Last week stager extraordinaire George Bass called me and said I should see a project he’d finished staging at Lakeside Tower. Despite all the luxury homes he works on, he rarely suggests I see something in person. When he does, I know I’m in for a real treat.
So, last week I drove to Flower Mound to meet Leslie Bardo with Realty Capital Management, the developer for Lakeside, while the uber-talented Stephen Reed was shooting listing photos.
I don’t get to Lake Grapevine much, and I’m sad to say, I missed the groundbreaking party in 2015 but remembered Candy’s words, “This will be Miami life right here in North Texas.”
Boy, did she get that right.
The dramatic 16-story Mediterranean-inspired Lakeside Tower on the North Shore of Lake Grapevine is visible from miles away. As you approach, winding your way through a beautiful village of shops and restaurants, that drama only intensifies. Think The Biltmore in Miami or Hôtel Barrière Le Majestic in Cannes.
Gorgeous Amenities
I’ve been in a lot of high-rise developments all over the world, and I can safely say I didn’t even want to leave the lobby. It’s that gorgeous.
Bardo met me and gave me the grand tour of the vast menu of resort-style amenities that include all you can imagine, from a spa and private movie theater to a GolfZon golfing simulator room and a whiskey room!
There are just 48 homes in Lakeside Tower, and only eight are available, with two fabulous bungalows at the rooftop pool level ready in about six months. For the record, I’ve never seen condos of this size. To say the floor plans are generous seems an understatement.
“Lakeside Tower is the first high rise in the suburbs,” Bardo said. “Realty Capital Management developed the entire area, and we always had a tower in the plans. We just didn’t know when we’d build it, but the market came to us. We kept getting calls asking when we were going to build a high rise.”
Popular Locale
Lakeside Towers was 50 percent pre-sold before they broke ground, and buyers began moving in last June.
Remember, I mentioned there are only eight units left, so there’s something exceptional going on here. Locals ready to ditch high-maintenance homes for the lock-and-leave resort lifestyle flocked in, but Bardo said many buyers from all over America are attracted to the location. People want to be near the water and enjoy lake life. You can dock your sailboat at Silver Lake Marina, seven minutes down the road!
There is also the fact Lakeside Tower is 10 minutes from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. If you need to have a foothold in the Metroplex, it does not get better than this, and no, you are not in the flightpath, so there’s no airplane noise.
If you are a golfer, Cowboys Golf Club, the first NFL-themed golf club in the world, is open to the public seven days a week. It’s a six-minute drive from Lakeside Tower. If you have kids or grandkids, Legoland Discovery Center is about three minutes further. I cannot think of anything you’d need or want that’s longer than 10 minutes away.
Spectacular Views
Now out of those eight available properties, this one, as George said, must be seen. The only other place I’ve been in that reminds me of this luxury condo is Robert Ludlum’s in Florida. I saw it years ago on a project for American Way magazine. His place, however, made me seasick as you could not see the ground from the wall of windows surrounding the vast great room. There was just water out of every window. Pass the Dramamine.
When you enter unit 1203 of Lakeside Tower from a direct-access elevator, the views are simply spectacular, and you won’t get seasick! No, you have a definite ground reference as a gorgeous greenbelt is just outside the windows, along with those stunning Lake Grapevine views.
The enormous open floor plan was a must to stage. When you have these vast spaces, you have to see how they live, and the team at George Bass Stage & Design did their usual incredible job.
It was hard enough to get me out of the lobby and even more of an effort to shift me from the main living area. I wanted to sit down and never leave this 4,875-square-foot home. But there are four bedrooms, five bathrooms, and expansive balconies I had to take in, and they are all equally gorgeous.
If you’ve never fancied yourself as someone that would take to high-rise living, Lakeside Tower will change your mind. If you already love the idea, remember there are very few opportunities left here, and this one is spectacular.
Rick Wegman at Christie’s International Real Estate ULTERRE has Lakeside Tower apartment 1203 at 2800 Lakeside Parkway listed for $3.335 million. It’s worth every penny and then some.
