More teasing .....

so.. here are some PREVIEW photos of lot 14, block 2 of Lago,
these shots will give you just a glimpse of the view,

Due South, Mountain ridge,
This is the Allicante Area, between this lot and the Mountain area is the Desoto Spillway, Dam, Nature trails, Low water bridge, and the Cortez Town Center, Banks, Dr's, Insurance, Churches, etc. Notice how you cannot see them. God, I LOVE trees.

Looking to the West ... BEAUTIFUL Lake Desoto.
We cannot clear these trees just to see how the view will fall, but i think you can get an idea of the view over the lake, and the Golf Course in the distance. TRULY a stunning lot. So, get your bidding cards ready.. we will be offering this at EBay within the next 45 - 60 days, for final auction. 100% of the sale, (not just profit, 100% of sale price) will be donated to Church at Rock Creek for the purpose of our childrens home. http://www.churchatrockcreek.com/

Here it comes :)................

We have talked for months about IMPACT and the Church at Rock Creek. Well.. it is here. We have a new property that will be listed on Ebay within a couple of weeks. We are excited about it as it is a large plat of land at over one acre. It is near the Dam of a large (older) Lake and should be a great homesite. More details can be found at http://www.hsvpp.com and other offers at http://hsvpp.com/17-1-estrella/17-1%20Estrella.htm . More fun to follow. Btw, Oaklawn is open and has been running about a month. Great racing, great weather. www.oaklawn.com

It is beyond me !

Ever heard someone say that ? It's beyond me ! ... or it beats me.


While a simple phrase like that is not a problem, it does (sort of) sound like a note of defeat. A note that says, I cannot do that. A sigh of resign. A note of desperation.

Well, it IS beyond me. In the humble, mid sized city of Little Rock Arkansas there is a need. A need that is simple and basic. The need is for children to have a loving home. A home where a child no matter how disadvantaged, no matter how heavily the odds are set against can KNOW that they will be loved and cared for and that they matter... to SOMEONE.

One of my FAVORITE phrases in life is.... STOP CURSING THE DARKNESS AND LIGHT A CANDLE. So simple, so true. SO EASY. But it is beyond me... or is it? You see ... we know that separately we have limited abilities, access and resources. BUT... together.. TOGETHER.. we can do much more.

My family and I have been blessed more than words can describe by The Church at Rock Creek, it's members and staff. We call it Church 2.0. It is HONEST. IT IS REAL. Is this an ad for a church ? NO.. this post is to let you know that WE .. WE as a church, and WE as a people, have decided to make an IMPACT. An IMPACT on the region and on the state. We have undertaken a goal of opening a Children's Home on our church campus and staffing it. We will be able to take in several dozen children and we will be expanding to a youth home as our last stage (as those of you know who have / have been / or ever WERE a Teenager know it is the most difficult stage).

So how can you / WE make an IMPACT on our area? http://www.churchatrockcreek.org/childrenshome.htm . No matter how many it helps .. big or small we CAN make an IMPACT.

I am NOT asking for donations, although if you felt directed that way please contact the church at http://www.churchatrockcreek.org/ and ask to speak to Lynn Fagan, Administrator.

As for us, we have chosen to auction a property for IMPACT and 100% of the bid price will go DIRECTLY to the IMPACT fund at The Church at Rock Creek. Please watch soon for that special auction. It will be very clearly noted that 100% of the sales price will be donated for the Children's Home. In the spring of 2006 we auctioned a property on EBay for the victims of Katrina. That EBay auction raised $19,200 for the home site in HSV. We proudly delivered the check to the Little Rock office of the Salvation Army. Let's say they were glad to see us and we were happy to help... but more than that.. the stories of the LIVES changed at the Salvation Army. The roofers who were unemployed in New Orleans that have been relocated here and were busy and THRILLED to be "earning my own keep" as one of them told me. Katrina was a staggering disaster. But as in ALL things, there is good that can come from it. The lives that have been redeemed, the sense of self worth reborn, the "can do" attitude that surprises even the hardest heart. That is the GOOD side of Katrina.

