Park the Plane Next to the House

During this time of year, the only thing that elicits more dread than a petrified fruitcake, garish sweaters or the shopping crush is the nightmarish experience at the airport that gets your holiday started.

However, there are a lucky few who don't have to live through that holiday nightmare. No, not the atheists, but those who choose to turn their driveway into a taxiway.

Residential airparks are nothing new in the U.S., but they have been increasing in popularity since 2001 among those who love to fly but who don't want to deal with the hassle and security concerns associated with air travel these days.

"One of the big factors is the inconvenience of commercial flying," says Dave Sclair, who produces LivingWithYourPlane.com, and who had spent 25 years living in an airpark. "If you're a businessperson or an executive, your time is worth a lot. In an airpark, you can take out your plane, check it and take off in 15 minutes, rather than waiting for hours in a commercial airport."

	Jumbolair Airpark, Ocala, Fla.

He also says that in light of terrorist threats and homeland security warnings, flying out of your home is safer than from your major metropolitan airport. "People like to know who's near the plane and who's working on it," he says. "When you fly commercially, you have no idea who worked on the plane and who had access to it."

Despite the concern some might have of living near a place where planes land and take off, Sclair insists that residential airparks are safe. "There are very few accidents or incidents at residential air parks," he says. "Since 1975 I know of only two incidents that resulted in major personal injury."

Sclair's site tracks over 600 residential airparks in the U.S., and he estimates that he locates a new one every week. These airparks can range in size from just a few homes or homesites to large 1,000-plus-unit luxury air communities.

	Hidden Valley Airpark, Denton, Texas

Two of the more upscale residential airparks are the Leeward Air Ranch and Jumbolair, which are both located in Ocala, Fla. Leeward is a private 500-acre gated community with custom homes on half-acre to one-acre sites surrounding its 6,000-foot runway.

Jumbolair, once a home for elephants, is a lush, bucolic gated horse community that happens to have at its heart the largest FAA-licensed lighted and paved airport in the world at 7,550 feet. Every home site has a street in the front and a taxiway leading to the runway in the back.

Another gated aviation community is Pine Mountain Lake near Groveland, Calif., and close to Yosemite National Park. The community has about 4,200 home sites on roughly 3,400 acres. More than 2,900 homes have already built there. Homes on the taxiway lead to the Pine Mountain's 3,600-foot lighted runway.

However, Pine Mountain caters to more than just the private-jet set. It also has a lake stocked with bass, trout and catfish as well as a corrals and stables for equestrian enthusiasts.

	Winwood Resort, Canaan Valley, W.Va.

Pegasus Airpark, located in Queen's Creek, Ariz., opened in 2001. It has a 5,000-foot runway capable of accommodating aircraft up to 12,500 pounds, and home sites that range from 1 to 1.3 acres. There are about 60 homes built in the community, ranging in price between $600,000 and $2 million.

Pegasus, as indicated by the name, represents the overlap of those who love to fly and those who love to ride horses. Pegasus has home sites available without taxiway access that are adjacent horse trails and equestrian privileges.

"It's an area where they try to retain old ways and horses common," says Russ Brandt, owner of Blue Chip Land Corp., which sells the lots for Pegasus. "But there are also those who own a plane, a $2 million home with a pool and a horse."

Aside from the high-end luxury airparks, Sclair says the vast majority of residential airparks are typical subdivisions with middle- to upper-level homes. "Think of a golf course and replace it with runway and homeowners' association," he says. "Some have a meeting place, just like a golf course community, but the difference is, you have a runway instead of a golf course."