Life on an airpark
Living with your RV Airplane
by Bob Collins

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Aviation is a series of dreams. It starts, perhaps, with a youthful bike trip to the airport to watch the lucky folks, the ones with airplanes. Then, a pilot certificate. Then, an airplane -- either by writing a big check or by building it yourself and writing a series of smaller checks that add up to the same amount. At some point, it's a hangar. And, if you're at all like me, somewhere near here comes another dream -- living on an airpark with neighbors who are also pilots and builders.

I doubt that last dream is going to happen, even if I'm on a somewhat haphazard pace to realize the other ones, but that doesn't stop me from dreaming and living vicariously through the experiences of my fellow RV friends-- those who live in airparks. So this week I asked them to tell me about their homes and hangars so that we can all share a dream.

On the southeast coast, Jack Eckdahl sent greetings from the Golden Isles of Coastal Georgia. "My wife and I are retired and live at Eagle Neck Airpark near Shellman's Bluff. We are located about 35 minutes south of historic Savannah. I am a first time builder of N489JE, an RV9A with 350 trouble free hours on a new lycoming 0-320 D1A. Eagle Neck, 1GA0, has a 3475 ft. paved and lighted runway 01/19," he says.

His home and hangar is on one acre on the runway near the south end of Runway 01. And best of all? He's got company. "There are three flying RVs in the neighborhood and two more under construction," Jack says.

Airpark amenities include a pool, tennis courts, community dock with access to coastal flats fishing and the Atlantic Ocean. "The fishing is excellent with absolutely no crowds. St. Catherine's Island and Blackbeard Island Atlantic beaches are undeveloped and accessible only by boat. Several golf courses are within 10 minutes of our gated community. Home prices at Eagle Neck Airpark range from around $340,000 to over $1,000,000."

Old buddy Darwin Barrie, who isn't really old at all, loves his home on the airpark to which he moved a few years ago. He says Stellar Airpark in Chandler AZ (P19) "is a very unique airpark in that it is very urban. We are only 5 minutes from a world class shopping mall, theaters and every possible restaurant. Stellar is home to Rotorway International."

"The airpark has quite a history that I won't go into but it started in the mid '60s. There are two residential sections, divided in the middle by a FBO, fuel and ramp parking. The runway is 17/35 in orientation. The east side of the runway is all commercial development. Much of that has taxiway access. In early 2000 a large parcel of land on the south side of the ramp and FBO was purchased and developed. This section is called Stellar Airpark Estates. Sixty-five lots were initially surveyed," Darwin says. "To get the development going, the developer, Jeff Mark, decided to get into the home-building business. His business is developing high -end apartment complexes in the Phoenix metro area. He is a pilot and owns several aircraft including a Citation jet."

The street on which Darwin lives was developed by Jeff Mark, Mark-Taylor homes. The houses range from 2,100 sq ft. to 3000 sq ft. All but one on this street have 1,800 sq ft hangars attached to the home, but Darwin says from the street you cannot tell that each home has a hangar."

Darwin signed for a 2,800 sq ft model in August 2001. "I chose this model because it had a pass through from the garage to the hangar. This proved to be a very desirable feature that Jeff Mark wishes he would have designed into all of the homes," he says. "I signed on a contingency because I had to sell my home in Scottsdale AZ. Amazingly the home with all the features came in at just over $400,000. There were very few options as Jeff Mark already had all the top features built in."

But now Darwin had to sell his other home. And it was September 2001, and the world was about to change. "Everything was on hold for some time. No one was looking at my home and I began to get worried," Darwin says. "Fortunately, nothing was selling at Stellar so they were happy to extend the contingency. In early December, I had three offers on my house on the same day and got my full asking price. The equity in my house made the purchase of the Stellar home possible. The house was started in February 2002 and I moved in on Labor Day weekend. Everybody is extremely friendly and willing to help with anything. It is a true neighborhood with everyone having the commonality of aviation, regardless of the extremely diverse income differences."

"We affectionately call our street, 'the South side of the Project.' As an example, there is a home behind me and one lot over that is nearing completion. The home is built on two of the lots. It features 15,000 sq. ft of living space and a 7,000 sq foot hangar, two pools and a guest house. It cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $8 million to build," Darwin says. I wonder what you bring when they invite you over to dinner, Darwin? "Next door to that house is another incredible home that is over 10,000 sq ft with a 7,500 sq ft hangar. It is owned by Suzanne Beech and her husband Tom Warner. The Beech name should be familiar. Suzanne is the daughter of Walter Beech. They bought the house new but did substantial modifications before they moved in. The runway was recently replaced with a new runway and taxiway system. The runway is now 20' wider and the taxiways are 15' wider. The runway is incredibly level now and features concrete footer edges to make for a smooth transition to the grass infield. Both approaches have PAPI approach lighting and lighted wind sock at each end and center. The project was funded by Jeff Mark and Ron Pratte with donations from many of the residents. They both own jets and wanted to improve the runway. This was an incredible financial commitment by these gentlemen with nothing expected in return except the pride of know we have probably one of the finest airparks in the United States."

