Neighborhood of the week: Silver Creek in Pierce County

Featuring paved trails, pristine parks and roomy houses with floor plans that practically scream "home theater" and "man cave," the Silver Creek community near Puyallup is a slice of affordable suburban heaven for growing families.

But it hasn't been like that for long.

Joe Maxwell, a broker and owner at Windermere Real Estate's Puyallup/Canyon Road office, recalls what the area was like in the 1980s and early 1990s.

"It was just all woods," he said. "It was logging, farming, country area. ... You thought you were at the end of the world."

During the past 15 years, more than 1,600 single-family, Northwest contemporary-style houses have sprung up in the 480-acre master-planned community in unincorporated Pierce County.

It's one of the largest housing developments in the South Hill and Graham area — a region that's grown dramatically with new residential subdivisions and commercial development in recent years.

During the first half of this year, 68 single-family houses in Silver Creek sold, ranging in price from $154,606 to $410,000, with a median of $218,000, according to figures compiled by Windermere Real Estate.

Recent Silver Creek sales include a 2,955-square-foot, three-bedroom, 3 ½-bathroom home which sold for $289,000; and a 1,520-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-bath rambler which sold for $220,000.

Those figures are in line with home prices for Puyallup. According to Seattle-based Zillow.com, the median value of all single-family houses in Puyallup, not just single-family houses recently sold, was $228,000 in May, down 4.3 percent year-over-year.

The median value of all condos in Puyallup was $149,500 in May, down 7.8 percent year-over-year, the Zillow Home Value Index shows.

Silver Creek was created by Pageantry Homes, and sold off in sections to several Northwest builders such as Sound Built, Quadrant and Seattle Pacific Homes, Maxwell said.

It was divided into smaller neighborhoods, including the gated community of Grayhawk, which features homes with higher-end finishes such as custom cabinetry and granite countertops, and Rollingwood, which caters to residents who are 55 and up.

Silver Creek was designed with outdoor enthusiasts in mind, according to Jerry Mahan, an agent with John L. Scott Real Estate's Puyallup office.

"It's got ballfields, it's got tennis courts, it's got a lot of recreational areas," he said. "[And] you're not that far from lakes and parks."

The neighborhood is close to Thun Field (also known as Pierce County Airport), Paul Bunyan Rifle & Sportsman's Club, Lipoma Firs Golf Course and Frontier Park, which hosts a variety of events throughout the year, including the Tacoma Highland Games and the Pierce County Fair.

On a clear day, residents can enjoy a panoramic view of Mount Rainier. A paved trail along the development's main road, Gem Heights Drive East, is a popular route for running, dog walking and inline skating.

Silver Creek offers the peaceful feel of a bedroom community, but it's within a five-minute drive for most big city-type amenities.

"Lucky for us, we have Fred Meyer pretty close," said resident Jeanne Woodward.

There's also a WinCo Foods supermarket, a Target, a Wal-Mart and numerous fast-food restaurants within a five-mile radius.

Many Silver Creek residents work in the nearby industrial mecca known as Frederickson, which is home to a variety of major employers, including a Boeing plant (where workers fabricate wing skins and spars for the company's 777 airplanes and other aircraft); the Ikea Northwest Distribution Center (which supplies Ikea stores throughout the Northwest and in Canada); and Mountain Mist Water (which sells bottled water).

However, some residents commute farther for work, such as to downtown Seattle, about 45 miles away.

"Some people catch the Sounder in Puyallup," Maxwell said. "There's ability to get to a lot of different places from there. ... It's not 'too far' anymore."

Woodward's husband rides a van pool to work at Intel in DuPont. The couple bought their 2,600-square-foot, four-bedroom-plus-bonus-room home in Silver Creek's Highlands division about 13 years ago, while relocating from Texas.

"We started looking, and doing research, and Puyallup schools ranked really high at the time," Woodward said. "We chose Puyallup for that reason."

When they purchased their home, the development was not built out, and the area was completely different, she said.

"It's just grown so much," Woodward said. "A lot of trees have come down. A lot of the building has come through. There's more traffic and more people."

Still, she enjoys their neighborhood, especially the greenbelt that backs up to her neighbor's property. There's also a brand-new elementary school in the neighborhood, and some nice parks with playgrounds, she added.

Woodward credits her neighbors and other Silver Creek residents for working hard to turn a huge development into a real neighborhood with a sense of identity.

Silver Creek's clubhouse hosts regular gatherings, and the homeowners association plans special events, such as the neighborhood's annual garage sale.

Woodward said her family usually meets up with neighbors to watch fireworks on the Fourth of July. They also hold a neighborhood barbecue and block party in the fall, if it's not raining.

"Most of us who live in our general area moved from out of state," Woodward said. "We have, like, a big family out here. ... We like it a lot. It's home."