What could end up being called a "pet nook," which is a stairway alcove with room for a dog bed and food and water bowls, is a feature of one of the homes on display during this year's Parade of Homes.

The home, the Haywood model built by New Leaf Builders, is one of eight model houses from five builders on Trisail Terrace in Riverlights, a 1,400-acre master-planned development on River Road in Wilmington.

Alan Degen (pictured below), division president of New Leaf Builders, showed off the Haywood model Tuesday morning during a media preview for the Parade of Homes. Riverlights is this year's showcase community for the tour, which celebrates its 37th year when it opens Saturday.

"We call this our coastal collection on this lot size that we're in, 1,600 to 1,650 square feet, and then our Piedmont collection starts at 1,800 square feet and goes up to just under 2,400 square feet," Degen explained. 

New Leaf's base prices range from about $385,000 to mid-$500s, he said. 

"Right now we have 22 homes under construction here in Riverlights, and we have closed about 20 homes in the past year ... so we're extremely excited about the parade and all the events that come with it. It's actually our first time here in Wilmington entering the Parade of Homes so we're looking forward to the enhanced traffic to get our name out there even further than we have already," said Degen, who's company also has an office in Charleston, South Carolina.

Riverlights, which is managed by Brookfield Properties, began to rise off River Road more than six years ago. 

"The model row shows a great example of where we have been and where we are going with another two phases until we're fully complete," said  It's also a great middle ground for our new commercial district. So there'll be conveniences that are close by. We launched this brand new phase last June and have already sold 45 home sites and homes and that is increasing weekly," said Michela Hochschild, director of marketing for Riverlights.

Including Riverlights properties, The Parade of Homes will feature 30 builders and 49 homes throughout the Cape Fear region – 23 in New Hanover County, 20 in Brunswick County and six in Pender County. The Parade runs for two consecutive weekends, this Saturday-Sunday and May 6-7.

The event was expected to kick off Friday with Taste of Home, a progressive dinner at Riverlights, but officials said Tuesday that the dinner might have to be rescheduled because of a weather forecast that calls for rain all day. The Parade of Homes itself will go on as planned.

"Since 1986, the Wilmington-Cape Fear Home Builders Association has showcased the region’s finest homes in its annual Parade of Homes," according to a news release. "This year's entries include single family houses, townhouses and custom homes with prices from the $300,000s to $2 million."