Reduce or Eliminate Required Flood Insurance Premiums at Bedico Creek Preserve!

/in

Reduced or Non-Existant Flood Insurance Requirements for Our Residents!

Bedico Creek Preserve Flood Zone Fact Sheet

Bedico Creek Deemed Out of the Flood Zone by FEMA. New Map Changes Positively Impact Bedico Creek!

Land Elevations in Bedico Creek at 18’ to Over 25’ Above Sea Level.

All Lots at Bedico Creek Preserve Are in One of the Following Categories:

(1) Lot is NOT in a flood zone.

(2) Most Bedico Lots are in an area designated by the Army Corps of Engineers to be out of a flood zone, according to the new flood maps.
Therefore, upon St. Tammany Parish’s
acceptance of the new flood maps, Flood Zone
“X” will take effect.

(3) Until the new maps are adopted FEMA will allow each Lot (or home) to be removed from Flood Zone “AE” to Zone “X” via a Letter of Map Amendment (LOMA). This is an easy and inexpensive process.

(4) The few lots that will remain in the AE zone after the new maps are adopted are all filled such that once the home is complete a LOMA can be filed and it will be removed from the flood zone.

According to the new FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM) released in January 2013, all but a handful of lots in Bedico Creek will benefit from the new FIRM by (1) designation to Flood Zone “X” (thus eliminating the requirement for flood insurance) and/or (2) greatly reducing “elective” premium rates.  And, those few lots remaining in “AE” can easily be removed via a LOMA.

Why the drastic change in rates:  The Flood Insurance Rate Maps have been altered because of a change of legislation in 2012 in which Congress passed the Biggert-Waters Act which (1) reauthorized the National Flood Insurance Program but (2) without federal subsidies for flood insurance premiums.  The reason for ending the subsidies is to stabilize the Flood insurance Program, currently $27 billion in debt.  The non-subsidized terms now make homeowners financially responsible for the entire cost of the coverage (based on their flood zone designation), just as traditional insurance companies operate.  This will bring an, often dramatic, increase of flood insurance premiums to areas of St. Tammany Parish that repeatedly flood, however, it will also decrease or eliminate altogether those tracts of land or developments – such as Bedico Creek –located in an area where flooding does not exist or the likelihood of flooding is a negligible.

To Summarize the Facts:

All lots in Bedico Creek are either out of the flood zone, will be out once new maps are adopted, or can easily be removed from a flood zone, making Flood Insurance Premiums both an “elective” and “inexpensive” choice.

Bedico Creek Preserve Introduces Adopt-a-Bench Program

/in

adopt-bench-2Homeowners at Bedico Creek’s subdivision now have the opportunity to Adopt a Bench in the community.  On this bench, Bedico Creek’s developer, David Waltemath, will inscribe any copy that the homeowner would like written on the bench.  The Adopt-a-Bench program accepts donations for $300.00 per bench.  Benches will be placed around the many parks and green spaces throughout this conservation community so that they can be enjoyed by all of our residents.  Ultimately, we hope to have many benches spread throughout the neighborhood!

The Hancock family and their business, South Paws Veterinary Surgical Specialist, have donated the very first bench in our subdivision!  Dr. Bob Hancock has expressed his delight in living at Bedico Creek Preserve by commenting several times on the Madisonville community’s Facebook page about living in this master-planned community.

“Bedico Creek is an awesome place to live. I feel like I’m in a vacation home! Everything is so quiet, peaceful, and natural. It’s truly modern living while enjoying the beauty of the outdoors. So many places to fish, hike, bike, and explore….you never really feel like you’re in your backyard. We love it!”

Inspired by Dr. Bob’s profession at South Paws Veterinary, Bedico Creek Preserve has a future dog park in the works.  The name of this park will be Bedico Bark Park. Keep checking back with Bedico Creek to find out more about this park.

adopt-bench-1

People (left to right): Dr. Bob, Maddy (little girl) and Jennifer Hancock (holding Reggie)
Dogs: Rudy (sitting on the bench to the left) and Charlie (on the right with red ball in his mouth). Reggie is in Jennifer’s arms!

For More Information About the Adopt-a-Bench Program at Bedico Creek Preserve, a Conservation Community in St. Tammany Parish, Contact Us at 985-845-1988 or E-mail Us at Info@LiveBedico.com.

New Parks & Trail System Information

/in

Dear Owner:

At the October 20th ‘Homeowners Workshop’, Charles ‘Cap’ Caplinger presented a proposed Master Park Plan of park areas and trails to approximately 20 residents for their review and feedback. The plan, now revised based on the input, is attached and will soon be posted on the Bedico Creek web site.

The Master Park Plan shows current and potential hard surface and natural trails, future areas for parks, as well as, a proposed reforestation plan for our current parks. The plan will be used to guide future expenditures, and residents can use the trail guide to ‘navigate’ the extensive parks and trails offered by Bedico Creek.

