The Harbours at Solomons Island

The Harbours at Solomons Island is a 55+ waterfront community tucked onto a peninsula in Dowell, Maryland, where the Patuxent River meets the Chesapeake Bay with water on three sides. Developed and built by Classic Group LLC, the community rises on roughly 100-120 acres of land that once served as the U.S. Naval Amphibious Training Base during World War II — the Navy's old redbrick power plant was repurposed as the neighborhood's 1,400-square-foot clubhouse, and a set of original gate pillars still stands at the entrance. The project has an unusual history. It was first conceived in 2006 but shut down during the Great Recession, then reopened for sales in 2015 under Classic Group. At buildout the community contains 252 residences across two home styles. Carriage homes are attached residences of roughly 1,800-1,844 square feet with two bedrooms, two or three bathrooms, two-car garages, patios, and unfinished basements ready for personalization. Single-family homes range from roughly 1,894 to 2,308 square feet with two or three bedrooms, two-car garages, main-floor primary suites, and unfinished basements; the Skipjack model adds a second-floor bedroom and a loft. Construction-era base prices ran roughly $360,000-$475,000, but recent resales sit in the $600Ks, with an average sale price around $629,900. The lifestyle here is unapologetically maritime. An independently owned marina adjacent to the community (Calvert Marina) offers protected deep-water slips large enough for vessels up to 74 feet — a rarity in Chesapeake 55+ communities. The neighborhood itself has a private beach, a fishing and crabbing pier, a kayak launch, and an outdoor pool, and residents access the clubhouse and pool through an arrangement with the adjacent marina. Two waterside restaurants operate onsite at the marina, giving residents walkable waterfront dining. The clubhouse has a gym with exercise equipment, a billiards room, meeting space, and views of the surrounding creeks. Planned expansions over the years have mentioned a library, business center, and multi-purpose room; residents report a smaller-scale reality than early marketing suggested, so the amenity picture is best described as a compact, water-focused setup rather than a sprawling resort. The community is ungated and flows into the surrounding village of Solomons, a 150-year-old waterfront town of about 2,400 year-round residents known for antiquing, the Calvert Marine Museum (with two historic lighthouses and working log-built boats), the Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Art Center, the Solomons Island Winery, and a planked River Walk that runs the length of town. Residents are predominantly retired, many relocating from elsewhere in Maryland, and social life centers on informal clubs — book groups, yoga, fishing, boating — plus community parties as the neighborhood matures. HOA dues are a uniform $162/month covering common grounds, lawn maintenance, trash, snow removal, and use of the beach, pier, and pool. Because homes are largely finished and the community is essentially built out, most activity now is resale rather than new construction.</parameter>