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Ross Bridge - Renaissance in building can be seen 05/29/2005

Publication: The Birmingham News
Author: Sherry Womble

The plush resort towns that flourished around the turn of the last century were the inspiration for Ross Bridge, a mixed-use development now taking shape in Oxmoor Valley.

At the heart of the development is a 263-room luxury hotel, the Renaissance Ross Bridge Golf Resort and Spa. When completed, Ross Bridge - which takes its name from a Civil War-era stone bridge on the property - will also boast a Robert Trent Jones golf course, shops and 1,800 homes.

"There has already been phenomenal interest in the homes," said Margi Ingram of Ingram and Associates, the company handling residential sales at Ross Bridge.

"We're planning to open up six communities in different price ranges," said Ingram.

"There will be both garden and single-family homes. Prices will range from the low $200,000s to the $700,000s.

"These traditional-style homes will be part of a unique town, offering a different way of living," Ingram continued. "The golf course, resort, parks, walking trails and other amenities will all be right there."

Neighborhoods include two communities of custom, single-family homes - Butler Springs and Bellevue - and four garden-home communities called Abbeyglen, Chalybe, Freestone Ridge and Greenside.

Construction in Butler Springs is being handled by what Ingram described as "a select guild of custom builders."

Vintage Homes is the builder for Bellevue. The builder for Abbeyglen and Chalybe is HPH Properties. Signature Homes is doing the construction in Greenside and Freestone Ridge.

Homes will range from 1,600 to around 3,000 square feet.

Ingram described the homes' amenities as "ranging from very basic to very luxurious."

"Buyers can have almost anything they want in these homes," she said.

Typical features in the garden homes include kitchen islands, high ceilings and arched doorways. Upgrade choices are numerous and include plasma TVs.

"HPH Properties allows buyers to have almost any upgrade and amenity," said Ingram. "Signature Homes also has a large amenity package."

In addition to a host of custom features, Bellevue homes will have a stunning view of the valley and the resort. And buyers in Butler Springs can opt for a lot overlooking the golf course.

House plans must be approved by an architectural review committee, ensuring that all homes are compatible with the overall design of Ross Bridge.

Plans are also in the works for a new school, Ross Bridge Elementary, to be built in the neighborhood. Children living in Ross Bridge are zoned to attend the Hoover schools.

For more information on homes at Ross Bridge, call sales manager Dorothy Tayloe at the information center, 443-4663.