Shenandoah: country living near the beach

COURTESY PHOTO The Salerno design has more than 4,000 square feet under air. It has a master suite, two guest suites, a cabana and a loft suite and an outdoor kitchen. Bette and Jack Keller can speak to the "location, location" adage of real estate talk.

The retired couple have all the privacy and space they want on an acre of property in Shenandoah, a gated equestrian development in south Fort Myers.

Two years ago the Kellers moved from a populous country club community into a luxury pool home they had built on one of Shenandoah's lakefront sites. In fact, Bette Keller, 62, said she thinks they were second among those to move into the Carlton-Naumann Homes project.

"Being closer to the beaches and not having neighbors on top of you," Bette Keller said of the benefits she most enjoys. "It's definitely very quiet and peaceful. It's pleasant to walk here and to ride your bike here."

West of McGregor Boulevard in the Iona area, the unmistakably country subdivision is marked by distinctive white fencing, open parcels and luxury custom homes. The 42-acre tract has 21 one-acre lots, on which homeowners are allowed to keep a horse, a one-mile long riding trail and a riding arena.

COURTESY PHOTO Lots sell for $325,000 to $340,000 and home packages for $1.1 million to $1.8 million. Shenandoah is one of five communities in Southwest Florida designed and developed exclusively by Fort Myersbased Carlton-Naumann Homes. It is not far from other company projects, such as The Enclave at St. Charles Harbour but its makeup is far and away distinctive from that of the developer's waterfront works.

"I've been involved in the high-density communities," said Carlton-Naumann owner Mark Naumann, who noted that he could have built more than 100 home sites on the Shenandoah land. "I think it's more gratifying to create something new and different."

"I'm very proud of what we decided because we could have gone with the norm," he said. "To create in very low density with high-end custom features, the acreage part just adds so much to the community as a whole."

As of mid-December, Naumann said 17 lots were sold and 10 homes completed. Lots sell for $325,000 to $340,000 and home packages for $1.1 million to $1.8 million, he said.

COURTESY PHOTO The Campolina models have a courtyard pool and spa. Naumann describes the residents as of varying ages and typically year-round residents. Some moved from Sanibel Island to be closer to town, he said, and others relocated from the Northeast and Midwest.

The Kellers, whose home is three bedrooms and three and one-half bathrooms, spend five months a year in their Pennsylvania residence, Bette Keller said. Living in Shenandoah allows them to be close to friends who reside on the west side of Fort Myers.

Shenandoah offers a French country theme, Naumann said. Floor plans feature three to five garages, he said, with a uniform stable design for residents who have horses.

The Salerno design has more than 4,000 square feet under air. It has a master suite, two guest suites, a cabana and a loft suite--just as the Andalusia model does - and an outdoor kitchen. The Campolina models have a courtyard pool and spa, The Equestrian a patio garden off the covered verandah.

COURTESY ILLUSTRATION West of McGregor Boulevard in the Iona area, the unmistakably country subdivision is marked by open parcels and luxury custom homes. The lot sizes as they are, homeowners have plenty of room out back when the residence sits 20 feet from the road. Residents, such as the Kellers, with immediate neighbors have ample room to the sides as well, even with multistory, mammoth homes nearby. "Space is the biggest draw because of the elbow room that you have," Naumann said. "Everybody's reaction is that it's just so different. You have so much space in the back yard."