I have three pieces of great news. First, I’m a new grandfather! My first grandchild, a boy, was born October 26. He was 7 pounds 12 ounces and 20 ½ inches long with lots of blond hair. His name is Gannon Ernest Lovell. Both he and my daughter, Heather, are doing great. We just returned from their home in Fayetteville, North Carolina, where my son-in-law, John, is serving in the military training to be a Green Beret medic. One down, one to go as my son, Patrick, and his wife, Laurie, are expecting their baby in January.
The second piece of good news is that the election will be over by the time you read this newsletter. Hopefully with the election complete, some of the unknown will dissipate, and both buyers and sellers will be ready to get off the fence without the excuse of waiting to see who will be in office. I heard a lot of that particular sentiment lately.
The third piece of great news is that sales in October were the best single month we’ve seen since 2006. This is the most activity I’ve seen in a long time. Spring was also strong, but summer was soft due to the local fires and the economy both here and abroad. I’m optimistic about the future; I expect 2013 to be better than this year. Hopefully, we will see land sales pick up, and we may start to see home and condo prices begin to rebound. You can see how strong October was in this graph:
On the local scene, Wal-Mart is tentatively scheduled to open in the spring of 2014. There is a local lawsuit currently on the table. It is my opinion that this will not have a significant effect on the process.
The projects on top of Reservoir Hill are progressing as well. The Town Council has approved a plan that includes a zip line, an alpine coaster, an observation tower, a chairlift, a spray park along the river, a tethered balloon, an amphitheater, and an expanded trail system. The Town staff is currently looking at different funding options for the projects. Construction may have to progress in phases.
There is another plan in the works for the old downtown City Market building. The building will serve as a business incubator. Nothing is finalized yet, but the town and county will each chip in to finance the operation. The facility will allow start-up businesses to share space and split costs for utilities, rent, and equipment. Shared secretarial personnel may even be available. As a bonus, business counseling may be available as well. This will help new businesses to get off the ground here locally.
So long for now. I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving. I would be particularly grateful if the politicians would start to get along and put our country first.
GRI, CRS
2011 & 2014 Realtor of the Year
Phone (970) 731-4065
Fax (970) 731-4068
Cell (970) 946-3856
Email: [email protected]
