Quail Hill Homes for Sale: Masterplanned


There are many perks of living in a masterplanned community like the Villages of Irvine. For starters, you have all the amenities of city living right within your reach. Shopping, dining, recreation, working and learning centers are close to home or are right within your your village itself that you don’t even have to walk more than ten minutes from your front door just to experience it all.

Aside from the governmental, commercial, educational and recreational establishments that mark these communities, the general plan itself conceived of environmental and land use goals that ensured that the city will continue to progress with time. As the Irvine Company website says: “From parks and open space, to schools and residences, to circulation and sewer lines, and commercial and industrial spaces, it has all been accounted for.”

This is one of the perks of acquiring quail hill homes for sale. The Village of Quail Hill, like all other Irvine villages, benefits from the company’s long-range planning goals. It has its own amenities. The Quail Hill Village Center, for example, is the residents’ own shopping and dining venue. The Commons is a park that has first-rate amenities which include, among others, a pool, spa, fitness center and playground for the kids. It has barbecue spaces for family get-togethers and gatherings.

Another benefit that quail hill homes for sale offer is the well-thought out landscaping. All Irvine Ranch communities have streets and avenues lined with trees and verdant vegetation. They have trails that meander through picturesque open spaces. Residents of Quail Hill have their very own Quail Hill Trailhead that leads to the Quail Hill Loop Trail, Shady Canyon and Back Bay Trails. In and around these villages, it is not unusual to find meadows and forested hillsides, oaks and sycamores. In fact, there’s an evergreen or a deciduous tree that graces every village along with shrubs, hedges and flowers. According to the website of the Irvine Company, the landscaping also “softens the built environment, transforming streets, retail centers, commercial districts and entire neighborhoods into inviting, scenic settings.”

Living in the Village of Quail Hill gives you the benefit of all the lush landscaping that enhances the natural terrain of the area. Besides, quail hill homes for sale are part of a well-planned city that ensures that the environment and the people who live there will always be protected even as the land continues to meet the demands of modern-day living. Development in Irvine and in its villages will always be done in accordance with the masterplan developed five decades ago.

{ 0 comments }

For Quail Hill Bike Lovers: Peters Canyon Regional Park


Biking is one of the many activities that have encouraged outdoor sports enthusiasts to invest in quail hill homes for sale. Living in the Village of Quail Hill puts them so close to the challenging and exhilarating biking trails of the Irvine Ranch. Not only can residents pump up the adrenaline with a bike ride in these open spaces, they also get the chance to take in the breathtaking scenery and observe the plants and animals that they can encounter as they cycle. One of these mountain biking trails is the Peters Canyon Regional Park.

Located near the intersection of Chapman, Jamboree and Santiago Canyon Roads in the city of Orange, it’s open daily from seven in the morning until sunset and can be accessed readily from quail hill homes for sale. This is a small park and the trails, which trace the perimeter of a reservoir and travel down the canyon, are fairly easy, making it ideal for the average biker. The East Ridge View Trail gives you scenic views of Peters Canyon while the Lower Canyon Trail will allow Quail Hill residents and other visitors the chance to see grassland, coastal sage scrub and riparian habitats. The highlight of your bike ride is a large eucalyptus grove which can be found at the end of the canyon.

Upper Peters Canyon Reservoir, a 55-acre area, has resident and migrating waterfowl while the lake and Peters Canyon Creek showcase willows, sycamores and black cottonwoods. It is not unusual for bikers to encounter mule deer, bobcats, coyotes, opossums, raccoons and the occasional mountain lion. Small amphibians, mammals and reptiles also converge the Peters Canyon Reservoir and Creek. Where coastal sagescrub and grassland abound, bikers and hikers can also see cactus wrens, gnatcatchers and sparrows. In the many eucalyptus groves as well as in the skies, Cooper’s, red-tail and red-shouldered hawks can be seen.

A complete figure eight loop around the park is 5.8 miles with an elevation gain of 460 feet while a loop around the Lake is only 2.5 miles long with a gain of only 100 feet.

A dirt parking area is located at the top of the park. Thus, remember that a bike ride down the canyon will also mean a ride back up to get to your vehicle. Water and Porta-Potties can be found in the parking lot. Another Potty is also placed at the end of the canyon. Park entry fee is $2. Make sure you have the exact change. You can call up (714) 973-6611 for more information about Peter Canyon Regional Park.

The chance to experience all that the great outdoors has to offer is one draw card of quail hill homes for sale. You and your family can experience that today.

{ 0 comments }

The Open Spaces of Irvine Ranch


While living in any of the Villages of Irvine is the affluent’s little piece of heaven here on earth, there is always one thing that stands out in the minds of its residents. This is the very thing that differentiates this masterplanned city from other cities all over the country: It’s the Irvine Company’s dedication to nature. And nowhere is this more obvious than in the perpetual protection it gives to close to 50,000 acres of parks, trails and open spaces. Conveniently considered as the backyard of quail hill homes for sale, these lands feature meadows, mountains, hills and beaches all with their unique plant and animal life.

These lands are not only important because they are beautiful and provide many wonderful trails for trekking, bird-watching, cycling and exploring but more importantly, because they serve as green buffers for the surrounding villages where quail hill homes for sale are also located. Donald Bren, Chairman of the Irvine Company, sums it up nicely when he said:

“The significant open space, parks and recreational opportunities on The Irvine Ranch provide aesthetic beauty, relief from development, and secure our unique Southern California outdoor lifestyle. Residents of communities on The Irvine Ranch have a better sense of their urban limits and the security of knowing these large green buffers around them will exist forever.”

