Fountain Inn's Country Gardens community has just-right feel
The street names -- Bright Morning Lane, Sweet Apple Court, Very Fine Drive -- paint a picture of a pleasant place where adults and children live a relatively quiet life.
And at Country Garden, the rows of vinyl-sided, one- and two-level homes with a mix of trees in the yards echo that pastoral vision.
Before moving to the community, Terri Dalenko, 26, and her husband, Dale, 36, had visited many times, attracted by what they saw.
"It was beautiful," Mrs. Dalenko said. "We thought it was just a pretty place." With a growing family that includes a preschooler and a toddler, they were in the market for a home with room to roam.
Nine months ago, they made their decision final, purchasing and moving into a three-bedroom home at Country Gardens.
Mrs. Dalenko is happy they did.
"There are a lot of children for the kids to play with," she said. "It's been wonderful living here."
Sherri Hogebom, a 61-year-old native of Upstate New York, moved to Country Gardens with her 62-year-old husband, Richard "Wayne," five years ago to be closer to their daughter in Mauldin.
Hogebom, a homemaker, and her husband, a machine operator at Fisher-Barton in Fountain Inn, were looking for something smaller than their 2,600-square-foot home of 34 years. They got much more than they bargained for.
"(We) lived way out in the country, and this is the first time we have ever lived in a home with next-door neighbors," Hogebom said. "And we love it. Everybody says, 'Sherri knows everybody.' And I say, 'Well, I never had anybody live by me.' I love it. I truly enjoy the neighborhood."
Country Gardens, which opened its doors to home buyers eight years ago, is one of four Seppala Homes communities in Greenville County; a fifth is planned. The neighborhood is located just beyond the bustle of city life on State 418, about four miles from Exit 23 off Interstate 385.
The community straddles the line between Greenville and Laurens counties, just as the city of Fountain Inn does. Residents pay taxes in the county in which they live, but students attend Greenville County schools because the subdivision is within Fountain Inn's city limits.
With a population of 6,017, Fountain Inn is growing -- attracting young families, seniors and singles alike. Many say they were drawn there by the town's less-hurried pace and quality of life.
All around town there are new and renovated facilities: the fresh faces of Fountain Inn Elementary School, the Fountain Inn public library, an activity center built in recent years and a new civic center in a renovated building that once housed the elementary school.
The civic center, which is still undergoing transformation, will be home to a variety of city offices and services and senior activities, said Lori Cooper, Fountain Inn Public Works secretary.
"We also have the Learning Academy, which provides tutoring programs sponsored in conjunction with the city," Cooper said. "There's also a computer room, where computer courses are offered," she said. "It's a beautiful small town with a nice home-town feeling."
Seppala Homes expects to sell 400 homes in its developments by year's end; 16 have been sold this year at Country Gardens, said Michael Harp, sales and marketing director.
"We have completed sale of the neighborhood," he said. But more homes are planned there.
"To extend Country Gardens, we're in the process of purchasing 60 acres, which will convert to 164 more lots adjacent to Country Gardens," Harp said.
"The new homes will be similar to the existing units," Harp said, adding that home resales there average around $110,000. The single-level homes have three bedrooms and two baths. Two-story units have an optional three or four bedrooms and 2? baths.
The homes range from the low $90s to $130,000, Harp said, and come with one- or two-car garages.
The community was designed for first-time home buyers, families looking to upgrade to a larger home and retirees looking to downsize, Harp said. It features a mix of families: roughly 70 percent young families and about 30 percent retirees, he said.
About five years ago, Roy Williams and his wife, Mildred, moved to the neighborhood from a townhouse in Simpsonville after starting their family. They have twins.
"We needed more space ... and there was a couple that was selling their home. They had lived here about 1? years. The wife had gotten transferred to a job in Tennessee," said Williams, a native of Philadelphia.
"Coming from cities where there's a lot of noise, one thing that we love about this area is the quietness," said Williams, whose wife was born and reared in New Jersey. "When we go to work in the city, and come back home here, it's peaceful and serene. It's a totally different environment. The neighborhood is just very friendly."
Located three to four minutes from downtown Fountain Inn and 25 to 30 minutes from downtown Greenville, Country Gardens feels miles away from big-city life, with its downtown drugstores, hardware and furniture stores, quaint shops, boutiques and restaurants.
Even the town's name is a throwback to slower days, when an old inn with a fountain served as a stagecoach stop between Greenville and Laurens.
"I wanted to live in the Simpsonville/Fountain Inn area because I heard that was a very good area to live in," said Ray Zenker, who moved there from Greenville with his wife, Pat, about seven years ago.
Zenker grew up in Massachusetts farm country and is retired, but keeps busy selling real estate.
He said excitement builds in Fountain Inn during its two annual festivals: the Aunt Het Festival in October and the Spirit of Christmas Past celebration in December.
The Aunt Het Festival is named for the comic strip character created by Robert Quillen, the late writer, newspaper editor and longtime resident of Fountain Inn. An annual tap-dance competition is held there in honor of another Fountain Inn legend, dancer Clayton "Peg Leg" Bates, who was born in Fountain Inn and died in 1998.
During December, the town is at its best. "We have our Christmas decorations, the horse and buggies up there," said Zenker. Luminaries mark the route visitors follow in horse-drawn carriages.
"It's just a dynamic area, just the generosity of the people, the togetherness of the people -- everybody working toward their little town," Zenker said.
Community spirit is reflected in Country Gardens as well, where neighbors recently banded together to form a Neighborhood Watch and a neighborhood beautification committee.
Hogebom, president of the beautification committee, said Country Gardens is a community made up of "hardworking, everyday citizens" who are concerned about each other and their community and their town.
Lt. Ronnie Reid of the Fountain Inn Police Department said his office worked with the neighborhood a few years ago to deter crime.
"We did a National Night Out block party a few years ago," he said. National Night Out is a program designed to promote community activities that "encourage families to come out and meet their neighbors. It gives the message that crime will not be tolerated in their neighborhood," Reid said.
Hogebom said, "It's just wonderful. ... To me, it's like a church family; you get to know your neighbors. And nowadays, it's as important as ever to know your neighbor."
Price range: $90,000-$130,000
Years built: 1994 - 2001
Square footage: 1,250-2,500 square feet
Schools: Fountain Inn and Bryson elementary schools, Bryson Middle and Hillcrest High
Parks and recreation: Located within 3 to 4 miles of Country Garden are the Fountain Inn Activity Center, Fountain Inn Civic Center, Fountain Inn Recreation Center and five city parks: Fairview Street, Fountain Inn City, Georgia Street, Sanctified Hill and Woodside parks
By Kathy Spencer-Mention STAFF WRITER the Greenville News
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