Conroe, TX (March 27, 2009)... Plantation Homes has marked an important milestone in Woodforest — the first sale of a home in the new community.

The buyers, William and Virginia Hill, wanted to downsize and had primarily concentrated their search within Woodforest, said Plantation Homes sales representative Jill Gage.

"With an existing house on a three-acre homesite in a nearby community, the Hills were looking for less land without sacrificing location or lifestyle,” Gage said. "They just fell in love with Woodforest.”

The Hills also fell in love with Plantation Homes’ Nederland floor plan, a 3,250-square-foot one-story packed with amenities. The kitchen, which opens to the family room and breakfast area, is defined by two islands — one for food preparation and the other for seating. Adjacent to the kitchen are a formal dining room and wine room. The three-car garage includes a work area and opens to a mud room that has storage for coats and other items. The home also has four bedrooms, 3.5 baths, a walk-in pantry, an expanded utility room and a covered patio. Plantation is building another Nederland floor plan as its model home in Woodforest, opening in mid-April. A third Nederland design is available as an inventory home and will be completed later in the month.

"The Hills really loved the wine room and the rotunda entry, as well as the flexibility of the plan,” Gage said.

Their home should start construction in early April and be ready this summer.

Woodforest is a 3,000-acre project of The Johnson Development Corp. located just seven miles from Interstate 45 and 5.2 miles from The Woodlands. The community, which is opening several model homes in April, features homes priced from the $210,000s to the$500,000s by Plantation Homes, Newmark Homes and Pulte Homes. Woodforest also features custom homes by well-known local builders Jeff Paul Custom Homes, J.M. Wendell, Inc., George Weaver Custom Homes and Meadowlark Custom Homes., with prices into the millions.

New parks — one with playground equipment — already are open in the community, with plans under way for Forest Island, a multi-million-dollar recreation complex that will include multiple pools and water slides, playgrounds, tennis courts, a clubhouse, a pavilion with an outdoor fireplace and more.

Slated to open in late April is Fish Creek Thoroughfare, a major roadway through Woodforest and an important regional artery, providing a much-needed north-south alternative to Interstate 45. The road currently ends at FM 2854 in Conroe, however, construction begins this year on an overpass that will extend the thoroughfare to State Highway 105.

Prospective home buyers can learn more at the Woodforest Welcome Lodge, a 4,300-square-foot custom home overlooking Woodforest Golf Club. Offering full information on current and future development — including a downtown center that will be a retail and entertainment center for the area — the lodge is open 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily.

For more information, visit www.woodforestdev.com or the Welcome Lodge at 101 Elk Trace Parkway, or phone 936.447.2800.

About Woodforest
Woodforest, a project of The Johnson Development Corp., is a 3,000-acre master-planned community surrounding Woodforest Golf Club, one of the top-ranked daily-fee golf courses in the Houston area. Offering a broad array of housing choices targeted to lifestyle-oriented buyers, Woodforest is slated for more than 5,500 homes and a full complement of retail and commercial properties. Located north of downtown Houston, Woodforest is 5.2 miles north of The Woodlands and six miles south of Conroe. Convenient access just seven miles west of Interstate 45 will be provided by Fish Creek Thoroughfare, the first new major north/south thoroughfare connecting Conroe in Montgomery County and Tomball in Harris County. For more information, visit www.woodforestdev.com.

About The Johnson Development Corp.
The Johnson Development Corp. is an award-winning residential and commercial land development company involved in premier projects including master-planned communities such as Sienna Plantation, Fall Creek, Riverstone, Woodforest, Tuscan Lakes, Edgewater and Silverlake in Houston, Texas, and Towne Lake, BridgeMill and Lake Arrowhead in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1975, known for innovative master planning and today one of the largest and most successful land developers in both Houston and Atlanta, The Johnson Development Corp. has cultivated a strong reputation for vibrant, responsible development, with impeccably designed communities. For more information, visit www.johnsondevelopment.com.