DT. Theres plenty of available development lots inside of the I680-80 ring. But good that they are building more, they must be selling well.