Hundreds of guests and more than a dozen community and political leaders celebrated the grand opening of Prescott’s newest master-planned residential community on a warm and breezy June 23.
Called Saddlewood, the subvivision is located on Lone Elk Road in the city limits just north of Willow Creek Drive and Pioneer Parkway on the recently opened Deep Well Ranch Road.
The multi-million residential development is the first of several planned on Deep Well Ranch. Saddlewood is but one small segment of the long-term project of approximately 1,800 acres of rolling pasture owned by long-time residents, the James family.
Dorn Homes’ owner and CEO David Grounds greeted the crowd after introductory remarks from Sanford Cohen, immediate past chair of the Prescott Chamber of Commerce. Cohen earlier had welcomed Yavapai County Supervisor Craig Brown and Prescott Mayor Greg Mengarelli. They praised Ron and Laura James for their ongoing cooperation in annexing the acreage into the Prescott city limits.
Mengarelli said because the land is annexed into city limits, the community will benefit significantly from tax revenues generated. He also noted that infrastructure, including water, is under control of the city.
Cohen, when introducing Grounds, said he was CEO of “…what is considered Northern Arizona’s largest home builder: Dorn Homes. Dorn has been constructing homes in this region for more than 50 years.”
Cohen emphasized that Dorn Homes has won national awards for its “Green Home” architecture – innovative and energy efficient designs, quality construction and environmental sensitivity.
Cohen also complimented Grounds and his staff for their participation and commitment to helping the greater Prescott area achieve solid financial and economic growth.
Grounds acknowledged the excellent support that he had received from the county and the city. He told the crowd he had visions of Saddlewood being an exciting master planned community, especially for younger families. “Homebuyers will have a choice from nine different floor plans, starting at an affordable $250,000 and topping out at slightly above $310,000.”
“We’ve already sold 19 homes in the first two weeks, and that was before our grand opening,“ he said.
Various model homes available range from 1,369 square feet to 2,118 square feet. All have two baths. Some have two bedrooms. Others have two bedrooms and a den. Yet others have three bedrooms and a loft. Three models are two-story. All models have two-car garages.
Buyers also will have options for design and decorative features.
Information distributed by Dorn staff members noted the development would have easy access to Pioneer Parkway. It is minutes away from shopping and entertainment options, and only a few miles from schools, shopping, dining, recreation and other services of downtown Prescott.
Grounds told Quad Cities Business News that while the home office for Dorn Homes is located at 600 W. Gurley St. in downtown Prescott, the Saddlewood development has a sales office managed by Casey Samsill located right at the entrance to the subdivision.
“We have 79 full-time employees in the Quad Cities area. That that doesn’t count the construction crews. Our local payroll [is] in the millions,” he said.
For every home sold, the company contributes $100 to the charity of that buyer’s choice, such as the Coalition for Compassion and Justice, Stepping Stones and veterans’ organizations.
The grand opening culminated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in which the Dorn executive staff, the James family and city and county leaders took part. The day included food, beverages and tours of model houses. QCBN
By Ray Newton, QCBN
Photo by Ray Newton:
The official ribbon cutting ceremony at the grand opening of Saddlewood, a master-planned community created by Dorn Homes, brought together many members of the family of Ron and Laura James, who own the property, along with company representatives and several city and county elected officials and leaders.
Leave a Reply