WESTERN SPRINGS, IL, January 5, 2007 -- Yes, there still are trees at Timber Trails.

That is the first question asked by people when they learn I have visited the new-home development now rising on the site of a longtime golf course of that name near Western Springs.

How the number and location of trees compare to what have been on the 106-acre property, I don't know. Many remain untouched, and Ron Sova, executive vice-president of Dartmoor Homes, said several thousand more will be planted as lots are sold and homes are built.

Hoffman Estates-based Dartmoor made headlines nearly two years ago when it began cutting trees on the property after buying it to build 300 houses.

Local residents, alarmed at the timing of the tree cutting and fearing pesticides used by the former golf club would be disturbed, possibly dispersed, protested to local officials and the media.

That episode has not been the only skirmish in the birth of this new neighborhood.

Dartmoor, which paid $45 million for the property in 2004, and local preservationists who wanted at least some of the land to be saved as public open space, have been part of an ongoing local soap opera. Questions about whether the pesticides and arsenic found on the site have been cleaned up are pitted against announcements of the public services bought with the first $1 million in impact fees from the developer.

Such dust-ups likely will be more common as builders seek to redevelop prime sites in and around estsablished suburbs.

Within sight of Interstate Highway 294 on the west, Timber Trails is accessed at the busy intersection of Wolf and Plainfield Roads, where an impressive sign has been installed. There is a French-style guardhouse at the front entrance, though the development is not a gated community.

The semi-custom homes planned and already under construction are mini-mansions, similar to the luxury homes by builders such as Toll Brothers, and are meant for people of means. Ironically, the four series of homes are named for four famous golf courses.

Eight furnished models—four houses and four townhouses—opened this fall. They are decorated to the hilt and fully landscaped.

The four model houses each are at least 4,000 square feet, although there are floor plans for houses that begin at 2,500 square feet. The Warwick, which doubles as the sales office, is more than 5,000 square feet. Prices begin at $880,000.

Townhouses are a least 2,200 square feet. Prices start at $560,000.

After one year of sales, 30 homes had been sold by Mid-December when I visited the development. Early buyers have ranged from families with young children to empty-nester couples, said sales manager Emily Rasan. The latter group was most in evidence when I visited just before the holidays.

No wonder. There are homes here for those craving a trophy house and those looking to downsize—somewhat—by moving into a townhouse.

Rasan said the two most popular townhouse plans are the end units—the 2,941-square-foot Grandview, shown with an elevator (an upgrade), and the 2,618-square-foot Essex, with a first-floor master suite.

Both are designed to appeal to aging Baby Boomers coming from single-family homes. In a variation of the typical townhouse plan, where all doors face toward the street, the front door of these units is around the corner at the end of the four-unit building. This separate entrance and broader facade gives the appearance of a detached house and means the interiors are wider than a traditional townhouse.

The front door of the Grandview plan opens to a foyer and center hallway with a 13-by-14-foot den/home office on the left and, to the right, a 20-by-14-foot living room. At the back, the living room is open to a 14-by-14-foot dining room. The center hall leads to the kitchen, which is adjacent to the dining room.

Across the hall from the stairway on the main floor is space for a powder room or the elevator to take residents from the basement to the second floor.

There is a master bedroom suite and two secondary bedrooms and a hall bath on the second floor. The basement is outfitted with a large wet bar in a family room, a full bath and an exercise room.

The floor plan configuration is similar to a traditional detached house and could provide a sense of familiarity to downsizers.

The Essex is a ranch-style house. Its front door opens opposite a curving stairway. A 34-by-14-foot great room is to the left and, to the right, doors to the powder room, laundry, garage and master suite at the back of the house. Behind the curved stairway, between the great room and the master suite, is a 16-by-16-foot kitchen.

Up the stairs on the second floor is a large open loft, a full bath and a second bedroom.

Of the detached houses, Sova says the Warwick has been one of the most popular. He credits features such as the dramatic curving stairway in the foyer inside the front door and a back stairway to the kitchen for winning buyers' hearts.

As shown, this is a dramatic "executive" house, a residence perhaps better suited for those who host large gatherings rather than those whose lives revolves around intimate family events.

The soaring two-story ceiling in the family room is impressive. It flows into the adjacent 15-by-17-foot kitchen, and the adjoining 13-by-13-foot turreted breakfast room is a big space indeed.

The builder showed a huge center island that also could serve as a breakfast bar. The kitchen was big enough to allow plenty of room for a well-staffed catering service to prepare and plate food, but it would dwarf a family of four at breakfast.

One of the smartest features in the houses is the bathroom and dressing room arrangement between secondary bedrooms. A variation of the Jack and Jill bath, the toiled and tub are in a room separate from the sinks. Outside the bath on either side, there is a dressing room with a sink and many built-in drawers opposite the walk-in closet.

This dressing space is adjacent to but separate from the bedroom. Although the bedrooms may be slightly smaller because of the space taken for the dressing area, it is likely to keep all clothing in one area and it provides a comfortable space for getting ready while not using the tub or shower.

Credit the builder for including plenty of closet space and large master bedroom suites and providing kitchens, even in the townhomes, with enough counterspace and cabinets for those who like to cook.

Though some kitchens have awkward layouts, they are sizeable and are shown luxuriously appointed with upscale appliances, heavy granite and furniture-look cabinetry. Sometimes it is too much, as in the Grandview model. Open the front door and the heft of the cabinetry, exhaust hood and center island kitchen at the end of the hall are so commanding, it is easy to overlook the living room to the right.

Sharon Stangenes -- Chicago Tribune

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