IMPACT does not address a "national crisis", it does not and will not make the evening news. IMPACT is for ONE purpose. To show children, who have no choice and who have NOT chosen to have the home life they do that someone - if even a stranger to them - loves them, cares for them and that they matter. This is specifically for children who have been pulled by the courts from their home(s) and need a place to stay. It IS that simple.

And yes, maybe it is beyond me .. i cannot build a children's home, but it is NOT beyond US! ;)
Please watch for this special auction and if you can bid, great, if you cannot please pray that someone can help and we can complete building and making an IMPACT on others lives.

For more information http://www.churchatrockcreek.org/impact.htm

Lighting a Candle...............

dennis

Senior Pie Chart

Doesn't this just say it all? Those of you who have been reading my Blog know that THIS IS ME.

Add to that, forgetting "what's his / her name's name! "

Ok, again, a good time to "lay it on the line". This is not ALL that strange to me. As a child i had GREAT difficultly learning English. It made (MAKES) no since or is that sense? English and my mental skills seem to have been at odds since (or sense OR cents) i was VERY young. That said, I am ALL about the logic. Frankly, I am ALL about testing the rules (and OHHHHH don't MY children test / remind me of that). Yet I digress. My point here is not about English, it is about rules and the people who make them. Who are they? Where did they get the authority to tell me that "though" is different that "threw" ? and WHO says what is right and what is not?

I have arrived at a point of PEACE in my life. A point where i do not argue with the wind any more... and i am not the "angry young man" that Billy Joel sang about. I am the happy to be here guy who knows that looking for things i had a minute ago, beats worrying or stressing all about all my youth angst.

"Oh, there's a place in the world for the angry young man with his fist in the air and his head in the sand, he's been stabbed in the back, he's been misunderstood, it's a comfort to know his intentions are good. His honor is pure and his courage is well, he sits in a room with a lock on the door and his maps and his metals laid out on the floor and he likes to be known as the angry young man"

to continue,

"I believe I've passed the age of consciousness and righteous rage I found that just surviving was a noble fight.I once believed in causes too,I had my pointless point of view, And life went on no matter who was wrong or right."

to finish,

"And there's always a place for the angry young man, With his fist in the air and his head in the sand.And he's never been able to learn from mistakes, So he can't understand why his heart always breaks. But his honor is pure and his courage as well,And he's fair and he's true and he's boring as hell-And he'll go to the grave as an angry old man.(synthesizer solo) There's a place in the world for the angry young man With his working class ties and his radical plans He refuses to bend, he refuses to crawl, He's always at home with his back to the wall.And he's proud of his scars and the battles he's lost, And he struggles and bleeds as he hangs on the cross-And he likes to be known as the angry young man."

Ladies, i know you may not be able to relate, but every man on this list, has at least a fleeting feeling like this.. at some point.

Have you hugged the person you love most today ?

dennis

Time for Fun

Ok.. we have talked history, and we have talked politics and the future.
But now, it is time for what Arkansans do best, we LOVE a good story, a funny song, or just a cute tale. Well the wait is over, i was emailed this a few days ago, and it is uniquely a great Arkansas Song.

http://

And i am VERY sorry if you see two of these, Blogger.com is having "issues"...
trust me .. you WILL enjoy the song, sort of a love song.. of sorts.


This weeks auctions,
Great lots, great prices....
Where are YOU spending your future ?
make our home yours

more news to come ,
dennis

What a Gamble :)

I LOVE history, it ROCKS,
better yet, it is pretty cool when it repeats itself.


Take Hot Springs and it's GAMBLING PAST. History buffs like myself know that "gaming" in Hot Springs has gone on since one Indian bet another Indian that it would rain. Yet, Gaming (of some sort or another) has been here CONSTANTLY for 200 years.



You see, in MY lifetime, I was a SMALL child living outside of Little Rock and I would look and the local Newspaper and see that Sammy Davis Jr. (IN THE 1970's MIND YOU) was at the "Vapors" a "dinner club" in Hot Springs. WOW!! and BIGGER THAN THAT!! Phylis Diller was coming the next week and John Mathis was 2 weeks after that. I was a slow kid, but i knew that we lived so far back in the woods (culturally) were getting Saturday Night Live on Mondays...(and we did not "GET IT" all the time then). What were these LAS VEGAS STARS doing in HOT SPRINGS ARKANSAS ?? I was stumped. Then in the mid 70' (i was 12 - 13) there was a new Governor (NOT BILL) in town and he called raids on ALL the gambling tables and slots in HS, so ended (for the while) an era.