Living here puts you in walking distance to these natural attractions. These include the 5,500-acre Limestone Canyon, the San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary, the coastal scrubs of Bommer and Shady Canyons and the soon-to-open Jeffery Open Space Trail that will network the Villages of Irvine with the Santa Ana Mountains, the Cleveland National Forest and the Pacific Ocean.

Most of these open spaces have also been declared as National Natural Landmarks because of their biological, geological and paleolontologic significance. Flora and fauna that have made the area their home are also protected with this designation. As a very biodiverse area, eagles, badgers, Tecate cypress trees, rare birds, amphibians and coastal sagescrub are just a few of the numerous plant and animals that can be found here. Aside from living things, fossils and rock formations also tell of the history of the earth from 80 million years.

All these beauty are very close to quail hill homes for sale. If there’s a way of inculcating in your children the love of nature, it’s letting them experience it first hand at the open spaces of the Irvine Ranch.

{ 0 comments }

Witnessing Birds of Prey Releases Near Your Quail Hill Home


Living in Quail Hill puts you very close to the heart of nature. The visually and biologically-rich trails and open spaces give hiking, biking and horseback riding opportunities to all residents and visitors. On the Irvine Ranch, these open spaces span the length of Weir Canyon to the Irvine hillsides and from Cleveland National Forest to Crystal Cove State Park.

While the natural beauty of the land is enough to encourage the home shopper with the budget to seriously consider getting any of the quail hill homes for sale, there is one more interesting event that all nature and bird lovers look forward to: Witnessing birds of prey releases.

The Irvine Ranch Conservancy together with the Orange County Bird of Prey Center work together to nurse birds– hawks and owls, especially– back to health before releasing them into the wild. Individuals or county, state or federal agencies bring injured or orphaned birds to the center. Veterinarians from the Bird of Prey Center examine, conduct tests and give the appropriate pharmacological or surgical intervention to enable these raptors to go back to their place in the sky. Staff and volunteers of the center are careful in raising and caring for these birds since they do not permit the birds to become used to human presence or attention to allow them to develop the skills they need to survive in their natural habitat. Injured raptors are kept in “mews” or flight cages before they are released.

In 2008, the Irvine Ranch Conservancy and the Orange County Bird of Prey Center released barn owls, a screech owl, small falcons also known as American kestrels, red tailed hawks, red-shouldered hawks and Cooper’s hawks. The public is encouraged to view these releases so they are educated about the important ecological role of these birds in the ecosystem. And all these are right at the backyard of quail hill homes for sale.

Parents with kids know the importance of exposing them to nature and the different species that make up the world. Activities such as Birds of Prey Releases provide hands-on learning experiences that enrich children’s understandings about these animals and their connection with human beings and the world. While the releases are not regular (check the Irvine Ranch Natural Landmarks website at www.irlandmarks.org for schedules), it’s a good idea to live close to where it’s all going to happen. And buying quail hill homes for sale gives you that luxury.

{ 0 comments }

Why Real Property Values are High in Irvine


Irvine, considered as one of the best places to live in the United States by CNNMoney.com is a class unto itself. As a full-service city, it has all the amenities that city living has to offer plus more. Police, water, electricity, phone, cable, medical, street maintenance and refuse collection are all part of the city’s services to its residents. Centers of education abound in Irvine, making it one of the top cities in the United States with a good number of persons above 25 years old with doctoral degrees. For basic education, the Irvine Unified School District provides pre-school, elementary, middle and high schools while the University of California Irvine, Concordia College and Irvine Valley College are just some of the institutions of higher learning that have found a home in the city. Where there are a plethora of learning opportunities and complete amenities and services for both the young and old alike, one can expect real property values to rise. And quail hill homes for sale are no exception.

But city facilities and education are not all that Irvine has going for it. The natural attractions of the city make it an ideal place to live. The designated Natural Landmarks of the Irvine Ranch such as those of the Quail Hill Preserve and the Back Bay and Shady Canyon Loop Trail make great hiking, biking and horseback riding spaces. Quail hill homes for sale are located so close to these outdoor spaces that residents can escape the city anytime to clear their head or just admire the beauty of nature.

The well-planned Villages of Irvine are also an attraction into themselves. Single-family homes, large estates, condo units– name it and any of the gated or gate-guarded communities of Quail Hill, Shady Canyon or Turtle Rock, among others, are bound to have it. Like its other villages, quail hill homes for sale, are self-sustaining communities. That is, you don’t even have to leave your village to shop or dine. Quail Hill has its own Quail Hill Village Center with dining and shopping establishments. The Commons, the village’s own recreational facility boasts of a pool, a fitness center, a spa, playground and a picnic areas.

Moreover, real property values are high in Irvine because of its wide range of family attractions. These drawcards include the concerts at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, the amusements at Boomers! Park and the water fun and adventure at Wild Rivers Waterpark. The Irvine Spectrum Center, the premier shopping destination for Irvine residents does not only hold more than a hundred shops, it also has restaurants and in-center attractions like a Giant Ferris Wheel, a carousel and a kiddie train that kids and adults will enjoy.

{ 0 comments }