Gateway Village blends uses to provide homes, offices, shopping at busy intersection
By PAM HORN
February 21, 2008

Copyright Williamson Herald. To view article with pictures, as included, click here.

On a recent Friday afternoon a steady stream of cars flow through the intersection of Moores Lane and Franklin Road.

Travelers destined for neighborhoods situated on Franklin's south and west sides are easily looking at fifteen more minutes of commute time- minimum.

But residents of Gateway Village at Camden Commons, a new mixed-use development designed in the framework of New Urbanism, are well within reach of their front door and so much more.

Location, location, location

The southwest quadrant of Franklin Road and Moores Lane (alongside Lynwood Way) is for all practical purposes the entrance to Franklin's city limits. Eighty-two acres of pristine property, already partially developed on the residential side, is well on its way to becoming a pedestrian village.

John Rutledge, owner and principal investor of the development, recently recruited Lynn Ellsworth, president of Coda Development, to oversee Camden Commons, the retail aspect of the community.

"Location is everything," says Rutledge. "The great thing about this piece of property is that it sits one mile from the interstate, one mile from Cool Springs and just down the road from Brentwood and Franklin."

For this reason, he was able to attract the involvement of Ellsworth, whose Brentwood-based development firm has overseen several high-end projects in Davidson County.

"We didn't want to do a big box here. We wanted it to be more small shops and stores that are not already all over Middle Tennessee," says Rutledge. "What we're selling is a lifestyle of going over to get a cup of coffee, walking to a restaurant or dropping off your laundry."

Rutledge and Ellsworth have secured Southeast Ventures to market the commercial sites.

Ellsworth has a long track record of upscale development, including luxury condominiums in Green Hills and Belle Meade. The Whitney and 112 Harding Place are two of his contributions to Nashville's west side.

His urban projects are in the Vanderbilt area where West End Lofts I and II offer in town living.

Ellsworth recently received approval from Franklin Municipal Planning Commission on revisions to the original site plan. A view of the property today looks markedly different from a year ago. Roadways have been established connecting the residential to commercial parcels.

Ellsworth says construction of phase one of the commercial side will begin in sixty days.

"We have a bank, a medical office building, and a preschool going in. The first phase has about 50,000 square feet of space," Ellsworth says of Camden Commons.

In terms of design, David Kline of Kline Sweeney and Associates has been retained to develop an architectural design that conveys the atmosphere of a European village.

The centerpiece of the development is a stately, old hardwood tree, preserved during the clearing of the land and tapped to be the focal point of a roundabout.

Live-work-play

On the residential side, drive along the narrow lanes here and you’ll see small groupings of row houses, each one uniquely designed. The ornamental elements on the exterior of these homes — porches and balconies – reflect the time-honored facades first built for America's colonial cities.

"This is a small enclave, mixed-use development in the best location in the city," explains Real Estate Broker Debra Van DerVeer of McArthur Sanders Realtors. "It is simplified living with a high premium on convenience."

She has some insight into the business. Van DerVeer has accumulated thirty years of expertise in the residential and commercial industry, including extensive work in corporate relocation, development and real estate portfolio management.

Van DerVeer's eagerness to represent this development stems from her belief that there is a cadre of buyers ready to relinquish the large lot subdivision in exchange for a maintenance-free lifestyle where light shopping and dining are within walking distance.

"The prototypical resident is likely to come home and have two to three dinner guests over in the evening and possibly walk to eat in one of the restaurants. They are likely to walk and have a cup of coffee in one of the nearby shops. And, they are likely to belong to any one of the four private and public workout facilities located in either Brentwood or Franklin."

Doug Fraser is an Atlanta native, now a resident of Gateway Village.

Moving from Atlanta was a big step. I looked at a lot of different real estate investment options. For me, there were three options downtown Nashville, the West End/Vanderbilt area, and Williamson County.

In the end, he said he chose a town home at Gateway Village because of the master plan for the development, the architectural design and the access to the interstate.

Fraser, who provides private client marketing and branding services to award-winning entertainers in the music industry, finds his home to be full of the amenities he expects without the maintenance headaches of suburban living.

He has a home office at Gateway Village, but also spends a good deal of time on Music Row or traveling throughout the country.

There are 264 total town homes planned for the village, starting at around $319,000. There are two and three-bedroom styles. Within Phase I, all but three are sold, says Van DerVeer.

A new residential offering to the Franklin area is The Flats of Gateway Village. These one-level living spaces are situated in a three-story building and priced at just above $200,000. They offer all the amenities of the town homes with access to garage parking on the ground level and some additional storage space.

All residences of Gateway Village at Camden Commons are being built by Carbine Construction Company, owned by longtime Williamson County builder and developer James Carbine.

There is a strong emphasis on traditional architecture, generous landscape, and streetscape that includes Old World-style street lamps, decorative iron balconies and tree-lined sidewalks.

This neighborhood evokes the exterior charm of a village, yet the interiors live like a modern home should.

Standard finishes include Kohler bath and kitchen fixtures, a raised granite vanity and undermount sink in the bathroom and granite countertops in the kitchen.

Town homes in Phase II all have detached garages and are currently under construction.

When the residential side is completely built out, the configuration of town homes will create a reverse "L-shape" along the property's perimeters. The adjacent hillside topography provides a spectacular backdrop for residents. Rutledge owns the adjacent land where a wooded incline leads to the ridge atop Lynwood Way. He plans to leave it undeveloped.

"We have one resident," Van DerVeer says, "who asked to move closer to the wooded area because she loves to watch the deer in the morning."

There is sort of a pragmatic sensibility to the sort of lifestyle Gateway Village has to offer, if you're ready, that is, to divest yourself of wheelbarrow, rake and hedge clippers.

Everything on the exterior of the home, including the landscaping is maintained through an association fee structure that is steeper than your average subdivision homeowner dues, but it also means weekends do not include exterior home repair or painting projects.

Gateway Village was conceived with four types of buyers in mind, says Van DerVeer.

"The downsizer, the second homeowner, the busy corporate, and the person who knows Franklin very well."

For more information on Gateway Village see www.gatewayvillagefranklin.com. To view examples of Coda Development’s work go to www.codacorp.net.