Story ran on Sunday, August 05 2001

Carl Johnson has called northeast Columbia home for 21 years. A network engineer at University Hospital, he lived on Leeway Drive and Rutledge Drive before moving to Fox Valley Court in Springdale Estates last fall.

His family has found that part of the city to be quieter and easier to get around in - and the homes to be more affordable. Johnson paid $150,000 for his new 2,300-square-foot home, which has four bedrooms and four bathrooms plus a partially finished walkout basement.

"You get a little more bang for your money" in northeast Columbia, Johnson said.

With new subdivisions burgeoning in that area, local developers are doing little to dispel that notion - or the notion that the building boom that began two decades ago in southwest Columbia is still booming.

In the past eight years, 442 new homes have been sold in the northeast part of the city, compared to 638 in the southwest, 304 in the north, 228 in the southeast and 171 in the northwest, according to the Columbia Board of Realtors.

Will Patten, left, and D.J. Smith, employees of Seven Gables Construction Co., nail roof joists to a house on Steelhead Street. Don Shrubshell photo

Lower prices in the north and northeast, easy access to state highways and the large undeveloped tracts of land are all fueling the new growth. Developers also are quick to point out that two new schools –– Lange Middle School and Derby Ridge Elementary School –– have made the area more appealing.

The northeast boasts better infrastructure, spacious lots, easy accessibility and amenities such as parks, shopping malls and hospitals.

"You get on Highway 63, and it hits all major roads," said Glen Strothmann, a real estate agent and developer for 11 years.

For Johnson, traffic was indeed a big concern when he chose to settle in northeast Columbia. "I don’t want to fight traffic in the southwest of the town," he said, referring to the infamous Stadium and Providence intersection.

But the bottom line has been the driving force.

Employees of Seven Gables Construction Co. frame a house on Steelhead Street in southwest Columbia. Don Shrubshell photo

Strothmann, who developed Springdale Estates, said growth in the north end of the city was inevitable as residents and newcomers began looking for alternatives as land on the city’s south side has become increasingly expensive.

Donna Misslin, an underwriter with Shelter Insurance, bought a new home in March on Valleywood Court. "We like the neighborhood," she said. "It seems the northeast of town is growing. It’s much better than 10 years ago."

She said she saved about $10,000 by settling in the northeast instead of the southwest.

Anne and Carl Johnson stand outside their new home in northeast Columbia. Largely ignored by developers for years, this part of Columbia has seen a sharp rise in new homes being built recently. Mark Schiefelbein photo

Bob Walters, developer of the Arcadia subdivision, said Misslin’s savings are typical for folks who buy on the north side. "The land price in the north is still much less expensive than in the south," he said. An acre of land in the north sells for about $10,000, compared with $20,000 in the south, Walters said.

City officials anticipate more growth in north and northeast Columbia.

Outward Expansion

Larry Patten, owner of Seven Gables Construction Co., uses a level to ensure that a wall board is square. Don Shrubshell photo New homes sold The southwest and the northeast have accounted for the bulk of new-home sales in Columbia. 1994 2000 total* North 0 9 304 West 0 6 161 Northeast 94 124 442 Northwest 15 20 171 Southeast 45 42 228 Southwest 210 185 638 Meridian home price Those looking to purchase a new home will pay more for homes in southwest and west Columbia. Average price* North $115,150.00 West $152,375.00 Northeast $100,793.75 Northwest $107,372.38 Southeast $112,756.63 Southwest $174,256.00 *from 1994 to July 2001

City planner Scott Hanson, pointing at land flanking Highway 763 north of Rangeline Road, said properties over hundreds of acres are likely to be developed.

Meanwhile, the city is improving its public sewer system to support development along Highway 763 and nearby areas, Columbia public works director Lowell Patterson said. The city is extending sewer services north of Interstate 70 and east of Perche Creek.

"The public sewer system is very critical to development, both economically and environmentally," Patterson said.

The city also is planning to extend sewer lines eastward along Grindstone Creek to the Lake of Woods area.

That’s like a green light to developers. "Development has to follow the sewer line," Strothmann said.

But sewer service is by no means the lone factor. The road system is critical to development, too.

Eastward extension of Stadium Boulevard across Highway 63, for example, would bring development into the area, developers and city officials say.

Lack of infrastructure, in turn, accounts for underdevelopment in areas such as northwest Columbia, where sewer lines and roads are not up to par, many argued.

City manager Ray Beck said the terrain in northwest Columbia makes it too costly to build sewer and roads.

Meanwhile, in southeast Columbia, the Karst topography and sensitive watersheds have kept growth at a moderate rate.

Critics of proposed development in that area cite their desire to protect Rock Bridge Memorial State Park and Bonne Femme Creek. Neighbors and environmentalists have fought the widening Gans Road and the development of Brookfield Estates. And a proposed development on the 500-acre Philips farm has drawn so much heat that the city is considering public acquisition.

"No one wants to see the park land disturbed," Strothmann said.

Anyone who proposes construction plans that strip green lands and put more traffic on scenic roads, he said, should expect a fight from residents.

The city’s Public Works Department has been cautious when undertaking any project in southeast Columbia where sinkholes and creeks are prevalent. "We’re looking more at pump stations instead of treatment plants," Patterson said. The measure, he said, is to avoid discharge points. "It’s a very, very sensitive area."

In comparison, smooth landscape, adequate infrastructure, land availability and nearby amenities have made south and southwest Columbia an ideal location for growth for years.

In the past eight years, more new homes have been sold in that part of Columbia than anywhere else, according to the Columbia Board of Realtors. In the 1990s, the growth went west along Chapel Hill Road. Now it is wrapping around Scott Boulevard.

A city map shows 43 preliminary plats approved in the past five years. Thirteen of them are new subdivisions along Scott Boulevard, including the Thornbrook, Springcreek, Village of Cherry Hill, Stone Crest and Quail Creek subdivisions. They range in size from 70 to 273 lots.

Still, the area is far from saturated with new homes. City officials speculate that it’s only a matter of time before much of the vacant land along Scott Boulevard is built up.

Geography could eventually curb the city’s growth.

"The furthest you can go on the south is McBaine," Strothmann said, noting the river town is already in Columbia’s back yard. "Perche Creek is a natural barrier to the west."

But Larry Patten, the owner of Seven Gables Construction Co., doesn’t expect that to happen anytime soon.

"Columbia is growing. There’s too much money in this town for it to die," Patten explained. "There’s definitely a lot of work in Columbia."