Ocean View Park reborn as upscale Heritage Sands

June 29--DENNIS PORT -- Cynthia and Mike Scursso arrived from Nevada with little more than a couple suitcases last month, ready to move into their new summer digs -- a two-story beachfront cottage with plenty of glass through which to view Nantucket Sound.

"For the first four days, we could barely speak because we were in such awe," Cynthia said.

Even the chore of furnishing the three-bedroom home, done to the accompaniment of pounding hammers and zinging saws as local tradesmen ready neighboring cottages for the pre-July Fourth move-in, has proved to be little more than a minor nuisance.

"If we start to get upset, all we have to do is look out the window," Cynthia said.

The Scurssos were the first to purchase a cottage in the new Heritage Sands cottage cluster, which has replaced a tattered RV park called Grindell's that occupied the 8-acre site at 61 Old Wharf Road since the 1930s.

"When Cynthia and Mike put their names on the contract, we had nothing to show them," said developer Rob Brennan, who is also a partner in the project. "We stood here on the ocean and told them to envision a beautiful cottage."

The ocean vista was enough to close the deal.

The couple aren't newcomers to the Northeast. Originally from Connecticut, they maintained a summer home in Mystic, but ultimately sold it because the taxes were "astronomical," according to Mike.

"We missed New England weather and came for a vacation last year in West Yarmouth," Cynthia said. "We stumbled on Heritage Sands and the rest is history."

The 63-home complex, with 650 feet of beach frontage, will be built in three phases. Construction begins once a house goes under agreement, according to Brennan. There are five families enjoying their new cottages and a total of nine should be ready for occupancy by July Fourth.

"By the fall, there will be 25," Brennan said.

Dennis Town Planner Daniel Fortier said the project is "the first of its kind" on the Cape, and will be an economic boon to Dennis Port Village, an area officials have been working to revitalize.

"We've spent a lot of time over the years trying to improve the economy down there," Fortier said. "We're getting an influx of people who will have a long-term interest in Dennis Port."

Because Heritage Sands is in the town's seasonal resort district, owners can use their cottages from April 1 to Oct. 31, as well as four days per month throughout the winter. They range from one to three bedrooms, stand 1 1/2 stories high, and are priced from $354,000 to $700,000.

Some abutters have been unhappy about the arrival of Heritage Sands. The houses, they say, block their view and have limited their beach access.

They also complained last winter about blowing sand from the construction site.

Fortier, however, counts the project as a huge improvement.

Grindell's Ocean View Park was under order from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection to address its wastewater issues, which prompted the decision by property owner Mark DeWitt to dismantle the RV park.

After the 2012 season, the property was cleared of 100 recreational vehicles and 15 cottages.

A wastewater system that will protect that environmentally sensitive area will serve Heritage Sands residents.

Fortier cited other environmental improvements. "They've pulled everything back off the coastal dune," the planner said. "Areas that were concrete before are going back to a natural state, being revegetated."

Walkways between the cottage clusters are made of shells, and the driveways of crushed blue stone gravel.

To keep flood insurance costs down, all cottages meet state regulations for distances above base flood elevations. Houses sit on 4-foot cement foundations equipped with windows that would blow out during a severe storm to allow for water flow-through.

Steel straps bolt the house onto the foundation. Roofs are also strapped down and windows can withstand hurricane winds.

"Every single structure is being built to meet the standards of flood zone construction, so owners will get preferred rates which are very low," Fortier said.

This cottage colony, with its 21st-century upgrades, has been popular, with homes selling steadily.

"This is the first new cottage colony to be built in about 50 years," said Tyler Bittrich, who is on site marketing the cottages. "Even the farthest cottage out is only 300 steps from the beach."

Follow Christine Legere on Twitter:

@ChrisLegereCCT.

___

(c)2014 the Cape Cod Times (Hyannis, Mass.)

Visit the Cape Cod Times (Hyannis, Mass.) at www.capecodonline.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services