Situated on 112 acres, MorningSide is the creation of Cooperstown Developments, which in essence is a joint venture between Shane Homes and Apex Land Development. “We’ve wanted to be in Airdrie for quite some time, so when Apex approached us about a partnership in MorningSide we quickly agreed,” says Shane Wenzel of Shane Homes. “It’s nice when you’ve got a group that you know philosophically- you agree on how everything should be done.”

He notes that Airdrie is a fantastic community and that Shane is excited to be part of this development. “The town is making major investments in schools and recreational facilities, as well as reworking the downtown and it is just a short commute from Calgary – not more than 15 minutes.”

Radford says that MorningSide will be built out in six phases that will include plenty of green space, playgrounds and a bike path that winds through the community around two storm water ponds. Adding to the convenience, schools and shopping are within easy walking distance.

MorningSide’s first phase has recently been released and is comprised of 113 lots divided amongst three builders: Trico Homes, Shane Homes and Excel Homes. Homes in the area are primarily two storey and offer a variety of styles that will  appeal to all ranges of buyers from first time to estate. Ten show homes are now open in the parade. “ The show homes have been busy with customers from both Calgary and Airdrie,” notes Radford. “Sales have been tremendous.”

Karen Kotchar, sales agent for Shane Homes, concurs with Radford and notes that interest has been phenomenal and that sales have been incredible. “It’s been like a runaway train,” she says.

Shane has four show homes in the parade – two front veranda laned homes and two front drive garage homes. The Stratton is an example of living at its finest. This 2159 square foot front drive garage home offers three bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms and a bonus room. One enters the home into a warm and cozy den area decorated in soothing earth tones.  The furnishings are oversized and invite comfort.  Three inch-planked hardwood stained reddish brown adorns the floors. From the den, one enters an open floor plan comprised of a great room with a fireplace boasting stone and wood surround detailing. The great room flows into the kitchen and eating area. Black appliances compliment granite countertops and cherry stained maple cabinetry.  A large island houses a raised eating bar. Flanking the dining nook are windows on two sides and a sliding glass door on the third that opens to a deck.  The effect is bright and airy and the views of the hills are lovely.

Upstairs a large open loft offers lots of room to spread out and relax. Leather furnishings and wood accent pieces give a country charm to the room. A second floor laundry with built in shelving and an office nook make organizing a snap.

The highlight to the upstairs is the master bedroom. Here you’ll find a large walk-in closet, a wet- bar and a spa-like ensuite that is sure to ease away the stress of the day. A large corner soaker tub is encased by floor to ceiling windows on two sides affording views of the scenery.  A separate oversized glassed in shower and a bank of counters housing double sinks and a make-up vanity finish this luxurious room.

Trico Homes is also experiencing tremendous success in MorningSide. “We have built quite successfully for a number of years in Okotoks and Chestermere, so Airdre was a natural progression for us,” says Richard Gotfried, vice-president of marketing for Trico. “We expected it to be a very vibrant market in MorningSide and in fact, sales have surpassed our expectations.”  Gotfried attributes the tremendous interest to the fact that there is a lot of anxiety in Calgary in terms of land availability.  Airdrie has established a very strong name for itself as a good community to live in.  Add to that larger lots – widths range form 38 to 44 feet - and larger homes all for about $20,000 less than you would be paying in Calgary and well, it’s a no brainer that sales are running wild.

Trico’s show homes include their number one selling product the 1,926 square foot Capri and the 2,498 square foot Carlton. Both are double front drive garage stylings and both boast a multitude of upgrades. Gotfried says that Trico will offer about 16 different plans in Morningside and that Trico is looking at expanding the width of some of their plans because of larger lot sizes. “Most plans are very flexible. We offer a high degree of personalization within preplanned and preselected options.”

A perfect example is the Carlton , which according to sales agent Christina Roorda is the Cadillac of show homes. The home boasts numerous upgrades including nine foot ceilings, a wrap around kitchen counter with a raised eating bar, granite countertops, and a second floor laundry. “This home has tremendous appeal,” says Roorda.

The large foyer is open to the second floor and frames the wrap around staircase. The foyer leads to a cozy study perfect for surfing the net or reading that bestseller.  Curved doorways and built in niches to display art or that precious sculpture abound throughout the home. Interesting cutouts add depth and interest. Upstairs a wonderful bonus room with peaked cathedral ceiling and built in entertainment center provide a great place for the kids to hang out and watch movies or play that favorite game.

The third builder in the area, Excel Homes, is taking a new approach to home sales. “We are integrating a full specification program in the area and it has met with considerable success,” says Scott Russell, sales associate at Excel. “We have six different spec packages and we are predetermining all interior and exterior colours.”  

Russell explains that this allows costs to remain low and enables Excel to set a firm price.  Russell says that Excel did quite a bit of research on the community and initiated a focus group to find out what expectations were. “We found that people were looking for deeper two-car garages, bigger lots and wide open floor plans.”

Excel’s Hampton IV incorporates these details. “The garage is 20 by 24 . You can get your full size truck in and full cabinetry and still have room to walk around.”  Inside,  the home is bright and open. The main floor living space flows into an open kitchen with island and walk-in pantry.  The look is contemporary with metallic tiling, stainless steel appliances and sleek track lighting.  The kitchen flows into the dining nook, which opens to a terrace that takes full advantage of the expansive views of the hills of MorningSide. The bright and open concept is retained on the upper level with an open loft and large windows in the master suite.   NL