The land

We found out this past Wednesday that our offer on the land was accepted. I haven't wanted to jinx the deal or get too emotionally invested into the property, so I avoided posting any photos. I guess it is now safe enough to post.

There are so many things that I like about this property. For one it is located on a privately owned spring-fed lake. I will admit that it is a little hard to rationalize buying a piece of lake given the per acreage cost of the land. Our parcel lines run into the center of the lake, which means that well over an acre of land is underwater. I don't have any thoughts or hopes of drawing water from the lake, but in a worst case scenario, it is nice to know that you have that resource available.

As you move up the land from the lake, there is a corridor of oaks, sweet gum and dogwoods. When we first visited the property in May, the difference in temperature between the shaded area toward the lake and the open portions of the property was quite noticeable. I imagine that we will end up trimming some of the dead branches out to provide a more clear view of the lake, but the canopy of trees certainly provides a grand view.

I like that from the lake the land rises. This part of Jefferson County is in the Red Hills Region of North Florida. Much of the surrounding landscape could be describe as gently rolling hills. According to a USGS Quad map, the high point on the property appears to be roughly 115 feet above sea level. I would guess that the drop from the top of the property down to the lake is roughly 20 feet. There is also a spillover across the lake, so we're pretty much assured that wherever we build, we won't risk too much flooding.

Past the trees, the land opens into a small grass pasture. We plan to utilize this space for the main house site. The area we hope to use for gardening and growing fruits and vegetables will be closer toward the highway and the entrance of the property. I would guess that somewhere between 3 to 4 acres of the land is open pasture. This should provide an adequate area to site any other buildings in addition to the main house and utilize the full sun for harvesting solar electricity.

Our architects spoke of "placing buildings on edges" and having the land participate in the drama of the architecture. I might be a little hesitant to build in the "fall-zone" of any of these trees; particularly when you consider what a category 3 (or worse) hurricane might be able to do. There are also solar considerations. Regardless of either, I want the architects to have creative freedom, so I'll keep those thoughts in check until we've seen their 3 proposals.