Page 29 of Christmas Home

We greeted Emanual and Amos, then Lance dove right in. “As I said last time we spoke, I think building with the older bungalow feel is right for the area, and I’ve found a few designs and communities that’ve done it before. Unfortunately, most of the ones I can show you are way too close together for this community. I recommend you create some yards, front or back, to enhance the rural feel your buyers should find appealing.”

I nodded in understanding, and Lance continued showing us slides of his ideas. I also subtly watched Amos and Emanual throughout the slideshow to gauge their reactions. Amos was a closed book. Even from my childhood, I remembered that about him, and clearly, that hadn’t changed with the years. Emanual, though, smiled through the entire thing.

“This is exactly what Crawford City needs. Do you think you’d like to do this in our town?” Emanual asked me.

I appreciated that he didn’t beat around the bush, even if I wasn’t fully prepared to answer his question at this point. So, I shrugged. “Maybe. A lot more research needs to happen just to make sure it’s feasible, not the least of which is identifying a contractor. Amos, do you think your son can take this on?”

He immediately shook his head. “No, Todd is too booked up as it is. However, we are working with a couple of young men who could reliably do the job. Lance, didn’t you already speak with them?” he asked.

Lance nodded. “Yes…” he said, sounding hesitant. “I may be speaking out of turn, but they don’t live in Crawford City, and most of their work has been in Nashville. Amos, I recommend that you and Todd take point and subcontract it to them. That way, you can ensure it moves along as expected and stays on schedule.”

Amos looked over at Lance, and for a moment, I thought he might scowl, but he smiled instead. “I appreciate your confidence, and Todd has worked hard for his good reputation. The Richards boys are reliable but still a bit green. If you’re really interested, Rutherford, I’ll ask my son what he thinks and we’ll go from there.”

I nodded. “If we take this on, I’d need someone reliable. As you know, Corey and I don’t live here either, and we haven’t discussed who would manage things for us. It’s a lot to think about.”

The room grew quiet for a moment, and everyone looked at me expectantly as I weighed my options. “If I knew you were spearheading this, Amos, it would make much more sense for us to do it. Lance, Corey has put together a density study of how many units would have to be built to make it feasible. You’re correct that heavy density would be a turnoff for this type of community, but the acreage makes this appear lucrative enough.”

“And you still believe enough people would buy the homes to make this venture worth it?” Corey asked.

All four men around us nodded. Lance flipped through his slides until he came to one he hadn’t shown us. “I spoke to our realtor and asked if she thought she could sell new homes, and she almost jumped on me with excitement. As you can see, she doesn’t think she’d have difficulty selling a hundred units in or around Crawford City. She’s getting more inquiries than she can handle even now.”

“And people aren’t just building on their own?” I asked.

Jake shook his head. “No, that’s tough, and once you’re out of town, there’s not much land for sale. We’re in a buyer’s market.”

“Why hasn’t anyone bought the motel property then? There’s plenty of land there. Do you have a brownfield issue?” Corey asked.

When all but Amos looked confused, I added, “Brownfield, as in waste from the railroad that we’d have to deal with.”

“Oh,” Emanual said and smiled. “No, that area was mostly cow pasture when Amos and I were growing up. The railroad didn’t have anything to do with it. Old man Oliver owned it and built that motel when his wife was still alive. He managed it until he died about ten years ago. You don’t need the history lesson, but I doubt there’s much to deal with besides razing that old motel.”

“We’ll want to do an inspection nonetheless,” Corey said, and I cringed internally at how that must’ve sounded. When I glanced around, no one seemed upset, though.

“Okay, well, before we head back to New York, I’d like to have bids and a full understanding of if it’s feasible or not. Is there any concern about people knowing what we’re doing?” I asked.

Corey gave me a bewildered look, which I ignored. We weren’t in New York. If someone wanted to grab the land out from under us, then who would fund that kind of project in the middle of nowhere? However, Jake shook his head. “You’ll want to get a contract on it before anyone gets word. I recommend you assume anything that goes wrong in the city could go wrong here, and I’d like to ensure the right people are developing this.”

The other men were nodding in agreement, and that, more than anything, made me feel better about this. My father had been an ass, and he’d throw someone under the bus to make a quick buck, but I didn’t work that way. He’d somehow had a good reputation despite it, which I’d built up even further when I took over the company.

We were reliable regarding our projects and wouldn’t put shoddy work up, regardless of where we built. I would do what was necessary to preserve that reputation, even if I wasn’t officially in the business any longer. There were way too many real estate developers, especially in New York, who didn’t give a crap about legacy. That would never be me.

twenty-six

Clyde

Moving on from thepark, I wandered downtown and poked my head into the shops I’d only observed from a distance.

I’d met Mr. Cole, my boss’s other half, a few times but hadn’t spent time talking to him. Still, he recognized me the moment I walked into the drugstore. As we chatted, it became clear why he and his wife made such a good couple. Again, I forced down the grief that I’d likely never have that in my life.

I felt really good by the time I headed back to Ruther’s place for our noon meetup. Crawford City really was special. Not that its shops and downtown were that different from any other small Southern town, but its people seemed to be…more. More friendly, more welcoming, more accepting.

I knocked on Ruther and Corey’s door and was immediately met by a happy-looking Ruther. “Hi,” he said, “come in.”

I stepped inside and was perplexed when I didn’t see Corey. Ruther seemed to notice and sighed. “So, Corey is buried up tohis eyeballs on the project we’re considering for Crawford City. I’m afraid I’ll have to pry him out of his bedroom.”

I smiled. “I take it the meeting went well?”

“Better than we expected, but you don’t want to hear about all that, I’m sure. Let me go get Corey, and we’ll go to the wine tasting.”

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