Summerlin's `first family' reflects on past 10 years

Ten years ago, the Champlin family became the first residents of the Summerlin master-planned community. Today, more than 60,000 people live there.

It was March 1991 when Cal and Maria Champlin moved into their home in The Hills village with their daughter Sarah and son Matthew.

"We've never looked back on our decision to move to Summerlin, even though it was a little scary to be the first to move to a brand new community," Maria Champlin said. "Our children are products of this community, its public schools and its pro-family environment, and they have thrived as a result."

Cal Champlin said the reputation of the developer, The Howard Hughes Corp., made their home-buying decision easy.

"Based on our knowledge of the Hughes organization, I was confident the community would develop as it had been planned," he said.

"But no one could have possibly predicted just how quickly the community would develop. Ten years after development began, the community now has the feel of being its own small town, and I think that's reflected in the attitudes of many Summerlin residents."

The Champlins own a consulting firm, Sarah Champlin attends college out-of-state, and Matthew Champlin is preparing for his senior year at Palo Verde High School.

"I still get strange looks when I tell my friends at school I'm going home to Las Vegas for vacation," Sarah Champlin said. "But to me, home is not about the bright lights of the city as much as it is the good times I've had with friends in the neighborhood."

Matthew Champlin is a former member of his high school's marching band and has since formed a rock band.

"People generally don't believe me when I tell them we were the first family to move to Summerlin," he said. "Luckily, I have an old newspaper article to show them as proof."

Maria Champlin summarized the past 10 years when she said, "We wouldn't live anywhere else. Just as Summerlin has grown, so has our family. We're here to stay."

The community is comprised of villages, each with a major park or golf course. It offers eight golf courses, nearly 100 parks, more than 45 completed miles of trails, 16 schools, houses of worship, shopping centers, business parks, medical centers, and nearly 150 model homes.

Single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums are priced from under $100,000 to more than $700,000. Custom lots from one-quarter acre to three-quarters of an acre are priced from the mid-$100,000s to more than $1 million, and predesigned custom homes are priced from $500,000 to more than $1 million. Apartments offer monthly rents starting from the $700s.

To visit the community's home finding center, take Sahara Avenue west past Hualapai Way to Town Center Drive. Or, take Interstate 215 to Sahara.

The office is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

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