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Blue-chip Community
Environment, amenities,
location secure Marsh Landing's status
By R.P. WHITTINGTON, Special to Homes
The lush entrance off Butler Boulevard,
its healthy tree canopy and the recent multi-million dollar renovation to its country club belie the fact that Marsh Landing
is 35 years old.
Residents who live and have lived there say the exclusive
neighborhood in Ponte Vedra
Beach is aging beautifully.
"The best thing about Marsh Landing is its location,"
said Ken Underwood, an eight-year resident who recently put his $2.29 million home on the market.
Within walking distance from the Marsh Landing Country
Club, his home sits on a two-acre lot and features an outdoor pool and kitchen area facing the golf course.
"It's only about 20 minutes to downtown and the Beaches
are close, too. And if you are runner, it's a great place to jog," he said. "There are sidewalks everywhere and you can run
eight to 10 miles and never see the same home twice."
There is a diversity within Marsh Landing that is quite
unique, Underwood said.
"You have the club area, the golf course surrounded by
all these trees, the actual marsh area and the Intracoastal with the boats sailing by, so it has a lot more environmental
and visual differences than most planned developments," Underwood said. "When I retired from the Navy, I looked all over Jacksonville before we settled on Marsh Landing. I really think it is
one of the best communities here."
Underwood's Realtor, Prudential Network Realty's Phil Pierce, calls Marsh Landing a "blue-chip" community.
"I would liken
it to blue-chip stocks like GM," he said. "You have a stable community, unique among the others in Jacksonville, and it is a great investment whether you are buying for the short term or you
plan to live there for many years."
Resident Flint McGlaughlin, who built a new home about
two years ago on a seven-acre parcel, agreed.
"We looked at 42 other properties before we purchased
at Marsh Landing," said McGlaughlin. "There is just nothing like it at the Beaches. We found a large tract of land surrounded
by water. It was perfect for what we were looking for in a neighborhood."
McGlaughlin recently hired The Vintage Group Remodeling
Division to complete a 2,000-square-foot guest house, which includes a loft and three-car garage, on the property.
"We attained a rustic look using cedar and added a stone
skirt to finish it off," said Vintage Remodeling Division Director Jack Gregory. "This is a beautiful area and the look fits
in just right with the environment."
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Special: The diversity of Marsh Landing's environs is one of the community's key attributes,
like the marsh views from the $1.69 million home located on North Wind Court listed by Dee Walker at Marsh Landing Realty
Inc.
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Special: The varying topography and diversity of scenery helps Marsh Landing stand out among
Jacksonville developments, said Ken Underwood, an eight-year resident. Underwood has listed his $2.29 million home at 100
Palm Forest Place with Prudential Network Realty's Phil Pierce.
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Special: Future buyers will be attracted to the high standards and diverse landscape available
within Marsh Landing, said resident Flint McGlaughlin. He recently added a $220,000 loft/garage to his home.
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McGlaughlin said recent appraisals indicate the property
has great potential for resale.
"The value of the property has doubled over the last
two years," he said. "Like us, I think future buyers will be attracted to the high standards in this neighborhood, like we
were."
Located on a stretch of Florida A1A that runs between
the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway, the community was one of the first Public Unit Developments in Northeast Florida. A PUD,
which is both a type of building development as well as a regulatory process, is a designed grouping of varied and compatible
land uses such as housing, recreation, commercial centers and industrial parks, all within a self-contained development or
subdivision.
"When I was working for a development company in Ocala back in the mid-90s, we were aware of Marsh Landing as a guide for the planned developments we
worked on in Central Florida. So it's ironic that I can see it every day," said Michelle
Mousin, a Realtor with Prudential Network Realty.
Robert Holland, general sales manager for Marsh Landing
Realty, knows history about the development. When PUDs began to gain popularity after World War II in other Northeastern cities,
Holland said it was a fairly new concept in Northeast Florida
when Marsh Landing came into being.
Chester Stokes, who owns the country club, formed a joint
venture with Paul Fletcher to develop Marsh Landing, which officially opened in 1982. The first 125 lots sold in just two
days.
Today, Marsh Landing covers more than 1,700 acres and
is home to more than 1,000 families. Depending on where they live within the development, they can reside in either Duval
or St. Johns county. For the golf enthusiast, Marsh Landing's
course is a 6,841-yard, 72-par course designed by Arnold Palmer's business partner, Ed Seay. The course winds through natural
Florida landscaping, highlighted by lush trees and marshes.
The Marsh Landing Country Club, a 12,000-square-foot facility, recently underwent a multi-million dollar renovation. In addition
to golf, the club offers residents a junior Olympic-size pool, health and work-out amenities, dining, and a 10-court tennis
center and tennis pro shop.
The prices of homes in Marsh Landing range from the mid-$500,000s
to $6 million, with lots available from about $550,000 to more than $4 million. Owners pay association fees ranging from $630
to $1,200 each quarter.
Along with resale homes, new lots and new home building
continues. Ten of 20 lots made available at Found Forest, which opened about a year ago, are now under development. Under the PUD, Marsh
Landing will offer 1,200 homes when the build out is complete.
Holland said home buyers will always be attracted to Marsh Landing for
a number of reasons.
"With its meandering roads and tree canopy, the aesthetics
give people a pleasant feeling when they are here," he said. "Then there are the amenities - golf, recreational opportunities
for adults and kids and the nearby beach."
Most buyers have a checklist of what they are looking
for in a home, and Marsh Landing is a strong competitor in that regard, Holland
said.
"Actually, research of Marsh Landing buyers show that
most people move here for the community itself, not their specific house, which is quite unusual," he said.
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All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. 
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