Rick Tourgee’s Provincetown Real Estate Blog

To the delight of many local people here in Provincetown and the surrounding area, Stop & Shop opened their doors last Thursday.  Stop & Shop recently purchased the Grand Union grocery store here in Provincetown.  Stop & Shop is in the same location as the former Grand Union.  After the purchase, Stop & Shop closed the store for almost 2 weeks to do many significant improvements.

Upon entering the “new” Stop & Shop, you will notice the lighting is much better, the floors are very clean and shiny, and I believe the aisles are wider giving more of an open, bright feeling.

I also noticed the hours are longer- now open at 6:00am!

Be sure to visit the “new” Stop & Shop, I am sure you will be delighted as other shoppers are!

Dog lovers here in Provincetown on Cape Cod now have a wonderful “Bark Park” to walk their dogs in a wonderful, safe location.  Of course, running such a terrific park requires funds.  This Sunday from 10-2, Santa will be at the Pilgrim Bark Park (Shank Painter Road & Rte 6). Santa hopes lots of dogs will come and have their photos taken with him. Suggested donation: $10.00. All proceeds benefit Pilgrim Bark Park.

CENTURY 21 Shoreland, Provincetown

Invites you to a

Holiday Wine Tasting Open House

November 22 from 3:00 until 5:00

Featuring 3 Holiday Wines Presented by Truro Vineyards

  
2007 Truro Vineyards Chardonnay- Tasting Notes Toasty oak aromas with layers of ripe apple and vanilla. Finish is long, warm and slightly citrusy. Serve lightly chilled with broiled seafood, lobster, roasted poultry, and pastas with cream sauce.   Grapes 100% Chardonnay.

2006 Truro Vineyards Cabernet Franc- Tasting Notes Cabernet Franc is the signature varietal of Truro Vineyards.  Open vat fermentation, extended maceration and 18 months barrel aging all contribute to rich varietal fruit flavors and herbal tannins.  This tasty dry red wine is best served with beef, pork and varied roasted dishes. Grapes 100% Cabernet Franc
NV Truro Vineyards Cranberry Red- Tasting Notes Fresh and bold, red Beaujolais character blended with delicate Cape Cod cranberries. Super with roast turkey, duck, or pheasant.  Also blend with orange juice or mulling spices for a harvest treat!

CENTURY 21 Shoreland  68 Shank Painter Rd Provincetown

1-508-487-6002

After many months of rumors, it is now official that Stop & Shop grocery store will take over the local Grand Union Supermarket on Shank Painter Road in Provincetown.  This supermarket is the only larger scale grocery store within about a 30 minute drive.

Many people in the Provincetown area have complained over recent years of the lack of high quality fruits, vegetables, meats, etc that has been in Grand Union’s offering- at substantially high prices.  We all now hope that Stop & Shop will bring much higher quality groceries to us in the Provincetown and surrounding area.  We know prices of groceries probably will not decrease.  But, we all hope the quality and the selections of groceries will increase dramatically.

Stay tuned!  It is estimated the take over will occur in early December 2008.

Attention anyone and everyone looking to buy real estate:  I wrote a post here in my blog about a year ago about Buyer Representation and how valuable it is when looking to purchase real estate.  I had a few potential Buyers share their initial impressions about how they “viewed” looking for an Agent or Agency when looking to purchase.  Much to my surprise, they initially felt they should work with an Agency that has the highest number of listings.  That is totally false and shows consumers need a better education on Agency Representation.

I was delighted to explain Buyer representation and how it provides significant value to the Buyer- regardless of the number of listings I have or my company has listed.  As an Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR), I have a duty to look after my Buyers best interest above my own interest.  I am able to show Buyers any listings for sale in the State of Massachusetts, regardless of who the property is listed with.  Thus, it does not matter how many listings I have under my name, since I can show and sell all listings.  I can share all of the positive and negative attributes about a property.  I can give my opinion about the price- whether it is over priced or a terrific value.

If a Buyer works with an Agent that has the listing, the Agent might be working as a Dual Agent where as the Agent works for both parties.  Or depending on the model which the Agency has set up, the Agent could be working for the Seller.

If I were a Buyer, I would would want someone working for me, exclusively.  I would not want to wonder whether an Agent is looking out for their own interest above my own.

Think about this long and hard prior to working with an Agent.  Be sure to know the facts and not the myths!

Please feel free to call me anytime at 508-237-4632 or e-mail me at Rick@Century21.com should you wish to discuss in more detail!

