Queens Lake, Williamsburg, Virginia
Queens Lake is a York County neighborhood with a Williamsburg mailing address, built from 1953 to the mid-1980s around a private 60-acre lake beside Queen Creek and the Colonial Parkway. Its community association runs the lake, pools and a 63-slip marina, and homes are zoned to Magruder Elementary, Queens Lake Middle and Bruton High.
Queens Lake at a glance
Queens Lake is a York County neighborhood with a Williamsburg mailing address (ZIP 23185), bordered by Queen Creek (often written Queens Creek) on the north and west, the Colonial Parkway on the south and York County's New Quarter Park on the east, according to the Queens Lake Community Association. It was developed from 1952 through the mid-1980s around a private freshwater lake. York County parcel records (queried October 2026) show 537 improved residential parcels in the Queens Lake subdivision, almost all detached homes on lots of about three-quarters of an acre or more.
Three things set Queens Lake apart from other Williamsburg-area neighborhoods:
- It is in York County, not James City County or the City of Williamsburg. Taxes, zoning and schools are York County's, and the subdivision is zoned to Magruder Elementary, Queens Lake Middle and Bruton High.
- The association is a membership club, not a conventional HOA. The Queens Lake Community Association (QLCA) runs the lake, two pools, courts and a 63-slip marina on Queen Creek, and membership is mandatory only for deeded properties.
- Older homes on large lots. The median home was built in 1970.
Where is Queens Lake, and when was it built?
The association's 50th-anniversary history, Living in Nature's Neighborhood 1952–2002, records that the Queens Lake Development Company was formed on March 14, 1952, by five investors led by local broker Richard C. Benschoten. The company bought 636 acres, including a lake then called Lake Chesapeake, for $75,000 and renamed it Queens Lake; about 550 acres were buildable. The first speculative house sold in 1953, sections opened one at a time, the last lot sold in 1985, and the company dissolved in 1987.
The history also notes that the Navy acquired 11,000 acres along Queen Creek in 1942 to create Camp Peary, across the creek. The clubhouse is at 234 East Queens Drive, and the Colonial Parkway, the National Park Service road linking Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown, runs along the neighborhood's southern edge.
What are the homes like in Queens Lake?
From York County's assessment data for the Queens Lake subdivision (2026 values):
| Measure | Queens Lake subdivision |
|---|---|
| Improved residential parcels | 537 |
| Single-family (not waterfront) | 414 |
| Waterfront or lakefront | 123 |
| Median year built | 1970 (middle half 1965–1979) |
| Built in the 1960s and 1970s | 377 of 537 |
| Median detached lot | 0.85 acre (middle half 0.69–1.19) |
| Median living area | 2,677 sq ft |
| Most common styles | Ranch, colonial, transitional, Cape Cod |
The history explains the lot sizes: lots were platted with 100 to 125 feet of frontage and 100 to 650 feet of depth, sized for septic fields because there was no sewer service at the time. Ask whether a specific house is now on public sewer or a septic system.
Price context
York County reassesses every two years, with values effective January 1 of even years (Real Estate Assessment). On the 2026 assessment, the median detached home in Queens Lake is assessed at $547,500, with the middle half between about $474,900 and $642,400. The 120 parcels coded waterfront improved have a median assessment of $758,950. Assessments are not sale prices.
How does the Queens Lake Community Association work?
The QLCA's FAQ states that the neighborhood "does not have an HOA" and that the association "functions more as a social club." It is not an HOA-style architectural review body, but a dock on Queens Lake or Princess Pond requires QLCA membership and forms filed with the Lake committee and the Queens Lake office, plus York County approval. How membership works:
| Item | 2026 detail |
|---|---|
| Who must belong | Owners of deeded properties (a deed restriction filed with York County binds future owners) |
| Transfer fee on sale (deeded properties) | $300 |
| Joining from a non-deeded property | $3,000 non-refundable stock purchase; does not transfer to the next owner |
| Annual dues | $575 by check or cash, $595 by card, or $49 a month by ACH (2026 invoice) |
| Pool fees (members) | $285 to $420, by membership type (pool page) |
| Lake boat registration, court fees | $30 each per membership |
| Marina slip (most slips) | $795 a year for members; $1,495 for non-resident limited members (2026 rates) |
Association amenities are for members only. Before you write an offer, confirm whether the house is a deeded property, because that determines whether membership and dues come with it.
What amenities does Queens Lake have?
- The lake: a private freshwater lake of almost 60 acres, more than a mile long, with Princess Pond as a dammed arm. Electric motors only (lake page).
- Pools: a four-lane pool and a six-lane zero-entry pool, both overlooking Queen Creek.
- Courts and fields: tennis and pickleball courts, a field with a softball diamond, and a playground.
- The marina on Queen Creek (marina page): 63 slips with water and some with power, annual agreements only, a concrete ramp, kayak launch, fuel and a free pump-out. Boats up to 48 feet long and 16 feet wide fit, but the creek mouth limits draft to about 3 feet at mean low tide, and the York River is about 2.5 miles away.
- New Quarter Park next door: a 545-acre York County park at 1000 Lakeshead Drive with trails, an 18-hole disc golf course, a floating fishing pier and a kayak launch, with no entrance fee (county page).
Which schools serve Queens Lake?
York County parcel records zone all 537 improved parcels in the subdivision to Magruder Elementary, Queens Lake Middle and Bruton High. Queens Lake Middle is inside the neighborhood at 124 West Queens Drive. Confirm any address through YCSD's Find Your School page or the county's zone maps. A Williamsburg mailing address does not mean Williamsburg-James City County schools; Queens Lake is in the York County School Division. See the York County school assignment guide and Virginia's School Quality Profiles.
