VIDALIA — When James Bradford’s daughter was looking to move back to the area, he started looking at the housing options in eastern Concordia Parish.

But because housing — especially in the Vidalia area — is largely at capacity, most of the options seemed priced at more than what he wanted to pay for them.

“We were looking at these 30- and 40-year-old houses on quarter acre lots for $150,000 and $180,000, and I was thinking, for that you can build a new house,” Bradford said.

Now Bradford is looking to change that situation.

He has purchased 70 acres of land off Southwind Drive, west of Vidalia, and plans to subdivide it into one-acre lots in two phases.

The first phase, 20 lots, has already started development into what he has characterized as an affordable gated community. One house is under construction, and a second will begin this month.

“I’ve done a lot of house buying and remodeling through the years, and I like to develop areas,” Bradford said.

“When I bought the property, they were riding four-wheelers out there.”

Bradford said he decided to look at the Southwind area because it had more space to allow for larger lots. Its proximity to Vidalia was also key.

“It is close to town, but it is not in town,” he said. “We’re able to do one-acre lots instead of quarter-acre lots, and it was just laid out there perfect for doing a little closed-in subdivision.”

Riverpark Realty real estate agent Tabitha Wroten is acting as the Realtor and contractor for the project under a newly formed company, Riverpark Construction.

Wroten said the subdivision would be her first as a licensed Louisiana contractor, but the demand for housing in the Vidalia area made it an ideal starting point.

“There’s not much area left in Vidalia if you want to have an acre or want to still be sort of out of town but still in the Concordia parish school district,” she said.

“This is for those people who don’t want to be right up on your neighbor.”

Even though the area will be a gated community, Wroten said the development will be built with an eye to affordability.

“All of these houses are going to be built at less than the $200,000 price range,” she said. “That is what our market can do.”

The goal will be to keep costs between $175,000 and $185,000, while still offering a new home with amenities such as granite countertops and a covered garage, she said.

Wroten said the houses should take no more than 90 days to build and will be built one at a time unless someone comes in and immediately wants one while another one is under construction.

While some new houses have been built in the Vidalia area in recent years, the majority of homes on the market are still older, Wroten said, and while some people want that, “there are more of the others who would love a new house, new construction, and they have never really had that.”

The neighborhood will have some restrictions, including — for example — a requirement that houses be no smaller than 1,500 square feet. Mobile homes will also be barred.

While the developers are building the houses, they are not dictating how every structure in the neighborhood will look.

“If there is somebody who wants to build out there and bring us some plans, we will work with them,” Wroten said.

Bradford likewise said he would be willing to take the appraised value for a lot — $20,000 — and allow a buyer to come in and have the house built themselves as long as they stayed within the guidelines set for the neighborhood.

“I know that once I get one or two houses built, the word will get out and we will sell all the lots,” Bradford said.