Fox Run’s Natural Beauty is Like No Other
By Bill Herrfeldt
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE
It all started with a dream.
To build a community where people of average means live stress-free, and enjoy being involved in things they never had time for in the past. That was the genesis of Fox Run, now the finest and most popular address for almost 700 people age 62-plus.
But people are not the only residents at 41000 13 Mile Road in Novi, Mich.
When Erickson Communities purchased the 108 acres for Fox Run, they set aside about a third of the property that would remain a nature preserve and wetlands, and be maintained as the home of boundless varieties of wildlife and species of natural growth.
This never-to-be-developed acreage, along with the vibrant community that has grown at Fox Run, forms an ecosystem, with a close relationship among the plants, animals, and its human environment.
From Its Nature Preserve to the North …
The nature preserve, comprised of nearly 35 acres, is located on the north side of the property and contains some of the oldest trees in Michigan, along with wildlife habitats of native species. It is about three times as deep as it is wide, and is full of tulip trees and sugar maples.
“On any given day, you see deer, squirrels, red foxes, chipmunks, and, yes, if you’re lucky you’ll even see a coyote roaming the woods. It’s as if you were far out in the middle of the forest, rather than just a few steps from the entrance to Fox Run. It’s unlike anything I have ever seen,” says Ken Weikal, the landscape architect who consults with Fox Run.
“The south portion ofthe Fox Run property was farmland until about 50 or 60 years ago, so the trees you see are still relatively young. Since the property was acquired to build Fox Run, we have planted over 2,000 trees. Most are indigenous to Michigan and to other areas of the Midwest,” Ken explains.
To the Wetlands on the South