How long is the commute from Queens Lake?
| Destination | Approx. distance | Approx. off-peak drive |
|---|---|---|
| Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Langley (nearest gate) | 26–28 miles | 35–50 min |
| Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Fort Eustis | 15 miles | 20–30 min |
| Naval Weapons Station Yorktown (Gate 3 area, Route 143) | 9 miles | 15–25 min |
| Newport News Shipbuilding (Washington Ave) | 32 miles | 40–50 min |
| Colonial Williamsburg (Merchants Square) | 4 miles | 10–15 min |
These are approximate off-peak estimates from the center of Queens Lake, calculated with OpenStreetMap routing as of October 2026. I-64 traffic between Williamsburg and Newport News can add significant time at peak hours.
Flood zones and the Chesapeake Bay Act in Queens Lake
York County's flood layer maps AE zones (base flood elevation 7 to 8 feet) and 0.2% annual-chance zones along the water's edge. About 132 of the 537 improved parcels touch an AE zone somewhere on the lot, but a county address-point check found none of the homes' address points inside a Special Flood Hazard Area. About 168 parcels touch a Resource Protection Area, which carries a 100-foot vegetated buffer along Queens Lake, Princess Pond, feeder streams and Queen Creek (York County Bay Act page; QLCA RPA notes). Piers and shoreline work need York County permits. Check the specific parcel on the county map or the FEMA Flood Map Service Center.
What to know when buying or selling in Queens Lake
- Deeded or not: confirm whether the property carries mandatory QLCA membership.
- Sewer or septic: check each house; the original lots were laid out for septic.
- Water access: a lake lot, a creek lot and a marina slip are three different things. Slips are annual agreements, and the creek's roughly 3-foot draft limit matters for larger boats.
- Age of systems: with a median build year of 1970, inspect roofs, HVAC, plumbing and electrical carefully.
- For sellers: have the association documents, any slip agreement and the lot's RPA status ready.
How Adam Triplett can help in Queens Lake
Adam Triplett is Vice President and Senior Partner at Garrett Realty Partners and has been ranked the #1 individual agent by the Virginia Peninsula Association of REALTORS® every year since 2018. Adam's closed-sales record, 2006 through July 2026, includes 37 sales with Williamsburg addresses at a median of $298,000, with a top sale of $1,001,115. His record also includes 120 sales in York County with Yorktown or Seaford addresses.
See the Williamsburg and James City County guide, the Yorktown and York County guide, York River waterfront homes, the Naval Weapons Station Yorktown guide, and Adam's sold record. For a different style of Williamsburg-area neighborhood, compare New Town.
Homes for sale with a Williamsburg address (includes Queens Lake)
There is no Queens Lake filter, so these are current REIN listings with a Williamsburg address, which covers Queens Lake plus the City of Williamsburg, James City County and other York County neighborhoods.
Related pages
Williamsburg and James City County
The Williamsburg-area guide, including Adam's Williamsburg sales record.
Yorktown and York County
York County's villages, schools and tax facts.
York River waterfront
Buying and selling on the York River and its creeks.
New Town
Williamsburg's mixed-use planned neighborhood, a contrast to Queens Lake.
Naval Weapons Station Yorktown relocation
Neighborhoods, commutes and housing allowance for NWS Yorktown.
Adam's sold record
628 closed sales, 2006 through July 2026.
Questions about Queens Lake
Is Queens Lake in Williamsburg or York County?
Queens Lake uses a Williamsburg mailing address (ZIP 23185), but it is in York County. That means York County real estate taxes, zoning and schools. York County parcel records zone the whole subdivision to Magruder Elementary, Queens Lake Middle and Bruton High, not to Williamsburg-James City County schools.
Does Queens Lake have an HOA?
The Queens Lake Community Association says the neighborhood does not have an HOA and that the association functions more like a social club, though docks on the lake require QLCA membership and Lake committee forms. Membership is mandatory for deeded properties through a recorded deed restriction. Owners of non-deeded homes can join by buying a $3,000 non-refundable share. 2026 dues are $575 a year by check or cash.
Can I keep a boat at Queens Lake?
The QLCA marina on Queen Creek has 63 slips on annual agreements, with a ramp, fuel and a free pump-out. Most slips cost $795 a year for members in 2026. Boats up to 48 feet long fit, but the creek mouth limits draft to about 3 feet at mean low tide, and the York River is about 2.5 miles away. Only electric motors are allowed on the lake itself.
How old are the homes in Queens Lake?
York County assessment data puts the median year built at 1970, with 377 of the 537 improved parcels built in the 1960s and 1970s. The first house sold in 1953 and the last lot sold in 1985. Lots are large, with a median of about 0.85 acre, because they were originally sized for septic fields. Ranch and colonial are the most common styles.
How far is Queens Lake from Naval Weapons Station Yorktown and Colonial Williamsburg?
Queens Lake is about 4 miles from Merchants Square in Colonial Williamsburg, roughly 10 to 15 minutes off-peak, and about 9 miles from Naval Weapons Station Yorktown's Gate 3 area on Route 143, roughly 15 to 25 minutes. Langley and the Newport News shipyard are 26 to 32 miles away. These are approximate estimates calculated with OpenStreetMap routing in October 2026.
Is Queens Lake in a flood zone?
Mapped AE flood zones follow the water's edge, and about 132 of 537 improved parcels touch one somewhere on the lot, but a York County address-point check found no home address points inside a Special Flood Hazard Area. About 168 parcels touch a Chesapeake Bay Act Resource Protection Area. Check the specific parcel on York County's map before you buy.
Buying or selling in Queens Lake?
Talk with Adam Triplett about deeded membership, water access and pricing an older home on a large Queens Lake lot.