"Ron Pratte has a couple of jets, a P51 and several helicopters. He is a very nice man that has obviously made substantial contributions to our community.Most importantly is the sense of community we have. Each year we have a Stellar Days celebration with community BBQ, golf cart decorating contest and static display of airplanes. We also hosted a Young Eagles event that far exceeded our expectations and is planned again for early 2009.The aircraft inventory at Stellar is amazing. We have a significant Experimental presence with several flying RVs with several under construction. There are Lancairs, Glasairs, Kitfoxes and gyrocopters to name a few. We are home to three P51's, several helicopters and as noted earlier, Rotorway." Somehow, I'm thinking the jet jockeys and helicopter pilots love to look at the RVs.

But not everyone lives in the airpark for aviation. Some just like having big garages -- hangars. Darwin says car collectors who build custom cars use them. But, he says, the neighborhood is united. "If someone needs something, you can be sure the word gets out and help arrives. When I was landscaping a small area behind my house along the taxiway, I had two tons of rock delivered. I asked a couple of guys to help. When it came time to do the work, six neighbors showed up with gloves and shovels. The pile of rock was gone in 30 minutes. We all pitched in and did two other similar jobs in under 2 hours.An open hangar is like a moth to a light. You will soon have lots of people over to see what is going on," says Darwin. I wonder how fast they could build an electrical system in my RV? Perhaps a little dose of Tom Sawyer would come in handy if you live in an airpark?

" I joke that my plane (RV7) could have been done 6 months earlier without all the visitors," according to Darwin. "It became necessary to enact a '10-minute' rule. That is, if anyone stays more than 10 minutes, you put them to work. Most were more than willing to help with something. The biggest problem is cleaning up the all the BS that is left behind when several aviators show up and start talking!!!!! Refrigerators are always stocked with sodas and adult beverages. There is no asking for a beer, all refrigerators are open to everyone. 'Happy Hours' are common. It is amazing how many local, state and world problems can get solved at a Happy Hour session. Airpark living is an experience that I wish every aviator could experience. I feel blessed that life provided me with the opportunity to live at Stellar. " I'll have to add it to my "places to visit" list when the RV-7A is done and flying.

And if the Chandler climate interests you, Darwin reports there are two houses for sale on his street. "Both are listed at around $850,000. Also, a new development on the North side of airport that will feature 11 or 12 new homes starting in the $2 million. No, I'm not wealthy, I just got in at the absolute right time. If there is anyway for you to get into an airpark, do it. You'll never look back."

Like Darwin, Ron Schreck's story revolves around September 2001, too. He was well into the build of his RV-8 when the 11th occurred. He was comfortable with his flying job at USAirways. His wife was a flight attendant for the same airline. They had a big house on a lake north of Charlotte, NC. All was right with the world.

Sixteen months later, he was out of a job, the house was for sale, construction on the RV-8 had stopped and the couple was traveling the country looking for a new home and a way to keep the airplane project alive. Their search took them through dozens of airparks looking for one that had everything they needed, but at a price we could afford.

"We darned near put money down for a place in Sequim, WA, but after running the numbers we concluded that staying near Charlotte was our only reasonable option," according to Ron. "Kathy still had her job with the airline that supplemented my Air Force retirement. We could get by if we could find a nearby airpark away from the high prices of the Charlotte area. I was about to throw in the towel and settle for pedestrian living when I happened upon an Internet ad for a home on Gold Hill Airpark, just 50 miles from Charlotte. I had never heard of the place but the following day Kathy and I drove out to check it over. Well, the house wasn't what we wanted, liked or needed, but the airpark was a jewel! Out in the country with cows and chickens, winding roads, mom-and-pop restaurants, blue skies and a 3,000-foot paved runway in the middle of it all!"

They decided not to buy the house they looked at but contacted people who lived on the airpark. "We called Tom Reddeck that evening and he invited us to return the next day and meet his wife, Martha, and tour the airpark. Tom and Martha are the epitome of southern hospitality. As 10-year residents of Gold Hill, they knew everyone on the airpark, knew the history, the financial status and most importantly, who was in the market to sell. We were about to say our goodbyes but Martha insisted we stay for dinner. Our hesitation was quickly dismissed when Tom explained that many airpark residents gather every Wednesday at a local restaurant. Before the evening was over we had met nearly half of the people who we were sure would soon be our neighbors!"

Ron and his wife sold a Shelby Cobra kit car, or rather turned it into airpark property. The architect who designed their home was an RC-airplane enthusiast. In exchange for the plans, Ron built him a seven-foot span J-3 Cub on floats. The barter economy!

