The builder’s choice awards bore witness to the birth and maturation of traditional neighborhood design, starting with the concept’s poster child, a budding Seaside, Fla., in 1986. The idea of revitalizing residential streets along grids instead of cul-de-sacs, of providing alley-accessed garages instead of having them dominate the streetscape, of pushing front elevations closer to the curb to encourage community, and of mixing complementary styles of housing moved quickly from the fringe of Seaside’s resort town plan to the main streets of metro areas thirsty for nostalgia with a modern sensibility.
Project: Seaside, Point Washington, Fla.; Entrant/Land planner: Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk (now Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co.), Miami; Builder: Seaside Community Development Corp., Seaside, Fla.
Project: Madison Lane, Newport Beach, Calif.; Entrant/ Architect/Land planner: Dahlin Group Architects, San Ramon, Calif.; Builder: California Pacific Homes, Irvine, Calif.
Learn more about markets featured in this article: Los Angeles, CA, Orlando, FL.
