Bounded on the east by Niles–Cortland
Road, the north by Rt. 422 and the west by Mosquito Creek, is
a site endowed with gently rolling sloping ground and has been
subdivided into 407 lots. Fairhaven Heights will be developed
by Ochman principally for construction of his own homes but
other builders will be allowed to buy lots and build within
the allotment, either for themselves or others.
Ochman and Slaugenhaupt both feel Fairhaven
Heights is the answer for many area residents who want a home
at a reasonable price but are leery of developments in which
every house is alike. There will be seven basic floor plans
offered to prospective buyers in Fairhaven Heights but the variations
on those floorplans are virtually limitless. Homes can be built
with a basement or on a slab foundation, with or without attached
garage and with or without completely modern electric or gas
kitchens. Fairhaven Heights will be designed for homes in the
medium price class, ranging from $13,000 to $19,000. Homes on
the choice lots with basements and completely equipped kitchens
will be near the $19,000 mark while smaller homes on a concrete
slab will range near $13,000.
Veterans will be able to purchase a home on
a GI loan for 5% down plus closing costs and can have up to
30 years in which to pay though they can also finance the homes
for a shorter period. Deadline for most World War II veterans
on their GI home loans is July 1957 and Fairhaven Heights may
offer some of them the home they’ve been waiting for but
couldn’t afford until this new development. Ochman revealed
this week that he plans to break ground on the Fairhaven Heights
allotment in early spring and expects to have between 50 and
100 homes completed by December 1956.
Fairhaven Heights will include paved streets
(asphalt), sewers, city water, gas, and electric power, street
lighting, and police and fire protection. Driveways will be
built for all homes and Ochman estimates the entire allotment
will be completed within about three years though the work could
be done sooner if the demand made it necessary. A Cleveland
paint company will paint all the Ochman–built homes in
the development and will use a different color scheme on each
home, thus eliminating the appearance of a “project”
in Fairhaven Heights. Acting as developer, builder, and seller,
Ochman is able to build homes in Fairhaven Heights at a lower
cost than many other similar allotments.
One of the model homes to be built in Fairhaven
Heights is on display at Handy Andy, a restaurant in McKinley
Heights on Rt. 422 north of Niles from noon to 9 pm each day
and further information on Fairhaven Heights can be obtained
there.
Niles Daily Times February
18, 1956 by Fred Kearney.