T.O. - STILL "Living" in New Jersey - Despite Cowboy Status, Memories of Terrell Owens Linger On

I first wrote an article on how 'cool' it was to be Terrell Owen's neighbor in 2005. At the time, the wide receiver was playing for the Philadelphia Eagles, during a season in which his squad made it to the Super Bowl (and lost, and hasn't been back since). On the field, T.O.'s playing ability was never called into question; the man had silky smooth mitts, no doubt about it. Off the field, however, was a different scenario altogether. We happen to live in what many consider an upper end Philadelphia suburb, although it's located in southern New Jersey.

Moorestown, the small town in which T.O. and I shared residency, has about 19,000 residents and is anywhere from 15 to 25 minutes away from downtown Philly (depending upon how fast you drive!) by way of three bridges. In a town with a Quaker heritage and values, having T.O. as a direct neighbor was, for many of us, quite an eye-popping experience. In a town that is presently totally 'dry' (no alcohol is sold or served at retail and dining establishments within township limits), having a character like Terrell Owens living in your small neighborhood of 30 homes or so was really quite a big deal.

Oddly enough, though, T.O. wasn't the first - or last - Eagles player to live in Moorestown. Also calling it home currently is quarterback Donovan McNabb (who lives a mere two streets away), as well as Jevon Kearse and several other Eagles players as well as other sports figures. The appeal seems to be in the size of the small, sleepy New Jersey township itself - not too large that you're always under the spotlight, not too small that you're within minutes of that spotlight if you choose. What many of us did think was really odd at the time was the house that T.O. purchased. It has - and had - absolutely no sense of formal 'security'. The neighborhood is located almost accidentally off of a fairly heavily traveled county road. It is not a gated community. it does have access to the Rancocas Creek for over a dozen homes - but T.O.'s home had no pier (or any chance of ever getting a permit for it).

The story amongst realtors was that the original owners had made it known that they would be interested in moving should the right buyer come along, and boy, did he ever. They were presented with a very good price by Owens, accepted the price, and within two weeks - yes, two weeks! - vacated the home together with their three young children and pets. Owens did look at several properties that were serenely tucked away on several acres of wooded, private land - no interest. The home that he chose was a white stucco house on four acres of land (three of which are underwater and totally unuseable) which was sited on a relatively small lot. The original lot was such that if you swerved off the circular driveway by an inch or two, you would literally be on the adjacant vacant lot. The second lot was then purchased so that the house and its ancillary buildings were a bit more spread out (and more in line with real estate law and zoning policies.)

The house is very nice, no question about it. Over 6,000 square feet encased in white stucco, with two - yes, two! - swimming pools, one indoors in a separate, large room adjacent to the main house, and the outdoor pool located directly next to the indoor pool. The outdoor pool is surrounded by white concrete and pillars, and isn't visible from the street. However, the main house - with its marble floors, baths, media room - is not fenced. It still sits perched on a small cul de sac consisting of a total of three homes (two of which are owned by physicians). There is no gated entry, no fencing, a half-circled shape front driveway. During Halloweens past, when T.O. still lived there, kids from the neighborhood - and those who were driven in by parents and friends - could easily walk the twelve steps or so that it took to get from the street to the front door.

Now that Owens has moved on to greener pastures for himself in Dallas, the house has sat vacant for the past two years. The sales price paid by T.O. was $4,100,000. It is currently listed for $3,950,000 by the sales agency representing T.O. We live two houses away, with our house sited on a slight knoll overlooking T.O's house. I have never seen interested buyers going through the house. That's not to say that there haven't been; I just haven't seen them. In a sagging resale residential market, prices all over the country have dropped or been slashed. Even though Moorestown was named 2005's "Top Town", a home priced at over $3,000,000 should be really, really, really special - and should come with some measure of personal security as well. While the house has been vacant, it has also been the target of vandalism.

The cast iron mail box has been tipped over from its base; occasionally, a garbage bag is thrown onto the front lawn. The stucco could use a really good cleaning and probably another coat of paint. There's not much landscaping in the front of the house, but the little that is there has been poorly tended. Meanwhile, across the street, sits a huge - well over 10,000 square feet - home nearly ready for occupancy by the Indian physician who has owned the lot for a number of years. According to early tax records, the property tax bill on the new home will be $60,000 annually. Construction workers at the new home seem to show some interest in working so closely to T.O's old house; they frequently park Port-A-Potties in front of it. Someone is taking care of the home itself, from what we can tell. Trash is taken out to the curb, 'junk mail' and fliers don't stay in the wrought iron horse head mailbox for long. After two years on the market, the exterior does really show some signs of neglect.

Randalll Cunningham, a former Eagles quarterback, also lived in Moorestown in an upscale neighborhood. His house, while not nearly as large as T.O.'s, was completely surrounded by a black wrought iron fence. The man who purchased it from him was a huge Eagles fan; he was featured in the local daily newspaper, showing what improvements, so to speak, that he had made. Part of the bargaining chip for him was that Cunningham leave quite a bit of personal sports memorabilia with the house. The new owner had actually set up a large room in the finished lower level as a shrine of sorts to Cunningham. It was, frankly, more than a little tacky, more than a little cheesy. The new owner, as I recall, was an auto dealership owner who had that famously flashy New Jersey sense of aesthetics. A little more than three years later, Mr. Auto Dealer put the house on the market and left Moorestown, perhaps for pastures greener than he found in this somewhat ultraconservative town.

Will that happen to whomever buys T.O.'s white mansion with its two pools? Apparently not, from what we can tell. Owens left the area in very bad form; I don't think that people here in the tri-state area would ever even admit to being a fan. Owens didn't leave town - and that house - in a blaze of glory. He left after amassing an amazing amount of publcity, most of it bad, most of it quite hateful for Eagles fans. It's doubtful that a fan-drive buyer would purchase it. The fact that he overpaid substantially for the home in the first place is also not a good selling feature.

While the house still sits for sale, we have seen signs of activity, most usually when the Dallas Cowboys are in town to play the Philadelphia Eagles. The last time the two teams met for an evening game, two hours after game time a cavalacade of very large, very expensive cars rolled down our street, heading for the cul de sac. The first car pulled into the garage area, garage doors went up, and two cars parked snugly inside.

Just think - you, too, still have the opportunity to live in the same house where T.O. lived, own the same driveway and front yard where he did calisthetics and push ups, and played basketball with the neighborhood's young men. The grass under your feet is the same grass where T.O., Drew Rosenhaus, and his perky 'public relations' woman stood - to say nothing of the myriads of local and national sports reporters and media outlets. If you're interested in seeing the house online, go to www.realtor.com, type in the zip code 08057, and plug in the search engine for single family homes between $2,500,000 and $4,000,000. His home is listed by Blue Chip Realty.

It's always good to have our young'un T.O. come back to the old homestead for a visit! You're always welcomed here, Terrell; call in advance the next time, and we'll have the Philly cheesesteaks waiting for you!.