Housing woes hit Hobbit town Posted on August 7th
The Bend (Oregon) Bulletin has this item today on the unhappy ending for a Hobbit-themed housing 
development.
Foreclosure proceedings have started against The Shire, a 31-lot development that was to have been filled with houses inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. The homes’ features included unique stonework, artificial thatched roofs, terraced gardens and a network of streams and ponds, the paper reports.
Ron Meyer, who conceived the concept, acknowledged that the market took a bad turn before his idea could catch on.
“Some people were turned off by living in ‘Disneyland,’ ” he said. “It’s more of an artists’ community for a certain market segment that wanted something different. There’s been enough people that have come through that would say, ‘What a wonderful concept.’ But then the market crashed, and everyone (went) home.”
Only one house in the development has sold since the project broke ground in fall 2006. The sales price: $650,000.
– Peter Hong
Photo: Looking out a “Hobbit hole” that was part of the set in New Zealand used in the filming of “Lord of the Rings”
Credit: Tracy Lee Silveria / Los Angeles Times
Questions? Comments? Email: peter.hong@latimes.com