Participants were asked to list in priority order their amenity/park ‘Wish List’.

Results were:

#1 – Kids Play area:

Note: Regarding the ‘sand box’ play areas near the Pavilion, the drainage issue should be fixed and fresh sand added to the play areas soon. Parents, we welcome ideas and suggestions for “sand box” toys.

#2 – Swimming Pool: See below.

#3 –Boats :

Note: One paddle boat and one row boat have been purchased and will be in the lake soon.

#4 – Benches: See below.

#5 – Trails through the woods: Part of the Master Park Plan

#6 – Stock ponds: The proper time to stock the ponds is being researched now.

#7 – Restroom at Pavilion: The restroom will come with the pool, or if the pool is not built for this spring, we hope to at least build the restroom.

Other Wish List Items – Path lighting, Tennis, natural landscaping, exercise stations, pocket parks.

Pool: Discussed was the unanimous desire of the neighbors –and the developer–to get the pool and bath facilities in for spring 2013. Pool design and pricing is taking place now, and a decision made in the next 60 days as to the feasibility of completing the pool this spring or the next. It was emphasized that when the pool is done, it ‘has to be done right’.

Benches: In order to achieve #4 of the ‘wish list’, several residents recommended that an ‘Adopt a Bench’ program be implemented, and several residents offered to adopt the first benches. Adopted benches will have the name of the donating family permanently affixed to the bench in appreciation for their support. Cap is selecting a bench that is attractive, affordable and durable. We will send ‘Adopt A Bench’ information as soon as we have it.

Click on These Links to See Renderings of the Proposed Plans:

Trail System on Master Site Plan

Overview of Parks and Greenspaces

This Master Park Plan will be updated and revised as necessary. We want to thank all for attended this meeting and for their input.

David Waltemath

Bedico Creek Preserve – Preserving St. Tammany Parish’s “Resort Lifestyle”

/in

Remembering the Past

Historically, St. Tammany Parish was a destination location for New Orleanians who wished to get away from the havoc of the city and spend the weekend or a week away in the lush, fragrant, peaceful cottages and camps on the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain.  The Northshore was known for its over-abundance of trees, natural surroundings, a prevalence of wildlife, and a slower pace of life.  Unfortunately…or fortunately – however you choose to look at it – time, growth, and Hurricane Katrina changed the face of St. Tammany Parish, which now has one of the most stable economies, some of the fastest business development growth in the Greater New Orleans Area, and is highly renowned for its excellent school system.  The community of St. Tammany Parish has commercialized and is seeking to grow and grow quickly with the I-12 corridor becoming one of the fastest developing areas in Southeast Louisiana.

While many people may be moving to the Northshore to enjoy this growing urban lifestyle, there are still those residents and buyers that reminisce about, and virtually long for, a slower pace of life while enjoying the accessibility of all that “the city” offers.  Except now it’s not just “the city” (New Orleans), it’s “cities” which include Covington, Mandeville, and even Slidell.  Although rare, the Northshore lifestyle choice of the past can still be found in Bedico Creek Preserve. A conservation community consisting of over 500 acres, Bedico Creek Preserve has evolved into a neighborhood that fosters and preserves the “original Northshore” lifestyle with more space, more room to breathe, and an abundance of the “great outdoors!”  At Bedico Creek Preserve, your lot doesn’t end at the street.  As a homeowner in the community, you purchase your lot and then enjoy the usage of 20+ acres of lakes, a 375-acre nature preserve, 3.5 miles of completed concrete hiking and biking trails, up to 200 acres of parks and green spaces, and endless “make your own” nature trails.  And that’s just inside the community.

Bedico Creek has managed to capture the old world essence of St. Tammany Parish while still offering new homes and custom homes built by the highest quality, award-winning builders in St. Tammany Parish.  There are currently 5 distinct neighborhoods within Bedico Creek Preserve that have lots developed and ready to build as well as a 6th neighborhood that is still in the planning stages.  Lots are priced from the $40’s – $160’s and home pricing starts in the mid-$200’s and goes up to over $1 million plus.  So if you are interested in low-maintenance Garden homes or building your dream estate, Bedico Creek has a neighborhood that is built just for you. The community is located just minutes from the new Nord Du Lac Shopping Center and the ever-growing Louisiana Hwy. 21 shopping district.  It is also easily accessible to the intersections of Hwy. 190 and Hwy. 1085, as well as just minutes from I-12.

