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The Cedars brings a new neighbourhood to Fernie

Fernie's newest neighbourhood is in the works and ready for buyers.

Fernie's newest neighbourhood is in the works and ready for buyers. Phase one of The Cedars has been released and 28 lots are officially on the market.

Located at the base of Mount Fernie Provincial Park, The Cedars is 100 acres nestled in between the Elk Valley and the Cedar Valley. Forty-nine per cent of the area will remain green space, allowing the remainder to be developed into a subdivision. The development will focus on single family homes with roughly 150 single family lots planned, as well as the potential for townhouses and condominiums.

“The intent of The Cedars is to design a community that is very closely intertwined with the natural environment,” explained Todd Fyfe with Fernie Real Estate. “Having Mount Fernie Provincial Park right next door, having the Nordic skiing right there, which is a sport a lot of people associate with connecting more with the natural environment, and then trail networks [throughout the development], and just the location with all of the trees and the mountains around it; that's the inspiration.

“The idea is to design it around nature and then design homes that are more inspired by design and less inspired by size. That's exciting because there is definitely a trend in development and architecture where it's more about the design and quality than the space.”

Fernie Real Estate will be handling the marketing and sales of The Cedars. Partnering up as the developers are Bill Hagel from Calgary, and a Fernie local, Martin Vale.

“It's really good to have somebody local paying attention to what's good for the community and what local people are looking for,” said Fyfe.

The opening price point for a typical city size lot is $179,900. Prices reach as high as $269,900 for an almost half an acre lot, with plenty of options in between.

“With this many lots becoming available at these types of prices, we think that we'll probably get a fair number sold pretty quickly,” Fyfe commented. “Because of the volume I see about to happen, and the fact that the buyers are going to have to purchase to build, we are probably moving into a boom cycle, or an uplift, in the building industry in the Valley.”

The building won't be limited to any one company, giving homeowners the opportunity to choose the builder they would like to work with, as long as they comply with The Cedar's architectural guidelines.

“The increase of activity in the building sector will encourage more competition and more builders in that sector, which will probably have the effect of stabilizing prices and keeping them at a competitive level so that people can afford to buy a well priced lot and then afford to build a well priced home,” said Fyfe.  “If we can achieve that... we will have lots of jobs and lots of busy people out there building, plumbing, wiring, digging, and all of those things that go along with it.”

He went on to say, “I think economically, it can also do good things for the community. Not only will it add jobs and sales of building material, but it will also help to protect the prices of houses in Fernie so that more people can buy and sell in those neighbourhoods where the houses should be more affordable.”

Water and sewer will be set up in the next month or two, allowing for potential buyers to put foundations and framing in as early as September.

Fernie Real Estate will be hosting private and public tours of The Cedars for those interested in purchasing or just having a look around. For more information, visit www.thecedars.ca.