On the lake and really, really local

By Lori Johnston

For the AJC

Before making it her second home, Laura Smith made repeat visits to a Lake Oconee home, marveling at the property’s parklike qualities. Smith, 36, chatted about her vacation getaway, which she and her husband, attorney Greg Smith, 49, purchased with her parents, Wayne and Fran Jones of Cordele.

Why Lake Oconee: The couple owned a lake lot in Cordele but never built on it. Her mom mentioned one day that when they retired they would look at lake property halfway between their town of Cordele and Watkinsville, where the Smiths live. Laura started looking at properties on Lake Sinclair and Lake Oconee. Driving back from another property on Lake Oconee, she drove past the Madison home they ended up purchasing. “I thought, ‘Well, that can’t be Oconee, but it’s nice and cute and close.’ Then I looked on a map and found that it was actually at the very top of Lake Oconee,” she said. Smith began taking her children to the property, which they started calling “the park” because of its size and a huge playset. The site boasts what is believed to be the second-largest pin oak tree in the Southeast. “It’s kind of an enchanting piece of property,” she said. “My parents came up and fell in love with it immediately.”

Their home: A three-bedroom, two-bath cabin built in 1980 with a glassed-in sunporch and deck. They purchased all the furniture and accessories, which included dishes and even a picture of one of the former owners, which still hangs in the bathroom. The 1 1/3-acre property includes a boat dock. Another plus was the amount of shoreline: 1,000 feet, which was much more than Smith had seen offered by other homes. It’s across the street from Oconee National Forest property.

How far from home: It’s about 10 minutes from their home in Watkinsville.

How often they’re there: At least every other week. It’s so close to their primary home that sometimes she’ll take her three children, Ollie, Carson and Emma, to the lake for naptime and snacktime.

What they do when they’re there: Water skiing, tubing and boating on the lake. Another amenity that came with the home was the “supa slide” attached to the playset. Smith said it’s a big blue board rigged up by the former owners so people can slide from the playset into the lake. “That was one of the best things that came with the lake house,” she said.

At a Glance

Greg and Laura Smith’s Lake Oconee cabin has three bedrooms, two baths and about 1,250 square feet of livable space, according to tax records. They purchased it in fall 2007.

Community overview

Homes on the north end of Lake Oconee, a Georgia Power lake with 374 miles of shoreline and spanning 18,971 acres, fall in Greene and Morgan counties. About 20 homes comprise the Smiths’ neighborhood of Greenbriar Cove, a newer name given to the neighborhood, which was developed as Penor Shores and is still referenced that way on tax records. The neighborhood has a private boat launch and dock as well as a picnic area maintained by the homeowner’s association.

Information

Georgia’s Lake Country

www.oconee.org

Greene County Tourism

www.visitlakeoconee.com

Georgia Power-Lake Oconee

www.georgiapower.com/lakes/Oconee.asp

Getting there

Take Interstate 20 east to Exit 21 toward Buckhead. Turn left onto South Main Street/Seven Islands Road. Turn left onto West Main Street/Parks Mill Road. Turn right onto West Main Street. Turn right onto Apalachee River Road. Turn right on U.S. 278/Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway. Turn left onto Farmington Road/County Road 194. Turn right onto C.M. Copeland Road.

For sale

$389,000: 1561 Indian Woods Drive, Greensboro 30642. A three-bedroom, two-bath lake home built in 1979 with a deck, sunroom, basement and gazebo.

$429,000: 1831 Northwoods Drive, Greensboro 30642. A five bedroom, 3 1/2-bath lake home built in 2003 with a basement, screened porch, deck and dock.

Recent sales

$366,000: 1030 Sunset Drive, Greensboro 30642. A four-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath home built in 1985 with an unfinished basement, sunroom and dock.

$414,000: 1040 Lakeview Drive, Greensboro 30642. A three-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath lake home with a master on the main, screened porch and a dock.

Source: Ann Foster, Re/Max Lake Oconee