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By LAURA KINSLER, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 16, 2008

TAMPA PALMS - When Ellen Coates started looking for a new house, she knew she wanted a large kitchen, lots of builder upgrades and a maintenance-free neighborhood.

Those features are easy to find in New Tampa, where home construction continues at a moderate pace.

Tuscany at Tampa Palms, the master-planned community's newest subdivision, offers something she couldn't find anywhere else: a view from her bedroom looking out into a wilderness preserve.

John Sebata, regional director for Woodside Homes' Gulf Coast division, said the Utah-based home builder chose Tuscany for its first Tampa area subdivision because of its woodland setting. In the first phase, more than 75 lots back up to large conservation areas.

"We specifically designed the houses for this subdivision to take advantage of the views," Sebata said. "It's not a small conservation area; it's over 3,200 feet between us and the YMCA."

The neighborhood on Tampa Palms Boulevard near Oak Park is a five-minute drive from Interstate 75 - another key factor for Coates. "I just love where it's located," she said. "To be in a new house in Tampa Palms, it's hard to find." After living in Hunter's Green and Arbor Greene, Coates was looking for a maintenance-free neighborhood. Monthly fees at Tuscany are $194 and include yard maintenance, gated entry and the swimming pool and cabana.

"I love that you don't have to take care of the yard," Coates said. She closed on her new house this month and became the first homeowner to move into Tuscany.

Woodside opened its sales office in June and has sold 13 homes in the 198-lot subdivision. Prices range from $342,894 to $399,343.

"We've averaged about two sales a month," Sebata said. "In this market, it's OK. It is what it is. We haven't skimmed our houses down like a lot of other builders."

Sebata, who previously worked for Arthur Rutenburg Homes in Tampa, said he feels confident the housing market will rebound, especially in well-established neighborhoods such as Tampa Palms.

"It would be unfair to the community and to our customers to build a less-amenitized house," he said. "What most builders have as options, we include standard. We're not cutting corners anywhere."

Those features include 10-foot ceilings, art niches, 18-inch-tile floors, pavered driveways and stacked stone on every exterior elevation. The largest model is less than 3,000 square feet. Master suites are spacious but not huge. Secondary bedrooms are considerably larger than in most new models and have oversized walk-in closets.

"A lot of the master bedrooms you see these days are so cavernous, and then the kids are squeezed into these tiny little boxes with no room for their toys," Sebata said. "We give enough room to everyone."

Reporter Laura Kinsler can be reached at (813) 865-4844 or lkinsler@tampatrib.com.

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