Some of the builders in Phase 1 were Hetzel, Azula, Einheidt, Cahill, Stern, Hewitt and several others. Hetzel not only built in WillowWood, but loved it so much that he lived here for several years in two of his houses, one on Willow Kane and the second on Willow Park Drive.  Butch Hewitt built the first house that was purchased by Bob and Carolyn Lister in 1984 and we are so lucky to still have Carolyn living in it and serving WillowWood all these years.

The land we call Phase 2 was purchased and became a PUD around ’86-’87, planned in long streets without cul de sacs except at the very ends.  Most of the builders of Phase 1 bought lots there and continued the march up the hill.  Because WillowWood was developed in this 2 step manner, we have Covenants & Restrictions (C & R’s) labeled Unit 1 and Unit 2.  Beyond that to the north was again barren land with some dead trees and stumps.  We could however go from the end of what is now Willow Park Drive into the property which is now Westminster Landing and pick oranges and grapefruits for a few seasons until it was purchased and developed. 

In early documents and maps of our subdivision there existed a proposed jogging trail and fishing dock at the lake.  This was in the plan and paperwork given to prospective buyers, but because of legal advice it was abandoned by the developer as the insurance costs would have been astronomical and eventually passed on to us, the homeowners. 

Speaking of our lake, the water of the lake, which is a spring fed body of water by the way, flows naturally into the “Butler Chain of Lakes” one of Florida’s pristine bodies of water and because of that we are mindful of what we can and cannot put on the grass around the water.  Occasionally, when the outflow stream (which is behind the homes on Willow Kane and Willow Wish) is flowing freely, water stays in the little pond formed by this water just before it dives down into that nature area on our west side, otters can be seen splashing around in it.  Just for the record, that land where the outflow is belongs to and is maintained by the county.

This brings up another subject about the “natural and first” inhabitants of this area, the bobcats, possum, raccoons, gopher tortoises and yes, coyotes some of whom survive in that afore mentioned nature area.  We share the earth with many other species and it behooves us to respect them and tolerate them as best as we can without, of course, risking danger or damage as well.   Their presence is a great lesson for our children, knowing that we are not the only inheritors of the earth and how we must respect, but give distance to these furry visitors to “our space”.   It is a great natural habitat and will remain as such according to OC.

Since WillowWood was built out, over the years we have negotiated with our neighbor subdivision developers to get walls to separate our communities and to preserve our privacy. As the glut of development marched on, the developers no longer wanted to follow the zoning rules as they stood and constantly tried to slip in greater density on their newly acquired land. In negotiating with them we consequently encouraged them to build walls for us in exchange for not protesting their desire to build on smaller than 1 acre lots.  This has served us very well over the years.  Only our southern borders are without walls where they abut Windermere Wylde and Lakeside Place.  We fought for a wall at Lakeside Place, but the county commissioners opted to choose a greenbelt instead as the boundary, allowing homeowners to build their own walls if they wished.

WillowWood has grown to be a beautiful, serene neighborhood.  Many people have come here and said “I never knew this lovely neighborhood was back here”.  Besides that somewhat anonymity, we reap the benefit of having our children able to walk to all 3 public schools, which is a huge selling advantage and all 3 schools happen to be exceptional as well.  Our property values have reaped the benefit of this proximity and we rarely have homes for sale for more than a few months at most.  It behooves us to take good care of our homes, keep the neighborhood looking great and maintain our common grounds as well as we have done thus far.

A key component of WillowWood is Neighborhood Watch, which is alive and well here in our neighborhood.  Many of us have participated over the years and are always mindful of suspicious vehicles, behavior, solicitors etc. and we are not afraid to call the sheriff. 

Social activities have brought many families together from playgroups to a book club, Bunco groups, our annual picnic,  a wonderful July 4^th parade, a fantastic family night for Halloween at the tennis courts with pizza for all, camaraderie and most important a contest with prizes for the children in costume.

Our WillowWood is “home”.  We have many ‘original owners’ who have enjoyed it for over 25 years and would never want to live anywhere else in central Florida. Close proximity to major roadways, great shopping from ‘corner store’ shops to big package stores, many places of worship, exceptional schools and particularly our beautiful park area with tennis courts make WillowWood most desirable to families. However, our greatest treasure is the contentment we glean from living in such an extraordinarily beautiful and serene neighborhood.  Early morning coffee outside in the quiet with only the birds for company and a huge blue sky above is a treat we enjoy daily.  May it always stay as lovely as it is today!

Written by Gloria Ericsen