Port Aransas Real Estate

What is the Texaplex?
David Winans coined the term "Texaplex" to describe the triangular region of Texas that contains 75% of the state's population. Watch the video and see why everyone is talking about the Texaplex.

The Texaplex Project
The global financial crisis is a vicious cycle. The more we hear and talk about it, the worse it gets. However, in spite of all the national bad news, Texas is prospering! Texas, and in particular the Texaplex, has some pretty impressive facts that most Texans weren't even aware of. This video is part of the Texaplex project which has set out to change that.

Did you know that the Texas Real Estate market is one of the strongest in the nation? Did you know that half of all new jobs created in the US were in Texas?

Watch the video and visit the website for more details.

PORT ARANSAS, Texas - Migratory birds are not the only visitors arriving en masse from northern locales.  As an article in today's issue of the San Antonio Express News points out, Port Aransas is a popular destination for retirees in search of an affordable winter escape.  Lured by the relatively warmer temperatures, camaraderie and a welcoming community, "Snow Birds" enjoy living in Port Aransas while most Texans stay home and wait for Spring to return.

For the many vacation/second home owners in Port Aransas, the Winter Texans are a welcome source of rental income in an off-peak market.  The second home market dominates the local real estate industry.  Waterfront condos, homes and coastal cottages range in price from $180k to over $1M.  

The Port Aransas Chamber of Commerce website has a complete list of property management companies with a variety of available rentals.

PADRE ISLAND, Texas - Firefighters from 12 agencies were busy for several days battling a huge grass fire.  No homes or structures were lost in the blaze.  Some news outlets such as the Corpus Christi Caller Times are reporting that up to 5,000 acres were scorched.  That article is available at the Caller Times.  KIII TV3 has video coverage.

The fire started Saturday evening and investigators are checking to see if an overheated ATV was responsible for sparking the blaze.  The area involved was South of the homes in the Padre Isles development and North of The National Park facilities at Malaquite Beach.  Park Road 22 the entrance to the Padre Island National Seashore was closed.

PORT ARANSAS, Tex - Members of the Port Aransas Preservation and Historical Association have worked tirelessly for many years to establish a museum to celebrate our history. That dream will become a reality this week as the new museum is set to open on Thursday, December 11th. The Garden Club and other community organizations have been instrumental in their contributions to this project.

The museum is located at 408 N Alister directly in front of the newly restored Community Center. Stop in for a visit on your next trip to Port A. Here is a little history courtesy of YouTube. The newsreel footage below shows FDR tarpon fishing off the jetties in 1937.

PORT ARANSAS, Texas - Construction has begun on an exciting new development in Old Town Port Aransas.  The Mercer Village cottages are located on the site where the historic Mercer home was located for many years.  The home has since been moved and is being renovated to become a museum for the Port Aransas Preservation and Historical Association.

The twelve new coastal cottages are conveniently located at 315 Oleander and within walking distance to the harbor, shops and restaurants. Three bedroom cottages start in the $190's.  Five floor plans are available.

Download the Mercer Village sales brochure (2 MB pdf) or visit Port Aransas Real Estate for more information.

This photo taken today, shows construction workers finishing the concrete slab for the first sold cottage.  This unit is a two-story 1,400 sq ft Captain Mercer floor plan with three bedrooms and three baths.

PORT ARANSAS, Texas -  A star is born...well not just yet.  We're used to our brand of celebrity visits in Port Aransas.  Willie Nelson, Kinky Friedman, George Strait, Arnold Palmer among others have been "on island" recently.  Now, we can add Tommy Lee Jones to that list.   The native Texan, famed Actor/Director is preparing for his next project.  He will co-produce, direct and star in a new film based on Hemingway's posthumously released novel "Islands in the Stream."

Filming is set to begin in early 2009 in the Caribbean.  So, what does that have to do with Port Aransas?  Well, another star of the film is destined to be a 38' Wheeler Cabin Cruiser built in the 1930's.  Quoted in a recent Times UK interview, "It had to be the right kind of boat," says Jones. "I said from the start, if we got the boat right then the rest would fit into place. It has to go from being a fishing boat in the first half of the film to a war vessel in the second half. It was vital, to me, that it was genuinely built before the second world war. So the hunt was on from the moment we got the go-ahead for the movie."