Was this new? HARDLY ! Only to a snot nosed kid who had NO CLUE. You see, in the 20's and 30's Al Capone and other gangs REGULARLY came in HS. It was where Al tried to get "the cure" (read STD's here) with the healing waters, and just like with the Indians, Hot Springs was neutral. No gang wars here. If you had a beef with someone in Chicago, you left it there. By the way, Hot Springs was a nearly direct train ride from Chicago, as it was ALWAYS hailed as "the cure" (again read STD's here). The routine was that you took a weeks worth of baths, rested, exercised, at well, Gambled, and drank LOTS of water (after the Mercury Bath or the Sitz Bath). If after ALL of that, you could walk the mountain trail over to Gulpha Gorge (other side of hill in Hot Springs National Park), you were declared .... CURED! I am in good health and LOVE outdoor walks and trust me.. if you can walk that 3.7 miles, YOU ARE CURED! of WHATEVER you have or had :).


Ok, Enough history for one blog, What is happening and how does it affect Hot Springs Village?
Gambling is STRICTLY forbidden in Arkansas EXCEPT in 2 places. Hot Springs (at Oaklawn) and in West Memphis (at the greyhound racing track). You see, we have NO lottery, no casinos, no Indian reservations, no gaming... PERIOD. Until this spring when the legislature decide that West Memphis and Hot Springs could have LOCAL voting to all this. Well, you can see the future from here. Oaklawn (who's horse racing season ended in April) offered some slot machines at that time.

NEWS: This week, Oaklawn has NOW HIRING - DEALERS signs on the main drag.

THIS IS HUGE. It is expected to change everything.


So, what is so big about it ? Harrah's has bought a 14 acre run down shopping center just 2 blocks down the street, in addition to the Majestic Hotel (600 rooms) in downtown.

I am certain that we will be "busting out all over" pretty soon.

What does this mean to you ?

I don't know .. we all see things differently.. but this looks like an INVESTMENT on the HOOK.
Take a look here .. and you tell me ! :) I do not think we will see prices like this again.



hug someone you love :)

dennis



btw, make sure to sign up for the free lot giveaway

Future.... On Hold ? hardly.........

With Major resellers like NRPI coming into Hot Springs Village, it seems to be only a matter of time until growth increases, once again, Mr. Cooper has foreseen and has planned for the future.

WATER! Water, it is said, maybe what the next world war is fougth over. In his wisdom, Cooper Communities designed Lake Pinada. It is over 230 feet deep and can sustain ALL of HSV (built out completely) for over 1 year with out ONE DROP of additional rain. Now, that said, we generally receive 55 - 70 inches per year, so for now, water is NOT an issue and should probably never be one. We are also committed to the Central Arkansas Water Council. A group that is planning on taking 1.5 MILLION gallons from Lake Ouachita (5 miles to west) and pumping the better part of the way back to Little Rock. Well, well, well.... you get ONE guess as to what "village" lies DIRECTLY in the path of this water line. So, we have signed on as a way of ENSURING that we will ALWAYS have plenty of water in HSV.

So, if we will always have water, why do we need more... simple short answer... Golf. Much if not all of the courses are self sustaining and many have wells / springs in them. That said, CNN notes that California is apologizing for brown greens. Meanwhile, Florida and the Southeast is simply on fire and the drought on both coast is serious and does not look to be improving any time soon. Now given, to ME this looks like a natural cycle in arid areas. We too are concerned and THINKING about how any / all of these changes may affect our paradise called Hot Springs Village.

I hope you are enjoying these post as much as i enjoy making them. Please add your comments to the bottom (they are called POST) and everyone else can see your opinions also. More to come and MANY.. and I do mean MANY more photos .

