By Keisha Stewart
Special to The Washington Post
Saturday, April 2, 2005
When Mark Branch first saw Woodmore's tranquil 67-acre lake, rolling golf greens and stately homes several years ago, he told himself that he was going to live in that neighborhood someday.
"I'm just a peaceful guy," said Branch, 36, a NASA engineer and part-time disc jockey. "I just like a peaceful setting. . . . I can't control everything that goes on around me, but I can control my home."
Woodmore is considered one of Prince George's County's premier subdivisions, a golf course community that is home to some of the county's wealthiest residents. With houses that sell for as much as $2 million, the gated Mitchellville enclave represents prestige and accomplishment for some, while for others it is a serene haven. Loads of deer roam the area; ducks paddle on the lake. There are plenty of trees and large lawns.
"The minute you go through the gates everything calms down -- even if you've been stuck on the Beltway," said resident Donna Wiseman, who is associate dean of the College of Education at the University of Maryland.
Woodmore consists of almost 400 homes, many very large, in clusters of single-family houses and townhouses, some called villas. Homes sell from the $400,000s for a townhouse to $2.1 million for a single-family Colonial; $1 million houses are not uncommon in Woodmore.
The predominantly black neighborhood has been home to entrepreneurs, athletes, lawyers and educators. It is intertwined with the 18-hole golf course of the Country Club at Woodmore, a private facility that also offers swimming and tennis. The country club is the community's most obvious feature, but only about a third of Woodmore residents are members. While the country club and the community of Woodmore are separate entities, they harmonize to create an atmosphere where residents can relax or play.
The greens helped lure Diane Franklin to Woodmore. The 54-year-old real estate agent said she has found the country club a good place not only to dine and play golf, but also to schmooze and do business. "When I came out here, I just fell in love," she said.
With a guard booth staffed around the clock, restricted access in and out of the community and a roving weekend guard, residents feel a measure of ease while they are at home or taking their morning jog.
Wiseman, who has a long-distance marriage -- her husband lives in Hawaii and she's in Maryland -- wanted to be someplace where she felt secure when she was home alone.
"My husband feels so much better that I'm in a gated community," Wiseman said. "I feel very, very safe."
Living in a gated community also factored into Franklin's decision to move to Woodmore, she said. She takes her early morning walks with peace of mind.
"It's not like where I used to walk, where I walked with a stick," she said.
Frank Zieziula said he and his wife moved to Woodmore from Cheverly after their children had grown up and left home, downsizing from a single-family house to Woodmore townhouse.
"I looked in Montgomery County, I looked in Anne Anne Arundel County . . . this offered me the best for my money," said Zieziula, 58, a Gallaudet University professor.
And the game that Zieziula became "passionate" about six years ago is a few steps away from home.
Kerby Parker, president of the Woodmore Homeowners Association, said that while there are families with children in the community, many residents are "entrenched in their professional life and not really having children."
Parker called Woodmore "an adult playing community."
For Parker, 44, an entrepreneur who runs an information technology firm and construction company, Woodmore symbolized success. He moved to the neighborhood about three years ago, after building a 14,900-square-foot house off Spriggs Request Way, a street lined with grandiose homes that vary in style and materials.
The homeowners association enforces strict rules regarding the appearance of homes. "Typically, you'd say, 'I spent over a million dollars on my home, I should be able to do what I want to,' " Parker said. "No, not here."
Wiseman joked that the strict guidelines sometimes make her think of doing something rash, such as painting her door purple. But she thinks the community is committed to holding onto Woodmore's beauty and value.
"That's the thing we all have in common. . . . We want to work with everybody to keep it real nice," Wiseman said.
In December, Branch realized his dream of living in Woodmore when he moved into a large villa in the Courtyard Villas cluster. He said he enjoys working in his home studio or dining at the country club, with its view of the greens and the lake. He dines almost daily at the club, where he is a social member, and loves the food and the service, he said.
"I don't have any reason to go anywhere else than right around the corner from my house," he said.
It's worth practicing in Woodmore, a luxury Prince George's County community intertwined with a country club's 18-hole golf course.
The front gate with guard post, staffed around the clock.
Woodmore residents talk about the peaceful setting, featuring a 67-acre lake, wildlife, a golf course and lots of trees.