On March 23, Claude Dryden, of Dryden Enterprises, and his team held a groundbreaking ceremony of his new development, Richmond Pass, located on Charlie Butler Road in Midway. The new neighborhood will feature 46 lots of one and two-story homes.
“Richmond Pass is going to be a relaxed, natural layout,” said Erin Johnson, the marketing manager of Dryden Enterprises. “We encourage our homebuyers to take full advantage of the local amenities like Cay Creek Wetlands Interpretive Center across the street as well as other places.”
Another advantage homeowners will have is their proximity to Interstate 95. Richmond Pass is just over a mile from the interstate so it will provide quick access for residents who work outside of Liberty County. Dryden chose Midway to build his new community because Midway has that small-town feeling that a lot of people are searching for. “Forever people were trying to leave Liberty County so they could move into Richmond Hill and other areas. Now we’re seeing that reversed- people are moving here,” said Dryden. “We have low crimes compared to the other areas. We have good public schools so people don’t have to go through the cost of enrolling their children in private schools. And the cost of living is less here. There’s adequate shopping and enough restaurants but, they still don’t have that big metropolis feel. There’s still a rural feel to it. We hear that a lot.”
Out of everyone Dryden wanted to thank, commissioner Marion Stevens is the one Dryden spoke fondly of. “The development is being built in the district of commissioner Stevens,” he said. “I very much want to thank him for his support and help. He was very instrumental in this.”
The neighborhood will bring more affordable housing to Midway because the community is eligible for 100 percent financing through USDA loans. The community should be finished in eighteen months. No more than two years. Although the construction is nowhere finished Dryden feels confident. “What a great success it’s going to be,” he said. “Half of these lots have already been sold. We just got started a couple of weeks ago. I think this location is just going to be desirable.”
Coastal Courier – April 1, 2021
