THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 15, 1995 TAG: 9507130299
SECTION: REAL ESTATE WEEKLY PAGE: 3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KATHLEEN BUTLER, SPECIAL TO REAL ESTATE WEEKLY
LENGTH: Medium: 100 lines
In 1939 Cooper Barefield's father built his family home in Lake Terrace for about $8,000, or $30 a month. Barefield says after a 15-year absence, he returned several years ago to live in his childhood home because he loves the neighborhood.
``It's quiet and it's peaceful,'' he says of Lake Terrace, a cluster of older homes tucked in the woods overlooking Lake Taylor off Kempsville Road in Norfolk. ``It's like being out in the country.''
A small flock of Canada geese lounge in the back yard of one of the Lake Terrace homes. The neighborhood was nearly silent on a recent afternoon, save the sound of birds singing in the trees. Backyard wooden swings built for two dot the lake shore.
Yet less than a half-mile away is the traffic of Military Highway - Walmart, Janaf and Military Circle shopping centers. The junction of I-64 is only a five-minute drive.
``It's like living in the country with all the conveniences of the city,'' says Patricia Newnam, who has lived in Lake Terrace for 15 years. ``It's eight minutes to downtown Norfolk, so you can't beat that.''
The neighborhood is perhaps even more quiet now because construction has temporarily closed the throughway - Kempsville Road - between Lowery Road and Virginia Beach Boulevard. Construction is scheduled to continue through mid-October.
The country environment and city convenience have created a well-established neighborhood that few people choose to leave, residents say. And, because Lake Terrace homes so rarely go on the market, when they do, they typically sell quickly.
``The neighbors we have, have all been here a lot longer than us,'' Newnam says. ``Most of them are really family homes.''
Vanessa Dallas, a Realtor and co-owner of RealtySmart, says since she moved to Lake Terrace eight years ago, no other waterfront homes have changed owners.
``Nobody moves around here,'' she says.
Dallas says she was drawn to the neighborhood's large wooded lots, quiet streets and abundant wildlife. Flowers bloom year-round, from azaleas in the spring to camellias in the winter. Ducks, geese, egrets and heron call Lake Taylor home.
She recently put her home on the market because she thought she wanted to live in a golf community, but she says she has since reconsidered. To replace her 3,600-square-foot waterfront home and pool elsewhere in Tidewater would cost significantly more, she says.
``I consider it the best-kept secret in all of Tidewater,'' Dallas says.
Most of the houses - a mixture of brick and wood - were built in the 1930s and '40s. They are family homes with three or four bedrooms built on large, shady lots.
Through the years, the area surrounding Lake Terrace has changed dramatically, but Barefield says the neighborhood has remained much the same. He points to a painting on his family room wall that shows a barn and pastures on the old prison farm that used to sit across the lake from his home.
Today Lake Taylor middle and high schools sit on that land. The Military Circle and Janaf shopping areas, he explains, used to be a fairgrounds and racetrack.
``That area has built up a tremendous amount,'' Barefield says.
Although most of the neighborhood's children have grown, residents say Lake Terrace has recently attracted some younger families.
``Both corners of our street have families with young children, where ours are grown,'' Newnam says. ``It's starting again.''
One of those new residents, Sandy Pennington, says she moved her family to Lake Terrace two years ago because she wanted a quiet but convenient neighborhood.
Her children attend Fairlawn Elementary School. Older children attend Lake Taylor middle and high schools, both about a block away.
Pennington says she's been delighted with the neighborhood.
``Everybody's very nice and polite,'' she says. ``Everybody looks out for each other.''
Barefield echoes that sentiment, saying although the neighborhood is close to the Military Highway hub, it is safe because neighbors take care of each other. In fact, Dallas says Lake Terrace has one of the city's lowest crime rates.
Ultimately, residents say their quiet, shady streets and caring neighbors help set them apart.
``We're a little pocket that kind of sits off to the side,'' Barefield says. ``In the evenings it's like being out in the country, and yet you're five minutes from everything. If you can't get to it in five minutes, you don't need it.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photos]
VICKI CRONIS
Vanessa Dallas and husband Robert Gilmer like the quiet
neighborhood. "Nobody moves around here," she says.
The abundant wildlife is one of the big lures for those living in
Lake Terrace.
AT A GLANCE
[For a copy of the graphic, see microfilm for this date.]
Staff map
by CNB