In the meanwhile, feel free to look at the properties for auction and for sale in beautiful Hot Springs Village, AR.

For more information, or some "self reading" please go to http://hot-springs-village.net/.

It is FULL of answers and suggestions about how to find YOUR piece of heaven and what to do once you get here. For example, How much does housing cost? What activities are there for me? How much to things cost? What are the fees and Dues in this area? And most often, WHAT IS THE WEATHER LIKE ? and the list goes ON and ON... card clubs, ENDLESS GOLF, fishing clubs, RV travel clubs, and this is not even then beginning. email me for more info :) ... dennis@hsvpp.com

HSV People

Thursday, May 17, 2007

Hot Springs Village: History & Future
Hot Springs Village......
Yesterday, today and tomorrow.In this day and time it can be hard to find peace and quiet. We have found ours in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas (map).Mr. John A. Cooper was an attorney in Memphis in the mid 1950's when he realised that there was about to be a bumper crop of Baby Boomers coming south soon. He and his family enjoyed vacationing on the banks of the Spring River (read COLD water) near Hardy Arkansas. He found that there was a development nearby on the Spring River. The development was floundering. He and a group of partners picked up the resort with a golf course and as we say in Arkansas "turned a pig's ear into a purse". Cherokee Village became a popular location. Cherokee Village did have it's downside. Sewer connections, ample water supply, utilities, etc. The development was not completely isolated so some parts of the village where across the street from mobile homes and dead cars in front yards. Not exactly the high end resort that one might have in mind, and as usual there were the rural vs. suburb conflicts. When you live "in the country" and i mean REALLY in the country, dogs barks do not respect the property lines and sometimes even the dogs themselves do not either ;). While working with CV Mr. Cooper and his development company learned a great deal. First and most important, how to you get people to HARDY ARKANSAS ? (map) well, to his everlasting credit, Mr. Cooper discovered / invented the 3 day / 2 night vacation for a 90 minute sales tour (sound familiar to you? ) NRPI and other companies are copying him to this day (rest his soul). Yes, John A. Cooper is in the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame for inventing the "Time Share Tour". I only wish I had made that up, it is TRUE.

After learning a GREAT deal in North East Arkansas, (mainly that it is a hard market to sell and that he needed more control over his development) Mr. Cooper left his partners and headed off too North Eastern Garland County where a 2.1 million acre National Forest and where the Dirks Timber Company was offering to sell "the dark corner" of Garland County. It was known as the Dark Corner (click to see a online book from a resident), because it was FAR beyond the arm of the law around the turn of the century when it was settled. This area offered by the Dirks Timber Company was 18,000 acres that crossed between Garland and Saline County in South Central Arkansas (map). Hot Springs National Park is a mere 16 miles away and has a rich history all it's own from 30's era gangsters hanging out at the Springs trying to cure their STD's to native Indians that lived here thousands of years ago and declared the healing springs as a neutral place (that ironically the gangsters respected also). The great city of Hot Springs has grown up around the park and has quite a personality of it's own. Oaklawn is the local horse racing track and consistently produces great horse that are always contenders in the Kentucky Derby.
Back to our history, ;)... Mr. Cooper and a State Senator toured the land in a plane and Mr. Cooper saw all he needed to see. It was his gem. He knew immediately that he could gate this community and make it what he had always wanted his developments to be. Private, self sustaining, secure and an oasis of beauty. Cooper then set upon the principals that he KNEW would make it a great place to live.
1. 25% (NOT including the 9 Golf Courses and 7 lakes) of ALL areas would be designated as "green space".
2. All lots touch green space. This was to preserve the feel of the forest and lessen the effect of "seeing other homes" nearby.3. All utilities would be underground and unseen.4. All subdivisions would be protected from the road by green space.

The Total Effect of this is SIMPLY amazing.171 holes of Golf. (most courses are under $20 for 18 holes)7 Lakes in Village, (roughly 1400 acres total)5 miles from Ouachita National Forest and Lake (285,000 acres)Look here for Scenic Drives
Needless to say, I cannot cover it all in this one post, more to come, probably next week.In the meanwhile, here for some video clips that can tell you more about the area.
dennis