Rick Bell made his way to Williamson County in 1988. As a resident of the community for 31 years, he has seen tremendous changes in the local landscape. For one thing, he says, "I have seen the prices of homes in the city of Franklin go up several hundred thousand dollars."
Originally from Scotland, Rick was the regional president for a local home builder before he decided to strike out on his own in 1997. The name Turnberry came to him while he was visiting the great Turnberry golf course, an iconic landmark on Scotland's west coast.
"I remember thinking, 'what a great name for a home building company.' And the rest was history."
He's been building homes in the quintile five ($650,000-plus) in the greater Nashville area that serves the Brentwood, Cool Springs, Franklin and Nolensville communities of Williamson County and nearby South Davidson County for 22 years.
"There's something very, very special about Franklin," Rick adds. "The downtown area has a charm to it that's unequaled anywhere else. Everybody wants to be associated with the city of Franklin in some way, shape or form simply because of how fantastic it really is."
He continues to describe the rolling hills and countryside.
"And you can't ignore the rich history of the area."
But Rick suggests that trends in home building in recent years run against the grain of what makes Franklin Franklin. Things like traditional backyards and dense designs of the homes and communities have given way to narrower homes with garages in the rear.
"While these things might work well in the streets of Boston, they don't necessarily work well in the country communities of Franklin," Rick asserts.
So Turnberry has done its best to take a slightly different path with communities like Firestone and Bishop's Gate off Boyd Mill.
"We're trying to emulate and provide as best as we possibly can those house plans that we know historically have proven to be the most popular amongst the residents of the city of Franklin. We've gone with private garages, tree-lined streets and rectangular-shaped backyards.
"We like to build homes for families. We are trying to be that builder that builds for what historically and traditionally has been those families that are attracted to Franklin."
And what makes Turnberry different?
"Very rarely, if ever, does the word 'no' come out of the mouths of Turnberry homes to our customers. If you want changes made to your home, we will do everything in our power to make those changes for you. We will modify our house plans to fit your needs. We work off plans and designs that are ours, but we always are prepared to make modifications for those plans to work for you."
You can visit a Turnberry model home in the quaint community of Firestone, located in the heart of Cool Springs at 622 Jordan Road in Franklin.
615.376.7001
Trends in Home Building
+ Outdoor spaces: covered porches, built-in fireplaces, place for entertaining
+ Big stand-alone tubs
+ Incorporating kitchens as part of the family room
+ Chrome finishes