Lakeside feels “magical” to Basantkumar family

Jay and Lavinia Basantkumar love their Normandy home and their Lakeside neighbors. “We know nearly everyone on the entire street,” said Basantkumar.

Jay Basantkumar was accompanying a friend who was house-hunting in October 2013, when he became intrigued.

“Holy cow!” he told his friend as they drove through Lakeside, “I didn’t know this kind of place existed.”

It didn’t seem to matter that Basantkumar and his family of four were happily situated in a 4,300-square-foot home in Trophy Club.

Or that, in October 2013, Lakeside appeared to many to be mostly a huge construction site. The streets in Phase I were not yet open and it would be a month before the model homes for Normandy and American Legend began welcoming prospective homebuyers.

“On the web site I saw the plans for nearby retail and restaurants, a trail, and parks,” added the father of two, “and I was blown away by the location so ridiculously close to the lake and the airport.”

“I travel a lot,” said Basantkumar, an IT executive. “At Lakeside, I hop outside the door and it’s 9.5 minutes to Terminal A. That’s insane.”

Wife Lavinia works at Sabre in Southlake.

Fast forward a year or so and the Basantkumars appear ecstatic about their new home although they still have a few boxes to unpack.

“We couldn’t be happier,” Basantkumar insisted. “This place has been magical.

“I’ve never lived in a community like this. There’s an energy flowing through Lakeside. I got to know 18 families here before we moved in.

“You walk around, and people just talk to you. It’s a different culture.”

The Basantkumar children, ages 3 and 10, also have made lots of friends.

“At [Lakewood] Park,” he said, “everyone seems to have met someone their age. My mother-in-law and father-in-law have made friends, too.”

“We can’t wait for the shops and restaurants to open,” he said. “I plan to be the very first customer to buy a cup of coffee at Paradise Bistro & Cafe. I will stand in line if I have to.”

The Normandy home — which they customized with an added media room upstairs — is everything the family hoped for.

“We might have found more amenities at this price point elsewhere,” he acknowledged, “but you can’t find a community like this any place else.”

With a lot backing up to the Corps property, the Basantkumars enjoy views of birds, the woods, and the sunsets.

Basantkumar says the front of his house is all business, with its study and office.

“But the back,” he smiled, “is all about fun.”

The wooded backdrop of the Corps acres sets the stage for what Basantkumar calls the three Rs, “renew, relax, and regenerate.”

“It’s just phenomenal. It feels like you are in some kind resort with the birds and trees. The sunsets are great.”

And the schools?

“Lavinia and I could’t be more satisfied,” said Basantkumar, who grew accustomed to top-notch schools in Trophy Club. “The teachers at Bluebonnet have been phenomenal and my 10-year-old’s growth has been by leaps and bounds.

“The teachers send notes home and call you,” he added. “Those things matter, especially in the formative years. They go above and beyond, in my opinion.”

Recently a neighbor brought over a dinner for the Basantkumars.

“He’s a real foodie, too,” Basantkumar said. “I couldn’t believe that this kind of thing actually happens. Lavinia made him a beef curry in return.

“The road to heaven is always bumpy,” said Basantkumar, reflecting on the family’s journey to their new home (which included several months in a 700-square-foot apartment).

“But I think we’ve arrived.”

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