Backyard vacation

WESTFORD -- When Jennifer and Len Bruskiewitz started shopping for a summer refuge, they looked in the obvious places.

But the cottage they saw in New Hampshire was a 90-minute drive. The couple concluded it was just far enough away that he wouldn't make the trip that much, and she and the kids would be up there alone too often.

So they settled on another cottage that was closer. A lot closer. Like, 10 minutes away.

The Bruskiewitzs are among several dozen cottage owners at the new Summer Village at the Pond, a seasonal colony in Westford. At first blush the idea of an old-fashioned summer cottage getaway in suburbia -- near the high-tech beltway -- may seem bizarre. Most getaways are, well, away; they involve a transition to another place entirely.

The Bruskiewitzs live in Westford, and now vacation in Westford.

"The fact that it was 10 minutes away and we could have all the benefits of a cottage and drive in only 10 minutes was the biggest selling point," said Jennifer Bruskiewitz, 37, mother of a 6-year old son and 4-year-old daughter.

Summer Village bucks another trend. Today's second-home buyers are looking for larger properties -- often four bedrooms, many bathrooms -- that provide a full-range of amenities and can be used year-round. The Westford cottages are modest one- and two-bedroom affairs, which sell for around $200,000 and can be occupied only from April through Columbus Day.

But one industry specialist said the Westford seasonal-use concept fits a market niche that is seeking affordable vacation options, in contrast to luxury properties that now seem so common.

"Maybe it's riding a trend," said Gary Leopold, president and chief executive of ISM Travel and Leisure Marketing of Boston. "The idea of a second home for people isn't that accessible," in terms of cost.

Leopold said the Westford colony is conceptually similar to another big trend in the vacation and resort worlds: fractional ownership. These are limited-share ownerships of resort properties that guarantee owners access to sun and fun for anywhere from a week to three months a year. Several such properties have sprouted up around New England, including in Newport , R.I., and on Martha's Vineyard.

The idea, Leopold said, taps into a yearning among middle-aged adults for a period in their lives when the world was less complicated, less harried, and families and friends gathered more frequently.

"There certainly is a trend that we see for things that are more experiential," he said. "We're seeing a trend about nostalgia and about a time when we were more of a community and interacting with our neighbors -- a place for people to escape to and have an experience that reminds us of a better time."

Indeed, Westford's Summer Village, despite its suburban location, has a summer-camp atmosphere . Located on Long-Sought-For Pond, off Route 40, the free standing cottages are close to water's edge. Family activities include board games and movie showings. Daily kids' activities include arts and crafts classes, organized games, and free swims.

"I think people will consider this type of community as being an alternative to an isolated cottage," said Alison Ravins of Melrose, who purchased a unit in April with her husband Andy, 49.

A former farming community and mill town set in rolling hills and apple orchards, Westford is a picturesque bedroom community for high-tech workers and executives and other professionals.

Summer "hot spots" include Kimball Farm on Littleton Road, which offers miniature golf, a driving range, bumper boats, and an ice cream stand. Bike paths are within driving distance, the Butter Brook Golf Club, located in town, is public, and for shopping Lowell and Nashua are nearby.

"It's not a vacation land," conceded Ravins, 45. "But we weren't looking for something where we'd get river rafting and amusement parks and the shopping of southern Maine with all the traffic. We just wanted someplace where our daughter could be outdoors every weekend enjoying a lake and a pool and activities with other kids."

The 159-acre site with 2,600 feet of frontage on the 105-acre pond was Wyman's Campground until the new owners, Guthall LLC of Westford, bought the land for $2.49 million from the Wyman Trust in October 2004 and provided a two-year transition for the summer campers.

Then last year, Wescon Inc., of which Guthall principal David Guthrie is president, took ownership of the property, while Guthall's other principal, Howard Hall, remains on as a consultant.

The pair had worked out an agreement with town officials to avoid a large-scale development that would tax town services.

"The town was concerned because of the number of units," said Westford town planner Ross Altobelli. "We didn't want this to turn into year-round housing. They pitched this as a seasonal community, so the town put limitations on the water lines."

For example, the water supply pipes are laid above the frost line. Westford permits stipulate utilities are to be turned off for six months every year, preventing owners from inhabiting the buildings from late fall to early spring.

With an estimated $25 million development cost, Summer Village remains a work-in-progress. Developers are still building two swimming pools -- including one just for adults -- a hot tub, tennis, horseshoe, and bocce courts, a putting green, and a lodge with a pub, among other facilities. A Nautilus gym is already open for business, and about 40 of 276 planned cottages have been built .

So far, 23 cottages have been sold -- almost half to Westford residents. Most other buyers are from nearby towns. Another 14 are under agreement. About 40 percent were sold to empty-nesters, another 40 percent to families with young children.

The colony has a $175 monthly fee, to be paid year-round.

"Most of the people who understand the concept say they had the same experience growing up and they didn't think they could find it again," said Patty Cook, a Westford-based marketing consultant hired to help spread the word about the cottages.

Developers hope to complete 50 cottages this year, and sell them all . Models offer a U-shaped kitchen, one bathroom, a living and dining area, and a sun porch. All models have space for a stacked washer and dryer. Closet and storage space is purposefully limited, according to Lee Traversa O'Brien, the resort's director of sales.

"We hope our layout really says simplify your life," said O'Brien.

Realtor Dennis Ready, who sits on the Historic District Commission in neighboring Chelmsford , said he had a change of heart about Summer Village when a commission colleague purchased a unit.

"I was leery of it making it in Westford, but the people who bought there are excited about it," said Ready, who sells for Century 21 Landmark of Chelmsford. "I think it has and will make it and I think there will be more like it. With the cost of transportation, and the hassle of air travel, I think people will tend to look at being closer to home for their summer place. You go into a different world. You go to a different atmosphere. I think he may have hit on something that may take off."

But one skeptic is Wallace Hobson, managing director of the Americas for NorthCourse Leisure Real Estate Solutions, which helps vacation developers position their properties to a target market. Hobson said vacation locations typically brim with nearby leisure amenities such as boating, golfing, and restaurants.

"I don't get it," he said. "You wonder if it's a market that's not really deep, and could get saturated. Three-hundred [units] is a high number. But if they get through it, then it's a valid concept."

For now, the new owners aren't that worried about the macro market forces behind their purchases -- whether they made a wise investment .

"We're not really concerned about that right now," Ravins said, "because this is a property that we're hoping to hold onto for some time. Certainly we're hoping that property values will go up, but not in the short-term. I don't really think of it that way."

Bruskiewitz, who with her husband previously lived in England and Germany, is enraptured with their less exotic surroundings.

"Sometimes you have to take a risk in life and this was our risk," she said.

Joyce Pellino Crane can be reached at crane@globe.com.