Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
It looks like a planned high-end development set just outside of Asheville is having serious financial problems. Several creditors have petitioned Versant Properties LLC in federal bankruptcy court here in Asheville. The petitioners filed their paperwork in the North Carolina’s western district of U.S. District Court on Nov. 14.
Versant spent big bucks in recent years running ads in the Wall Street Journal and on the Web, where it billed itself as “Asheville’s only European-inspired mountain community” and a luxury real estate destination. Plans on the Versant web site show a gatehouse, wellness center, luxury condos, extensive trail system and a heliport. It was going to join the Audubon Gold Signature Sanctuary program to show off its environmental stewardship.
A Versant press release in July indicates that everything seemed to be moving ahead:
Asheville, NC – July 8, 2008. . . The first single-family home is currently under construction at Versant, the new luxury European style community north of Asheville. The 3,650-sq. ft. home is situated at just under 3,000 feet in elevation, offering Versant’s signature views of the surrounding Blue Ridge skyline.
“The construction of our first single-family home is a milestone event here at Versant,” says Developer Robert Richey. “We’ve spent the last two years and more than $10 million developing infrastructure for Phase I, and we’re excited to see all that hard work coming to fruition.” Richey says the first home will be completed by late fall, and its owners from the nearby community of Candler will be moving in soon thereafter.
Two weeks ago, Versant released its first townhomes for sale.
Shamburger Design Studio of Hendersonville designed the mountain villa style home, and the contractor is Morgan Keefe, one of Asheville’s finest luxury custom home builders.
Versant is a 400-acre community on the north edge of Asheville, overlooking the downtown skyline as well as the famed Grove Park Inn. The community offers single-family homesites as well as a variety of multi-family homes at elevations up to 3,000 feet.
But that press release came in the summer, before the 2008 economy took a serious turn for the worse. Now creditors want their money.
Civil Design Concepts P.A. of Asheville wants $166,000; Haynes Electric Utility Co. of Asheville wants $103,000; Huntley Construction Co. of Asheville wants $2.7 million; and APAC-Atlantic of Candler wants $783,000.
Click here to see one of the court filings.
wow!
who could have seen this coming?
<sarcasm off>