Standing on the beach at WindMark, looking out across St. Joseph Bay, you share the same view of others who, for hundreds of years, found safe harbor here. For all who came before: the prehistoric Native Americans, the Spaniards who took anchorage here in the 16th century, later French and British mariners and present-day explorers, this has been a place of respite, inspiration, and renewal. WindMark BeachSM has been created in concert with its surroundings. It incorporates the qualities of place that define the region. The rustic vernacular architecture sits lightly on the land, recalling homes from the 1930s and 1940s. A boardwalk winds through Stillwater Preserve, allowing glimpses into the native habitat that's being diligently protected. WindMark's beachside pool provides great spaces for family time, cookouts, picnics, and water play. A small dock on the shore lets boats tie up for brief stays. All three of the community docks present convenient staging areas for crabbing and access to some of the region's best scalloping, fishing, boating and for just hanging out at "the dock of the bay."

Living Area Master Bedroom Master Balcony Porch View Deck View
Guest Bedroom West Guest Bedroom East Front of Home Beach Side
Beach Club Pool Beach Club Interior Beach Club Dock

Open to the public on the 4th of July, 2003, the WindMark BeachSM Design House, designed by Gordon Mock of Island Style Homes, is one architect's interpretation of the spirit of the WindMark Beach community. Reminiscent of Old Florida "cracker" style architecture, the Design House is crowned by a tin roof with windows upon windows. The three bedroom, three and a half bathroom house, with almost 1,500 square feet of covered porches and decks, encourages an outdoor lifestyle. The main deck features a Viking grill and a cable outlet for outdoor television viewing that vies for attention with the deck-level views of magnificent St. Joseph Bay. The WindMark Beach Design House is built in a split wing design. The master bedroom is part of the main living quarters, while guest suites are connected by a breezeway and multi-level decks. Guests can enjoy the privacy of a separate wing, and homeowners can enjoy energy savings -the two wings have separate air conditioning units, so owners need only cool the wings of the house that are in use.     Beach Club Doubling as a neighborhood meeting hall, the Beach Club, designed by noted architect Thomas Christ, is a two-story, barn-like structure surrounded by deep front and back porches like they made them in the old days. Tongue-and-groove cypress flooring, whitewashed cypress walls and bead-board wainscoting enhance the beach cottage feeling of the interior, as do the oversized, louvered, breeze-capturing doors. Recalling a bath house at summer camp, the dressing areas are equipped with showers and wooden lockers and benches. The community kitchen makes this a perfect spot for receptions, celebrations and get-togethers. Most delightful of all is the pool, a new take in neighborhood pools. More like a swimming hole, it is missing only a rope swing slung from a tree. Where one would expect the usual rectangular pool surrounded by vertical gates and rows of lounge chairs, here is a virtual man-made lake, a free form pond amid the dunes with a disappearing edge at the beachside entrance. The decking that curves around the pool is a mixture of beach sand, bits of shell and white concrete that looks like rippled sand by the ocean's edge. Landscaped dunes dressed in beach sunflowers, Indian blanket, palms and other beach natives surround the pool. Even the aluminum pool fence refuses to act out of character, but is disguised as an aging wood slat dune fence following the contours of the land.

site by Moon Creek Studios - See this tour and more on www.EmeraldCoastTours.com