Park Place

Park Place is the “Hidden Gem” of LF II. Many people do not even know that Park Place is there. The reason may be because Park Place does not have its own dedicated entrance. The only way into Park Place is through the tract entrances to “The Woods”, either by Dayton Drive off of Serrano Road, or by Buffwood off of Lake Forest Drive. But, once discovered, Park Place is recognized for the great place to live that it is.

Park Place is a cluster of 74 one- and two-story homes on 12 acres at the southwest corner of Lake Forest Drive and Serrano Road. The homes were built in 1974 by Ponderosa. There are 5 floor plans. One is a single story floor plan of nearly 1,600 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. The other 4 floor plans are all two-story, and the original design of each is with 4 bedrooms and 2½ bathrooms. The two story plans range from a low of 2,200 square feet to nearly 2,600 square feet. All floor plans come with 2-car attached garages. The median lot size is about 5,200 square feet, and the median estimated value of home within Park Place is $758,000. All streets are public, owned and maintained by the City of Lake Forest. Additionally, as there are no in-tract Association common area facilities that require in-tract operating or reserve assessments, residents of Park Place enjoy having the lowest possible monthly assessment in LF II, paying only the basic monthly assessment of $64.50.

So why is this “gem” of Park Place such a great place to live? Well, as with the first rule of real estate, it is: location, location, location. As indicated, this tract is tucked away next to “The Woods”. You don’t drive through Park Place to get somewhere else. The three neighborhood streets, i.e., Timberline Way, Ginger Road and Cinnamon Road, are all land-locked cul-de-sacs. There is no cut-through traffic. This makes the neighborhood extremely child friendly. In addition, Park Place is within easy walking distance to all three levels of school, as well as shopping, Heritage Hill Historic Park, Lake Forest Park, Serrano Creek Community Park, and the LF II Clubhouse. In fact, you can get to LF II by the trail system, without the need of crossing any major streets. This combination of location plus homes designed with families in mind in terms of square footage, number of bedrooms and outdoor yard size, all at a reasonable price in today’s real estate market, make Park Place an ideal location for families, or for anyone else for that matter, looking for a great home in a great location.

The most-mentioned neighborhood concern is the issue of cars being left parked on the street on street sweeping days, the result of which is that the streets then are not being adequately swept. Another “issue” is that on July 4th, the City blocks both tract entrances to accommodate the City parade, and there is no vehicular access into or out of the neighborhood well into the afternoon that day. However, this is not an overriding concern to most of the residents as they have accepted the circumstances and have learned to just go about and enjoy the day.

Finally, the Tract Rep Program is intended to facilitate two-way communication between the Association and home owners as a means to enhance local engagement. This is important because no one understands a neighborhood better than the people who live, work and play there. The Tract Rep Chair for Park Place is Chip Clark. There is always a need for Tract Rep participation among local residents, and Park Place is no exception. For those homeowners/ residents in Park Place who are interested in becoming involved, please contact Chip Clark @ chipclark@earthlink.net, or Bruce Cook, the Tract Rep Coordinator for the Association, at bcook@lf2.org.