The Times UK article reveals that the boat was located in Queens, NY and was moved to Fort Lauderdale, FL for extensive restoration.  The article continues, "We are going to have our sea trials soon," says Jones, who will be onboard. "We will then take her to an undisclosed location and protect her, like an unborn child."

The "unborn child" is well protected and currently resides in Port Aransas, TX.  The beautifully restored boat and her stately lines have been seen cruising the harbor as sea trials continue.

As a lifelong Hemingway fan, this story has been of great interest to me.  I trust that Mr. Jones will make a film true to the story.  The opening paragraph is vintage Hemingway.

The house was built on the highest part of the narrow tongue of land between the harbor and the open sea.  It had lasted through three hurricanes and it was built solid as a ship.  It was shaded by tall coconut palms that were bent by the trade wind and on the ocean side you could walk out of the door and down the bluff across the white sand and into the Gulf Stream.  The water of the Stream was usually a dark blue when you looked out at it when there was no wind.  But when you walked out into it there was just the green light of the water over that floury white sand and you could see the shadow of any big fish a long time before he could ever come in close to the beach.

PORT ARANSAS, Texas - October 2, 2008 - The 42 home sites in Phase II of Village Walk are nearing completion as construction crews finish underground utility installation.  Village Walk is a gated community located at 2525 S Eleventh Street in Port Aransas.  Only four interior lots remain in Phase I and families from Houston, Austin and San Antonio are enjoying vacation homes in Port Aransas.  Phase II lots are now available for $80k.  

Mustang Island dunes and Gulf of Mexico view from a new three story Village Walk home.

The view from a Village Walk rooftop terrace looking East over the island towards Ingleside and Corpus Christi.  Phase I homes are shown in the foreground.

AEP work crews complete the underground utilities in Phase II.

Phase II roads as seen from the front entry.

For additional details on Village Walk visit Port Aransas Real Estate or call 361-749-7500.

Several hundred people read my blog on Hurricane Ike in the past 24 hours.  Clearly there is interest on the impact the storm had in Port Aransas.  With that in mind, I am reposting the weather details and including some additional photos that were taken yesterday morning (9/13) about eight hours after the storm came ashore near Galveston.

Earlier this week, forecasts from the National Hurricane Center predicted that Ike would make landfall near Port Aransas on the mid Texas coast.  At the expense of the Houston, Galveston and the Port Arthur area, Port Aransas was spared.  No rain was recorded and the peak wind gusts were below 30 mph.  However, the powerful storm did generate a large flood tide 165 miles from landfall.  The peak tide measured at the Horace Caldwell Pier in Port Aransas was 5.37 feet above normal (MMSL).

The photo below was taken in the Island Moorings subdivision from the second level of a home on Mustang Blvd.  Water levels were over the docks and bulkheads, but well under the elevation of homes.

If you have ever enjoyed a cold one at Shorty's, gone fishing from Fisherman's Wharf or enjoyed sushi at the Pelican Club, than you have been in the area of Port A known as "The Flats."  This photo was taken just after the tide had peaked and illustrates why the name is appropriate.

The surge from Ike made changes to area beaches.  Sand was deposited over large areas and appears to have increased the elevation of the beach on northern sections of Mustang Island. In the southern section where the beach is narrow, the high surf appears to have eroded the dunes to some extent.  Shown in the photo below, exposed roots from dune vegetation.  As I recall, prior to Ike the dunes extended seaward and the mile marker and traffic bollards shown were inside the foredune ridge.  This will (temporarily) result in wider beaches in this area.  Note:  Others with far greater knowledge of beach ecology will have much more to offer on the impact of forces such as Hurricane Ike.

Earlier this week, forecasts from the National Hurricane Center predicted that Ike would make landfall near Port Aransas on the mid Texas coast.  At the expense of the Houston, Galveston and the Port Arthur area, Port Aransas was spared.  No rain was recorded and the peak wind gusts were below 30 mph.  However, the powerful storm did generate a large flood tide 165 miles from landfall.  The peak tide measured at the Horace Caldwell Pier in Port Aransas was 5.37 feet above normal (MMSL).

The photos below were taken earlier this morning (09/13).  The top photo was taken behind Woody's Sport Center and shows the boat slips behind Trout Street looking towards Virginia's.  The second photo was taken at the Island Park Estates dune walkover.  The tide was still approximately 3.5 feet above normal.  The high tide did cause some significant dune erosion on Mustang Island.  Prior to Ike, the dune ridge extended to the mile marker shown in this photo.