Melody Anderson

Chateau Lake of the Ozarks is apt to bring national exposure to the lake area

John Q Hammons, one of the nation's premier developers of luxury hotels and resorts, expects to break ground on his $90 million dollar lakefront resort project this summer.

The Chateau Lake of the Ozarks will be a 15-story, 320 room/suite development on 30 acres of lakefrontage in the heart of Osage Beach (at Hwy 54 and Passover Rd.). With more than 100,000 square foot of meeting space planned, this resort is expected to draw upscale visitors and conventions from not only metropolitan Missouri cities, but from expanded markets throughout the U.S.

Should the project complete as planned, the resort could be open by Spring 2011, and should provide a significant boost to the lake area economy.

[This post originally appeared at: www.postcardsfromthelake.com]

Life-long residents say they wouldn't live anywhere else

I have been working with a young couple in recent months trying to help them buy their first home. Life-long residents of Macks Creek, their won't consider house-hunting in any other community - no matter the bargain.

The feeling they have of being at home in this small town, and the determination not to live anywhere else is the very same sentiment expressed by two other young couples to whom I've sold homes this year in Macks Creek.

I've asked all of them at some point why they want to live in Macks Creek - and no where else - and their responses have been pretty much the same: a desire to stay close to family, a love of the area and the country living lifestyle.

Saturday, after showing some homes in Macks Creek, I stopped at a gas station to fill up my tank. Fueling alongside me was a truck loaded down with firewood on one side, with two other trucks of hunters dressed in camouflage clothing on the other. Sorry that the batteries in my camera had died and that I was missing a great picture, it struck me that the scene that afternoon at the convenience store was, to some extent, respresentative of the Macks Creek lifestyle that so many young home-buyers here are committed to maintaining - and perhaps even passing on to their own children in time.

My clients didn't buy a home this week. The right home for them isn't on the market yet. But these clients are patient. They'll wait.

Macks Creek is located about 20 minutes west of Camdenton, Missouri on Hwy 54.

[This post originally appeared at: www.postcardsfromthelake.com]

Amateur photographer, Rick Hebenstreit makes photography fun.

Rick Heberstreit's self-portrait

During an internet search the other day I came upon a series of photos by Kansas City area photography hobbiest, Rick Heberstreit. Following a link which lead me to his online photo gallery, I was captivated for more than an hour. As I strolled through his photo albums, I would 'ooh' and 'ahh' over his beautiful landscapes, delight in the personality and fun captured in photos of his friends, and would occassionally laugh out loud at his 'action figure' photos.

I'm happy to report that Rick has graciously granted me permission to share with you some of his photos here on this blog. You'll soon be able to identify them, no doubt, by their quality and composition. I sense there is also a personality and a spirit coming through them that you'll soon come to recognize, as well.

An archive of posts will also be created so that, over time, you'll be able to enjoy a collection of them all in one spot. Look for "Photos by Rick Heiberstreit".

I'm also pleased to announce that a local professional photographer is also expected to share some of her lake area shots with us. Look soon for "Photos by Sonya".

(This post originally appeared at my blog: www.postcardsfromthelake.com )

A drive down a lake road in Camdenton, Missouri

Fall is a favorite season of mine, and drives down quiet lake roads like this one easily show one of the reasons why. Although the colors this fall weren't as particularly vibrant as usual, there's still such a a beauty to them - particularly in the light of an afternoon sun.

But the beauty of Fall isn't all about the colors. There's also a kind of quietness that comes along with the season that is so welcomed by me - particularly on the heels of a very active and busy summer. And as much as I love the summer green, I love looking at the night-time sky through the bare limbs of the trees.

Fortunately for me, my clients were as taken by the beauty of this sight as I was, and we all took a moment out of the car to appreciate it a bit.

(this article originally appeared on my website: www.postcardsfromthelake.com )

District enrollment of k-12 students continues to increase.

4,335 were enrolled in the Camdenton Public Schools at the beginnning of the fall term this year, and breaks down by building as follows:

- Camdenton High School (grades 9-12) 1274

- Horizons (Alternative School) (grades 10-12) 115

- Camdenton Middle School (grades 7-8) 685

- Oak Ridge Intermediate (grades 5-6) 602

- Hawthorn Elementary (grades 3-4) 505

- Dogwood Elementary ( Pre-K-2 ) 812

- Hurricane Deck Elementary ( Pre-K-4 ) 149

- Osage Beach Elementary ( Pre-K-4 )186

- Juvenile Justice Center (grades 6-11) 7

This year the District has expanded preschool services (3-4 year olds) to provide access to children with identified disabilities as well as those with minor developmental delays. Total district wide enrollment for that program is currently 138.

(This article originally appeared on my website: www.postcardsfromthelake.com )