Neighborhood of the Week: Montrose

Just when you thought you would never find that perfect place to live - a family-friendly community in a great location with homes to suit most every price range - you discover Montrose, by Greenstone Homes.

Tucked on the west side of Post Falls, Montrose bridges the gap between rural life and city life - literally. Bordered by Seltice Way, McGuire Road, Poleline Avenue and Chase Road, farms dot the western and northern boundaries, while businesses and restaurants are conveniently located to the south. In fact, there's even an old-fashioned farm store down the road where you can buy chicks.

"What I love most about Montrose is where it is," says Rob Brickett of Coldwell Banker Schneidmiller Realty. "I really love what surrounds this neighborhood."

Post Falls is well-placed between Spokane and Coeur d'Alene in the I-90 corridor, Brickett points out. And Montrose is only a mile from the interstate. "I-90 is the real feather in the cap here," he says. "Both work and play are really convenient." Not to mention the cost of living is lower in Post Falls than in many other communities.

Travel a few blocks in any direction and you will find elementary, middle, and alternative schools, as well as a wide variety of churches. "There is an amazing congregation of churches, playgrounds and schools all packed into a dense area," Brickett says. "I've never seen an area like this."

Montrose is designed so every homeowner has a park within a five-minute walk. The beautiful 6.6 acre Willamette Park is the social gathering place of the community. Besides the playground and basketball courts, the homeowners association holds barbecues and picnics for the residents. And on warm summer nights, you can take your family to an outdoor movie.

"You see all types of people at the HOA events," Brickett says. "This park is the heartbeat of an old-fashioned community. Greenstone focuses on that."

The homes that face Willamette Park are alley homes (with garages at the rear of the houses), so "what you're seeing are beautiful homes and not garage doors" when you look down the street from the park.

Montrose has a network of over five miles of walking and biking trails that connect to parks, schools, shopping and the surrounding community while minimizing exposure to traffic. Hop on the Karen Streeter Trail that parallels Seltice Way and in minutes you can be at Falls Park, Treaty Rock Park, the library, or the Centennial Trail. Sometimes it's more convenient to get to places by non-motorized vehicle than by car, Brickett says.

You'll find elegant brick monuments at each intersection, identifying the streets. Rolling hills and trees cluster in natural groupings along the winding trails.

Everything has been designed to mimic nature.

Then there are the spectacular mountain views in every direction. "The mountains are right there," Brickett says. "You can't reproduce that." Many of the fields surrounding Montrose are owned by Greenstone Homes and are intended for future development. But until that happens, they will continue to be farmed instead of lying fallow.

Some Montrose residents remember helping local farmers lay pipeline in those fields when they were teens. Now they live in homes built on those very fields.

Greenstone Homes is a proud ENERGY STAR partner, building energy-efficient homes that save you money and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They use low-emission paints and carpets. Tightly sealed ductwork, high-performance windows and properly installed insulation mean even temperatures and freedom from drafts. Performance-tested ductwork reduces the possibility of drawing unwanted air from your home's attic, basement, crawl space and garage, so the air you breathe is cleaner.

Even the common areas are designed with water conservation in mind. Site design and layout is optimized for water mitigation. Landscaping utilizes native trees and shrubs. A dry creek bed built with rocks runs through the median at the entrance off McGuire Road.

Brickett points out that this entrance is the nicest in the development, even though it is a secondary one. Flowering trees border the winding road leading to Willamette Park, and stone walls frame the view of the road and Canfield Mountain in the distance. "It's a symbol of how much care and effort you put into a community," he says, "when that much effort is put into a secondary entrance." The main entrance is planned, but hasn't been built yet.

You will find a wide variety of house plans available when you decide to join the Montrose community. "Something Greenstone does really well is architecture," Brickett says. "They're never satisfied. They're always changing, always trying to make it better." The layout of windows and roof trusses is always evolving, he says. Windows are placed for privacy, yet still let in an amazing amount of light.

Prices range from around $160,000 up to the $300,000s. "We're trying to include everyone," Brickett says. "Homes are affordable. We're trying to meet people's needs. Everyone deserves a great community." Homes are selling quickly; the market has definitely come back, he says.

HOA fees are $17/month and cover maintenance of the parks, common areas and facilities. The homeowners association even has a website that provides important information to the residents, as well as offering useful online services.

Brickett loves his job, and this community, and it shows. "If you really love what you do, it makes everything you do better," he says. "You can't fake passion."

Greenstone has been building homes in Montrose since 1999, and there's no end in sight. It offers the best of both worlds: the benefits of an established community, but also one that continues to grow and improve.

"Time is on its side," Brickett says. "It's a community that is just getting better with time. The longer it develops, the prettier it gets."

Become a member of the Montrose family. Call Rob Brickett at (208) 660-3650 for more information.