Lovin' The Jungle

This is 44 Walker St Downtown Grand Bend to the right and 5 Queens Ave Downtown Grand Bend below

The Downtown area of Grand Bend is both fascinating and interesting. Known officially as Plan 24 and affectionately as " The Jungle " many people love it or hate it with more and more moving to the loving it side. The " Jungle" has been party city for decades. Most cottages were built in the 30's, 40's and 50's as unheated unwinterized cabins and of course used only in the summer. During the 60's and 70's it really became "party town" as the "boomers" discovered how easy it was to get here and how great it was to be here.

The lots are small, the downtown bars and the beach are all right at at hand making it cozy, friendly, fun and exciting.

Things are changing and the party image is fading as those same "boomers" are coming back, this time with money and kids and /or thinking of retirement. Renovations, tear downs and rebuilds are everywhere. The key ingredients that made it great still exist and that old real estate adage of " location, location, location" is entirely at play with the great beaches, restaurants, bars and shopping right at hand. Prices are reflecting the increased interest as well. Into the late 1990's and early 2000's almost everything was available under $ 100,000 with an average price around $ 50,000. Now a tear down is hard to find and would be around $ 150,000 with most prices now $ 200,000 and above and increasing. A new 30 house development scheduled to start this year on Queens Ave will have prices $ 300,000 and above as well as 3 new homes being built at Oak and Warwick also touching that price range. Now is the time to jump on the band wagon because there are no new lots being developed anywhere in Grand Bend on the lake side of Hwy 21. This is also a very popular area for people wanting to rent; this time with families in tow . So buying a cottage/home and renting it out a few weeks helps affordability by covering most of your carrying and operating costs. The Party image is all but faded with the exception of the May 24 weekend, but the fun and desirability is stronger than ever. The two cottages at the top of the page are year round homes and both for sale. If interested let me know by phone 519 238 5700 or e-mail larryb@grandbend4sale.com.

Return of the Fishing Boats

Last weeks picture of Grand Bend's Main St in the 50's created quite a few comments and e-mails so this week this picture is of the same Main Street in the 1930's, again looking toward the Lake. Also if you want to see more pictures of the Grand Bend area from the past use this link
http://www.grandbend4sale.com/OLdAreaPics.htm

Spring is here and some of the last couple of days have been fabulous. One sign of Spring is the fishing boats returning. Early last week they broke thru the ice at the Harbour and at least one is in and now working. Another sign of Spring is the number of workers showing up at various locations on Main St renovating and getting ready to open.Calls on Real Estate have increased markedly and now is the time to buy if you want to be here for the May 2-4. I also have several business opportunities available so if your thinking, act now and give me a call or e-mail 519 238 5700 or larryb@grandbend4sale.com

Looking Toward Knapps Arcade

This is picture of Main Street Grand Bend looking toward the Lake in the 1950's. To see more pics of Grand Bend from the past go to www.grandbend4sale.com/OLdAreaPics.htm

The official start of Spring is just a couple of hours away so I thought it might be nice to see a summer pic, so why not one from the past.

Cheaper Heating Next Year

Made it thru the Ides of March and now on to St Paddy's Day. This time change took a little getting used to; the warm weather the first of the week took no time getting used to. I haven't updated my house construction lately so I will. We've been taking a break since Christmas but now the warmer ( I hope ) weather is here and it's back to work. The main floor is virtually complete so now we have to finish the garage which will let us then insulate the roof of the garage and add more to the house.. good time you say, well it just got too cold too work in the garage. Think how much cheaper heating will be next year. Work begins on the Lower Level too and then the Yard.
Activity continues around town with the new Flower shop at the corner of River Road and Ontario St now open. The Census is out and Lambton Shores grew 5.5% as did Grand Bend which is within Lambton Shores.There is no doubt as more and more Baby Boomers prepare to retire and with modern technology, this is THE place to live.

Spring brings change

Well I don't know why but I haven't been able to access this blog to change it for almost a month and now for some reason it opened and became accessable.
"So what has happened over the past few weeks" you ask. Winter and its cold weather has stayed with us but it looks like it will warm up this weekend along with the switch to Daylight Savings Time. In the Real Estate world I've just listed the Pro Hardware property and the business separately offering many potential methods of purchasing ie the land and building; the business with or without a lease or both. This is probably the most prime location in town at the busy corner of Lake Road and Ontario St ( Hwy 21 ).
Work is underway at the former Grapevine Bar, Finnegans is remodelling,the Bookstore is closed and a new business is opening there as well as a new flower and gift shop beside New Orleans Pizza and the Grand Bend Speedway has new ownership and will be expanding. Spring brings lots of changes and it will be interesting to see the annual transformation of downtown as it once again gets ready for the Summer businesses.

Winter Carnival Wrap Up

Well Winter Carnival has come and gone and by all accounts it was one of the most successful ever. Last Saturdays parade had well over 50 entries. There were 20 or so snow sculptures and lots of activities both weekends, all well attended. This years organizers deserve a big round of applause.
This year Daylight Savings Time comes early March 11. Don't know for sure what that will mean but we'll find out, hopefully with Wiarton Willy having not seen his shadow it will bring warm weather with the extra daylight. Wouldn't be able to tell that by this weeks weather though.
Summer Rentals are busy with many reporting at least half the summer is booked already. Most of the good places are fully rented by mid March. If you are looking... this link will get you to a list of availabilities and other links to sites that have places for rent www.grandbend4sale.com/RentalPage.htm
Sevareal places have sold recently and now is a great time to buy..good selection and in many cases motivated sellers. For a complete list of what is for sale try this link and use the Search Engine www.grandbend4sale.com/listingdir.htm

Taxi Cop

The Grand Bend Winter Carnival starts this weekend and we have lots of snow. Snow carving has stated at 20 different locations and they are starting to look good. I don't know if this is silly season but recently in Sarnia a man tried to get into a police car and pay the driver to take him home. He did get a ride home but was also charged with being drunk in a public place. In Grand Bend a well marked cruiser was parked in a parking lot when a vehicle pulled in and started doing donuts. The officer approached the lone driver and found open beer and marijauna in plain view. He will appear in court at the end of February . In the more stable part of the world we're starting to get a fair amount of activity and interest in Real Estate and this Spring looks like it will be good one. Lots of new listings showing up too.
If you want a list of Winter Carnival events click on this link
www.grandbend4sale.com/WinterCarnivalSched.htm .