Our beautiful Provincetown Town Hall closed today until repairs to the inside and outside of the building are completed.  This will be a multi-million dollar renovation that could take two years or more to complete.

The town has arranged for Government services usually found in town hall to be moved to temporary trailers at 16 Jerome Smith Road (near Rte 6 and Shank Painter). This includes business licenses, building permits, tax payments, marriage applications, town committee meetings and more. The town’s tourism office has moved from town hall to the old public library at the corner of Freeman and Commercial streets.

Please note:  all Provincetown government officials begin a new four-day, 10-hour work week, Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. All town government services except police, fire and other on-call services such as emergency water leak response will be closed on Fridays.

I will keep you updated as the repairs are completed.

As many who have visited Provincetown or live here know that Provincetown is very much a pet-friendly town.  We all love all animals, especially our dogs and cats!

Thus, is is no wonder that the hard work and daily efforts by many, we will now have a dog park, called The Bark Park, located on the corner of Shank Painter Road and Rte 6 here in Provincetown.  This wonderful park is just under 1 acre of land with a special area for dogs under 25 pounds.  It is expected in Spring 2009, water fountains will be added.

It took one year to raise $100,000 to fund this project.  Last night, a silent auction was held and raised about $12,000.  The silent auction could not have been without local artist creating 51 mini doghouses.  Artists were given mini-doghouses about the size of birdhouses. In a few months, they came up with everything from an Andy Warhol-type silver doghouse complete with disco ball, to a canine abode coated with colorful dog biscuits.  People from Provincetown and as far away as California bid on these mini doghouses.  A sucess for sure!

The Bark Park should be open in a week or two and will be greatly appreciated by everybody including our 4 legged extended families!

Attention people who enjoy biking on the Province Lands Bike Trail: On Monday, October 6, 2008, Cape Cod National Seashore officials and a contractor will begin a partial renovation project on the 7-mile trail, which has the distinction of being the National Park Service’s oldest bike trail. Sadly, it may also be among the most dangerous.

Picture a narrow asphalt trail winding through the dunes, with a faded yellow line down the middle, pavement cracks and root heaves are large big enough to cause significant damage to your bicycle as well as your body! What if there is something unexpected in the path - a disabled biker, an animal, as examples - it could send you off into the dunes! Can you handle a  curvy ride down a steep slope ending in a three-way trail intersection? Then there’s the danger of the blowing sand.

Over the years, these issues have caused many serious accidents!  I am thrilled they are finally going to renovate part of the trail.  I have been on many bike trails and I have to admit, the scenic beauty of the Province Lands Bike Trails is among the best!  But, the dangers of being on the trail were always a major concern.

According to an article in the cape Cod Times Newspaper, the cost of this renovation may run $1.3 million.  A small price to pay to have a safe trail running through our beautiful National Seashore!

31 Pleasant Street

Provincetown, MA

Just sold!

I had the honor of representing the Buyers of this wonderful, charming Cape style home located on a quiet side street in the West-end of Provincetown.  This 3 bedroom home needed a little TLC.  But, was priced extremely well in today’s market.  After several reductions by the Seller’s Agent and a little negotiating, I was able to secure this warm and inviting home for my Buyers for only $590,000!

When looking to buy or sell your piece of Provincetown Real Estate or in the surrounding area, please call me at 508-487-6002 or e-mail me at Rick.Tourgee@Century21.com

I am an Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR) and a Seller Representative Specialist (SRS) with a successful track record servicing many Buyers and Sellers. I follow the Golden Rule and look out for my Clients needs above my own.

It’s that time of year again!  Every year during the third week of August, we have “Carnival Week”.  This is the event that attracts people from all over!  Carnival is probably one of the most popular weeks to be in Provincetown, especially for the Carnival Parade itself, which is always on Thursday of Carnival Week.

This years theme is “Wild, Wild, West”.  We at Century 21 Shoreland are going to have a float in this years parade for the first time!!  I am not going to tell you what we are doing as it will spoil the fun- I am going to leave it as a huge surprise!  I will post photos this Friday and spill all of the fun details!

The Thursday Parade is a huge attraction.  However, there are various events planned all week all over town!  It is truely a fantastic, fun week to visit Provincetown!!  To see a list of events, go to:  http://www.ptown.org/Carnival.asp

Don’t forget, if you cannot make it town this week, check back on my blog to see the great photos!!