By Melinda S Howlett, New Perspective Real Estate remember walking into the sales trailer outside of the Visitor Center as the new hire for Wonderland Homes in February 2002. So, I like to say I have been a part of Central Park since it was “dirt and a trailer.” As part of my orientation, I took the tour of the community’s visitor center and remember thinking “this really looks great on paper and dioramas – I wonder if they can really pull it off?” Eighteen months later, I convinced my husband to sell our big house in the suburbs and move to Central Park. We have not regretted that decision for even a moment of the last eight and a half years.
We aren’t the ‘typical’ Central Park buyer. We are empty nesters and surprisingly, there are a lot of us here! This has turned into a community that offers such a diversity of homes that it suits so many different age groups.
Four years ago, I left Wonderland Homes to pursue my next career as a real estate broker working in resales. I do the vast majority of my business in Central Park and I am proud to work, live and play in such a vibrant community! This is a community that really pulls together to make good things happen, whether it is getting a school built or saving a neighbors’ home from foreclosure.
As the kids and the trees grow up, it is fun to see all the different neighborhoods take on their own distinct character, and yet, they still feel like a part of the same community. As each new neighborhood has started, there are always people already living here who say they would not ever want to live in “the new neighborhood.” Then, half of the community or their friends or family move there.
I am excited about the future in Central Park! It is great to have the interchange connection between north and south, bringing more business and retail opportunities, and I look forward to seeing the Bluff Lake and north neighborhoods become just as vibrant as the existing ones.
And yes, one day we will retire right here!