"We soon sold the big house on the lake and moved to a rental house on the airpark and I became the general contractor for our new home. The rental house had a hangar and a nearly completed experimental Hyper Bype. The biplane's engine was sitting on the hangar floor and when I learned that the owner was not inclined to finish the project I made him an offer on the engine. It recently turned over 570 hours on my RV-8! What's the saying about making lemonade out of lemons? We have been in the "new" home for over four years now," Ron says.

The RV? It was completed in the new hangar, while five more homes have sprung up in the neighborhood. Ron flies air attack missions for the U.S. Forest Service and does whale surveys for NOAA and the U.S. Navy off the Atlantic coast. "It keeps me in 100LL. I fly with TeamRV, a formation demonstration group based in Atlanta and I have room in the hangar for the RV-3 I keep dreaming about. Airpark living isn't all it's cracked up to be. It's more!"

In the RV world, few names are more recognized than Tom Irlbeck. So it was great to hear from Tom, who says his family has been living on its own private airpark since 1976. "That is the year I hired two D-8 cats, one with a scraper, and they spent approximately 60hrs leveling out the hills of Wisconsin to build a 50'X2000' airport. It is situated on 73 acres of rolling hills, trees and a few ponds that are supporting water landings by numerous ducks and geese. We share the clover fields with deer, and a lot of turkeys," Tom says.

Irlbeck International is located 2 miles south of Somerset Wisconsin, which is approximately 45 miles by road, NE of the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport. ID is 24WI, or N45 06.00 W92 40.50, and is 990 feet above sea level. "One of the hangars, 52X64 is 100yds from our 4 bedroom home. We also have a tennis court in the back yard. Our reliable wind indicator is a Jacobs 10KW wind generator on a 100' tower. Another hangar that is rented out, is on the lower 40, and is 52'X72'. I have taught a few new pilots to fly out of a nice little 'bush strip.'"

Tom says it's the strip where he and his son grew up. His son is now a captain at Continental Airlines. "The grandkids love to feed the deer and turkeys, but most of all love to go flying from the back yard, whenever they want," he says. "The other day, I sat down and figured out that I have made over 5,000 landings into this little bush strip, not bad for an old bush pilot. The best part of landing on grass is, it doesn't wear out the tires, like landing on pavement."

The "old homestead" is now on the market, however. "We have lived on this unique piece of property for over 36 years, and want to downsize our living quarters." If you're interested in owning and flying out of your own airport, please contact Tom at bearintheair01 (at)gmail.com.

Next up: Howard Walrath. "From 1972 to 1995, we lived and flew out of Air Park Dallas (F69)," he told me. "In 1995 we finished building our home and hangar at Hidden Valley Airpark (5TX0) on the West shore of Lewisville Lake in Shady Shores, Texas (19 miles North of Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW), 1 mile East of Interstate I-35E." His EAA chapter published pictures of his home and his RV-6A N55HW.

As a retired Air Force and airline pilot, Jim Cone of Sequim, Washington always dreamed of living on an airport "where I could keep my plane and fly anytime I wanted without the hassle of going to an airport a long drive from home."

Sequim is primarily a retirement community, he says, with some of the best weather anywhere in the U.S. "I bought a lot in 1993 and built a home with a hangar in 2000 just before I retired from TWA (American Airlines)," Mr. Cone said. "I had completed building a Sea Hawker and two RV-6As. I flew my RV to the airport and traveled around from there after I finished building my new home. I have a 30-by-40-foot hangar with a Hydroswing door that is finished like the outside of the house. The inside is also finished like the inside of the home. I have a 667-square-foot shop that connects to the hangar by a set of double doors that provide a 6-foot opening. The hangar is heated. The shop is heated and cooled by the same system that heats and cools the house. I also have an oversized three-car garage with one bay large enough for a big boat or RV."

After he moved to Sequim, Jim built an RV-7A and sold his 6A. "Just after I finished the 7A, I had a stroke and gave up flying," he said. "I sold my 7A. Then, when light sport aircraft and sport pilot was approved. I decided to build an RV-12. Because of my long association with Van and others at Van's Aircraft, I asked and was given the honor of getting the first kit. I started building that, but had another stroke, more severe than the first one and decided that I should not be flying by myself or with my family. I still fly with friends who are pilots. I sold my 12 kit, but the buyer asked me to continue to build it for him and I agreed."

Jim is still building it in his hangar and shop. "Living in an airpark is really great. Many of our neighbors have planes and are a great bunch of people," he said. "It is so nice to be able to keep your plane at home to do maintenance, etc. without having to travel to another airport far from home. Travel to other destinations is as easy as opening the hangar door, pulling the plane out, closing the door and taking off.My home is about one block from the runway and noise is not a problem. I can see the runway from my home and I really love hearing a plane and looking out to see who it is. I have a panoramic view of the Olympic mountains and the Olympic National Park, so I have lots of windows that face south towards the runway and the mountains. I am about 200 feet from the shore of the Stait of Juan de Fuca on the Olympic penninsula. I really love living in an airpark and I love Sequim."

This story appeared in the November 22, 2008 issue of the RV Builder's Hotline.