Press Graphic

Staff photos by Bill Gross
Each of the 55 homes will be custom-designed by Studio Tagland Architecture of Harvey Cedars. The living room of the four-bedroom sample home shows an airy, open-floor plan.

The sample house of Hideaway Bay development in Long Beach, Long Beach Township, gives potential buyers an overview of the designs and quality of the houses. The upstairs studio, right, provides wraparound views of Long Beach Island, the ocean and the bay.

Joining the flurry of home additions and renovations is Hideaway Bay, a development of more than 30 homes being built by Callan & Moeller Construction.

The 12-acre site previously housed a single bay-front home and was known as the Shapiro tract because it belonged to the Shapiro brothers, Muriel and Jerome, who were early Long Beach Island developers in the 1950's.

The residence, known as the "Airplane House," was sold to the Hideaway Bay developers and demolished. When the development is complete, 35 homes will stand on the property. Each home will be designed individually by Studio Tagland Architecture, a firm based in Harvey Cedars.

According to brothers and architects, William and Richard Tagland, the homes will have similar exterior styles - incorporating shingle, Queen Anne, and Victorian design elements - to create a cohesive development.

However, each home will be custom-designed according to the buyers' expectations. "Each home has a distinct design, not a cookie-cutter look," the brothers said. In addition to variations in design, the homes will range noticeably in size and price.

Square footage for each residence could be anywhere from 2,400 to 9,000 square feet, while prices will range from $500,000 to almost $2 million.

Although the lots are close together, those along the water have back yards that open up to the bay - with unobstructed views of Atlantic City. The Taglands pointed out that the development features elevations higher than many on the island, with a grade change of about eight feet from Long Beach Boulevard to the bay.

Three homes face Long Beach Boulevard, while the rest will face the bay, with the more expensive homes actually sitting along the bay. The builders said about 16 units have already been sold. A sample home, now doubling as an office for Callan & Moeller, features a master bedroom and three additional bedrooms; two baths, one with an oval bath tub and a dual-headed shower; and an upstairs studio space.

The home also offers an open-floor plan downstairs, with the living room, dining area and kitchen, all with hardwood floors, flowing into each other. French doors serve as the main entry and front and back porches offer places to enjoy the outdoors.

Among the custom features already planned for some of the other homes, now under construction, are an indoor pool, "walls of glass," and walk-out basements.

One home even features a room shaped like a lighthouse and another has a wraparound porch.

The Taglands said residents include young families and senior citizens, some maintaining only summer homes and some year-round. "We've had a good response so far," said Richard Tagland, explaining that his firm sits down with homeowners to develop homes with a similar theme, but individual character.

"We listen to what their needs are. We don't cram an architectural style on them. Our job is to make each home unique, while fitting into the neighborhood," William Tagland said.