A Look at the History

To understand how Bedico Creek has evolved into a community that has the perfect blend of lifestyle, natural wilderness surroundings, and an amazing selection of lots and builders from which to choose, you must understand the community’s history.  Many residents of Madisonville and St. Tammany Parish remember that when Bedico Creek started out, it was planned to be a golf course development designed by Bland Pittman and his son Hunter Pittman known for designing courses such as Battle Creek Golf Club, Bailey Ranch Golf Club, and Peoria Ridge in Oklahoma and Gettysvue Polo, Golf & Country Club in Tennessee, though Bland Pittman has designed courses worldwide.  Through a combination of an ambitious, out-of-town developer and the mortgage crisis of 2008, Bedico Creek was not able to be completed as a golf course community, but instead was purchased by local developer David Waltemath to be a cash-stable, debt-free, real estate development with a fully-supported, realistic growth plan to build out the entire community over an extended period of time.

“Bedico Creek will be a series of neighborhoods within one great ‘master plan’ that is surrounded by almost 600 acres of green space!” says Waltemath, “We know we will be here for over a decade developing our community so everything we do is geared toward creating lasting value.”

Completely reversing the branding of the community to reflect the mood and demographics of the market’s current home buyers, David Waltemath charted a new course for the community by turning the development into a conservation community.  A conservation community weaves the development of the residential neighborhoods into the natural environment of the subdivision.  So, instead of clear-cutting the land in order to make room for the developed lots and houses, each of the neighborhoods within Bedico Creek are designed to maximize the use and exposure of the parks and green spaces, carefully carving out niches into the existing acreage.  Because the land is officially being used as “green space,” it cannot be developed.  Statistics have shown that this has led to a rise in home appreciation rates, which in this market, is a huge incentive for someone looking to invest long-term in real estate.  The local community and government also benefit from a conservation community because it causes less storm water runoff from the lack of clear cutting.  This type of community development naturally preserves the land while creating a wildlife habitat and refuge.

New Ownership and Direction

As president of Classic Properties, a prominent real estate development firm in New Orleans, David Waltemath has over twenty-five years experience in over a quarter of a billion dollars of residential and commercial real estate planning, development, construction, and project management, as well as financial planning and asset management.  In his position of president and broker of Classic Properties Realty, he has handled commercial leasing and property management as well.  Waltemath, a developer from New Orleans, is best known for his residential developments English Turn and Estates at Northpark.  He has affiliations with the home builders associations in both New Orleans and St. Tammany Parish as well as the Realtors Associations in New Orleans, St. Tammany Parish, and Baton Rouge.  David Waltemath has his finger on the pulse of the real estate market in Southeast Louisiana with new residential developments being sold in both Baton Rouge (Green Trails) and Plaquemines Parish (The Parks at Plaquemines).  His vision for the development of Bedico Creek Preserve has ensured that this hidden treasure in St. Tammany Parish will have a stable and successful future.

The success rate at Bedico Creek Preserve is defined by the growing interest of local builders in the community as well as lot and home sales by new home buyers.  Currently, the community features 8 St. Tammany Parish home builders who either have homes for sale or are building new homes on lots they have purchased within the community.  Lot sales are “hopping,” and 3 homes in Bedico Creek sold within 10 days during the month of June.  Buyers can select their own lot from a choice of 5 developed neighborhoods.  They can either bring in their own builder or architect or choose from a list of builders, architects, and designers that are already working within the design guidelines of the community.  Bedico Creek has strictly defined covenants that not only protect each buyer’s investment, but they also protect the community’s quality of life.  With the conservation community development structure, the covenants are written to be mindful of the preservation of the natural environment and wildlife habitat as well as the design and maintenance of the homes within the
neighborhoods.

A Bright Future

Future plans for the development include the completion of a sixth neighborhood that will be an exclusive, gated enclave within Bedico Creek Preserve with its own private golf hole, pitch and putt practice facility, and lakefront recreation area.  In addition to the natural amenities and the miles of concrete paths that meander around the parks and lakes at Bedico Creek, current subdivision amenities include The Pavilion, a covered, open-air gathering place next to the lake available for neighborhood and private parties, crawfish boils, and dances; a fishing pier, an outside fire pit at Sunset Point, and boat and RV storage. Future amenity plans could include a beach on the lake, swimming pool, soccer and baseball fields, basketball goal and playing area, playground/tot lot, and a dog park – amenities so vast, that Bedico Creek will be a “golf cart friendly” community.

Because of proper investment and community planning, the solid management of local developer David Waltemath, and the support of local builders and St. Tammany Parish residents, Bedico Creek Preserve will be a place where home buyers can capture and keep the essence of that slower pace of life for which the Northshore, throughout its history, has been so well known. Waltemath and builders of Bedico Creek will play a vital role in bringing back the real estate market in the Greater New Orleans area, and especially St. Tammany Parish, through steady lot and home sales as well as the stable growth of the community.  If you haven’t had a chance to tour one of St. Tammany Parish’s best kept secrets, come visit Bedico Creek today!  To find out more information about Bedico Creek Preserve, call 985-845-4200 or visit online at www.LiveBedico.com.