Our Featured Communities: Oregon, Walbridge and Rossford
1/8/2009The East Side: Oregon, Walbridge and Rossford
This week s featured communities, Oregon, Walbridge and Rossford, are all located on the east side of the Maumee River. At one time, glassworkers populated Rossford; refinery workers made Oregon their home; and railroad workers settled in Walbridge. While each community experienced its greatest growth due to a specific industry, each has continued to grow and thrive beyond those industries.
Oregon is the largest of the three, both in population and area. Oregon City Schools include four elementary and two middle schools and one high school. The district has an Effective rating, the second-highest granted by the Ohio Department of Education.
The City of Oregon provides a variety of recreational opportunities for residents, workers, and visitors to the area. Maumee Bay State Park has over 1,800 acres, with one mile of shoreline on Lake Erie. Maumee Bay has an eighteen hole Arthur Hills-designed golf course, a lodge and conference center, cabins, campgrounds, inland lake, nature trail, tennis courts, sledding hill and amphitheater. Wave runners, parasails, paddleboats, bikes and canoes are available for rent at the park.
Pearson Metropark has 320 acres for biking, a nature center, fishing, picnicking, and paddle boating. The City of Oregon has two municipal parks, Coontz Park for active recreation with eight lighted ball fields and South Shore Park with a sledding hill, picnic area, and fitness trail.
Oregon is also home to Sundance Kid Drive-In Theatre, a popular spot in the summer months and one of the country s few remaining drive-in movie theaters.
Homes range in price from the low teens to nearly $1 million, with the vast majority priced between $100,000 and $175,000. More upscale homes are located in the newer subdivisions, including Eagles Landing, built around a golf course; Fox Run, near Pearson Park; Steven s Meadows, The Vineyard, and more. As with any coastal community, waterfront lots are at a premium. Homes with a view of Lake Erie hold their value very well.
People on the East side are particular, says Chris Hall, a broker and manager of Danberry s Oregon office. They want a good product and they won t over pay. That s why builders from the other side of town are coming over here.
Located to the south of Oregon is the Village of Walbridge. This quaint village offers small town living minutes from Toledo and Perrysburg. Many homes are available from $100,000 to $150,000, in a wide variety of home styles. Newer construction, such as the Country Meadows neighborhood by Dold Homes, ranges in price from $184,000 to nearly $250,000.
Walbridge does not have its own schools system; it has been a part of Lake Local Schools since 1953. Walbridge Elementary serves kindergartners and first graders. Students in higher grades attend either Lake Elementary, Lake Middle School, or Lake High School. The Lake Local Schools are rated Effective by the Ohio Department of Education.
Throughout the years, Walbridge residents have always remained committed to the preservation and maintenance of their village parks. For a community that is approximately one mile square, there are four parks and a municipally owned swimming pool. Each of these offers different amenities and collectively, they provide something for everyone.
Rossford is south of Toledo, nestled on the east bank of the Maumee River. The city has a decidedly small-town ambiance, with an old-fashioned Main Street Dixie Highway -- running through the center of town. Many of the homes in this community are older, built in the early part of the last century. Many of these have been well-loved and cared-for, making them an excellent bargain for homebuyers.
Eagle Point Colony is Rossford s most exclusive subdivision, with large homes enjoying a water view. Another fine subdivision, Ironwood, is home to very large, modern homes.
Rossford Schools include the Bulldog Center, a preschool and kindergarten; three elementary schools; a junior high school and a high school. The school district has earned the rating of Effective from the Ohio Department of Education.
Rossford offers three city parks and is close to the W.W. Knight Nature Preserve, part of the Wood County park system. Veterans Memorial Park, one of the city parks, has a marina providing access to the Maumee River for boaters, a popular hobby among Rossford s citizens. The Rossford Community Recreation Center is free to residents and includes a gymnasium, indoor track and more.
The communities on the east side of the Maumee River offer so much for their residents. Call your realtor today about purchasing a home in Oregon, Walbridge or Rossford!