Carroll County development perfect for ?split? couples

“I’ve never been in a community where just about everybody knows everybody else,” said Hill, president of the homeowners association’s board of directors. “We’ve got a social committee that’s just out of this world.”

That sense of community permeates throughout the 250-town home neighborhood, located in the Carroll County section of Mount Airy. The current expansion is the fifth and final phase of a project that began in 2000. The builder, Grayson Homes, limited the number of units that could be constructed and sold during each phase.

The homeowners association sponsors spring and fall cleanups, a community yard sale, barbecues, and even an outdoor movie night which shows films for kids and grown-ups on the soccer field.

“It’s a community that is very active in doing things together,” said Marie Dressel, community sales manager for Grayson Homes.

The homes come standard with two bathrooms and three bedrooms, and range in size from 1,250 to 1,700 square feet. Some have one-car garages, some do not. Options include finishing the basement with a full bathroom, sunrooms, and more, but all come standard with the quiet, peaceful environment that first drew Hill and others.

“The location is close to town, and yet kind of away from town,” he said.

“You’re only a mile away from Mount Airy, but sitting here you wouldn’t know it at all. For me, a town home is ideal. I’ve got a yard the size of a postage stamp, which is perfect for me.”

The neighborhood is particularly attractive to couples whose commutes take them in opposite directions, Grayson spokesman Gwyn Walcoff said.

“We have a lot of split couples, if you will,” she said. “One person drives to work in Baltimore, the other person to Washington.”

Wherever the nine-to-five rat-race leads, when those couples and the others who call Towns at Mount Airy return home, they’re in a place warmer than most town home developments can claim to be.

“It’s just a great place to live,” Hill said.

At-A-Glance