THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, January 28, 1995 TAG: 9501260594
SECTION: REAL ESTATE WEEKLY PAGE: 3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARY ELLEN MILES, SPECIAL TO REAL ESTATE WEEKLY
LENGTH: Long : 124 lines
Just a few twisting turns from the giant snowman towering over Stoney's Produce on First Colonial Road, not far from Virginia Beach General Hospital, is a small, unique subdivision called Linkhorn Point.
Determining the exact boundaries of this charming subdivision - it's amid several other ``Linkhorns'' - is confusing at best, to real estate agents, assessors and common folk. However, the inhabitants of 15 or so custom-built houses sitting on one-acre tracts know where they are and are happy to have settled there.
A narrow road, which surrounds a holly tree, winds through the area, sloping down to a spit of land jutting into Linkhorn Bay. This small peninsula of a community is composed mostly of professional people who sought wooded, waterfront lots.
With few exceptions, the original owners remain. They are extremely private people who wish to live quietly and harmoniously with nature.
Around 1904, or so the story goes, a visiting Midwesterner purchased the land. He had heard about Virginia from his mother, who called it ``God's Country.''
During a trip to Virginia from New York, he fell ill. A kindly editor with a Norfolk newspaper, who was also on the boat from New York, took him home and later showed him the land along Linkhorn Bay. The visitor was so impressed that he bought it.
In making his home, the land buyer sold part of the parcel and started a farm on what has since become the neighborhoods of Linkhorn, Linkhorn Point and Quail Point Cove.
Although some of the streets, such as Fenrose Court and Star Grass Road, are said to be named from flower books, Horse Point Court was named after what the area has always been called. It was the horse graveyard.
``It's a very peaceful, quiet, cozy neighborhood,'' one resident says, mentioning the abundant wildlife, such as raccoons, squirrels, turtles, rabbits, quail and otters.
Dr. John Bowman, a retired oral surgeon, and his wife, Jean, have lived in their waterfront brick colonial house for 25 years. Jean Bowman says they moved into the area for the ``availability of the water and seclusion.''
``It's right in the middle of everything, yet private,'' she says. ``There were only about four houses in the area at that time.''
Since then, they have added a split rail fence and sliding glass doors to their porch, allowing breezes to come in from the water. They appreciate the area's huge pine trees and the crop of pine straw, she says.
``When our daughter was in grammar school, she planted two of the pine trees,'' Jean Bowman says. ``We've been very pleased here, and our three children have really enjoyed living here. They were able to water ski, crab and fish off the deck, and tromp through the woods.''
Gerald Divaris, owner of Divaris Real Estate, and his wife, Anna, bought their waterfront land in 1985. Completed in 1987, their five-bedroom, 412-bathroom brick house, with a room over the garage, is a French Provincial in front with an ad hoc style in back. Anna says she wasn't aiming for a style when the house was being designed; she just wanted it to be very open to light and have all the main rooms surround a courtyard.
Every room in the house except the guest room has a view of the water, she says. The front walkway, lined with mondo grass, leads into a pink and gray marble foyer, with an exposed, angular oak staircase, complete with a small garden underneath it.
The open staircase allows a view of the courtyard, pool, yard and bay. A sunken living room beckons with warm colors, very tall windows and light curtains that one can imagine billowing in spring breezes. A gray marble fireplace with pink and gray trim looms elegantly on one side of the room. A weeping fig tree, resplendent with pink blossoms in season, overlooks the family through the dining room window.
Gerald Divaris thought he was happy in their previous Virginia Beach location, but he wanted to have waterfront property. ``When we moved here, I didn't know how much happier I could be,'' he says.
He praises the area's ``tremendous'' location, being close to the expressway, shopping, medical and recreational facilities. ``It's quiet, with no traffic,'' he says. Since the Divaris family moved in, only two other houses have been built. Divaris has enjoyed the deepwater of the bay and the water wildlife, including dolphins. Over the years, he and his family have enjoyed boating, fishing and crabbing off their dock. He emphatically states: ``It's the best neighborhood in the world.'' ILLUSTRATION: STAFF Map
AT A GLANCE
Public schools: Alanton Elementary, Lynnhaven Middle and First
Colonial High schools. Cape Henry Collegiate and Friends School are
nearby private schools.
Shopping areas: Many strip shopping centers are within a few
minutes, including all the Hilltop shops. The nearest mall is
Lynnhaven Mall. Easy access to the Virginia Beach-Norfolk Expressway
allows for shopping in nearby cities.
Medical facilities: Virginia Beach General Hospital is very close
to the neighborhood. Many other medical facilities are on First
Colonial Road.
Recreation: The Great Neck Recreation Center and park are a few
minutes from the neighborhood by car. Great Neck Library is close to
the area. Lynnhaven Junior High School has tennis and racquetball
courts. The Cavalier Golf and Yacht Club is nearby as are Broad Bay
Point Greens country club and Owls Creek Golf Course. Linkhorn Bay
is convenient for boating, water skiing, fishing, crabbing and other
water activities.
Assessments: The Virginia Beach assessor's office reports the
range of assessments for Linkhorn Point from $99,740 to $825,270,
which includes several surrounding subdivisions off First Colonial
Road.
For Sale
There are no houses available for sale in the area. However, a
wooded, waterfront lot, a little larger than an acre, on Quail Point
Road, is listed at $195,000.
Sold
At 1533 Quail Point Road, a three-bedroom, 212-bathroom brick
ranch with a 1,200-square-foot garage, built in 1985, sold for
$539,000 in October 1992.
GARY C. KNAPP
This two-story house on Linkhorn Bay was built in 1962, but the
owner used 18th century bricks from downtown Norfolk.
Maria Divaris, 18, and brother Alex, 15, moved to the area in 1987.
by CNB