Less is More

LIKE MANY PROJECTS OF MASSIVE scope, the New Urban Challenge sounded deceptively simple at its inception: design and build a 2,300-square-foot house to mirror the square footage of the average new house built in America. Put it on a tight lot in a high-density development because that's where the building industry is headed. That by itself probably would have been enough for any builder to undertake.

But good ideas have a way of growing, and the New Urban Challenge was no exception. Working with Houston-based production builder David Weekley Homes, Builder and Home magazines decided to give three top architects the same square footage and lot size, with the thought that they would each design a house for the same hypothetical buyer.

That was a better idea but still not quite everything it could be. So the idea grew again. Each architect ultimately was charged with designing a house for a different buyer demographic—a family with two young children, a professional couple with no children, and an active adult, empty-nester couple.

The homes would be built side by side in Orlando, Fla.'s Baldwin Park. The 1,100-acre community is built on the site of the former Orlando Naval Training Center and is one of the largest infill redevelopment projects in the United States. The houses would front a park-like mews on 45-by-120 lots with detached, alley-loaded garages. Not only would there be strict architectural guidelines to follow, but the houses would also need to help the owners simplify their lives and meet their desire to form an emotional and spiritual connection with the place they call home—and incorporate products and services from 44 national sponsors.

The response from the architects was intensely personal. They designed houses they would want to live in themselves.

Seattle-based architect Bill Kreager immediately chose the active adult buyer and continually referred to it during design and construction as “our house.” The Shingled Cottage, with its master bedroom on the main level, is first and foremost a gathering place for friends and far-flung family, with cozy window seats that grandchildren can delight in, no less than four distinct gathering spaces, and a garage apartment geared to the minimalist needs of a returning college student.

Geoffrey Mouen, who fled New York to Central Florida with his young family because he and his wife longed to raise their twins themselves instead of leaving the children in the hands of a nanny, designed the Classic Residence. It features a massive front porch that functions as an outdoor living room, his-and-hers master baths, a quiet retreat off a family-centric kitchen and great room, and a kid-friendly playroom above the garage.

New York City urbanite Donald Rattner created a sophisticated Mediterranean-inspired Villa for a Modern Couple, a pair of professionals with gourmet tastes and a passion for entertaining. An inviting loggia is the entry point to a spectacular two-story great room, abundant flex space, a dramatic second-floor mezzanine, and a contemporary media room above the garage for upscale social events.

“The architects weren't given restrictions of creating houses that can be stamped out in a mass-produced way,” says David Pace, the managing director of Baldwin Park. “We said, ‘Show us how to take a small house and (make it) live large so people who would buy a larger house would look at this and not feel they're compromising.' These are incredibly good houses. Each of these houses is almost like a roll-top desk you live in. There is no space that's not cleverly used.”

Bob Rohde, vice president of design at David Weekley Homes, says the houses also represent the full range of today's home buying market. Putting them next to each other creates unique opportunities for building community across the generations.

“The diversity in the buyer group alone is exciting,” Rohde says. “These are all integrated in the same neighborhood, which makes sense in Baldwin Park. It's typical that we get a variety of buyers, so we have plans that target young families, young professionals, and empty-nesters. These designs responded to those buyers and went to the extreme.”

Baldwin Park's town architect, Sean Lackey, says the trio of houses represents the next generation in new urbanist homes, with designs that are fresh and historically inspired at the same time. If there's a criticism of new urbanist communities grounded in traditional architecture, he says, it's that the architecture often is seen as being too mild or plain. That criticism definitely doesn't apply to the New Urban Challenge houses.

“I think the visitors to the show homes would agree that there is not anything mild or plain about the homes,” he says. “What surprised us most about the homes was the depth of character that each home was able to exude.”

Each of the houses had to meet Baldwin Park's architectural guidelines, which center on home styles found in Central Florida before World War II, when housing became much more homogenized. (While the Shingled Cottage didn't quite fit because it wasn't built in pre-WWI Central Florida, Kreager got the okay to proceed as long as his design was faithful to the style he had selected.) Lackey says the New Urban Challenge houses deftly achieve both cutting-edge design and historically accurate expressions, with well-proportioned exterior details and the embodiment of good massing that translates into designing the floor plan hand in hand with the elevation.

“Artistic license within the mastery of these two attributes tends to bring about the more successful designs, a talent that not every architect or designer is able to master easily,” Lackey says, “and the secret is making it look as though it occurred effortlessly. All three homes are strong examples of this mastery.”

They also take into account one of the practical elements of new urbanist land planning. With the homes built on such narrow lots, fire suppression is critical to keep damage from quickly spreading from one house to the next. Each of the New Urban Challenge homes includes a fire sprinkler system from the Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition.

The attention to detail and the emphasis on 360-degree architecture paid off handsomely, says Bill Wood, senior builder and on-site supervisor.

“The homes really stand out,” he says. “There's a fairly busy street running right behind them, and it's amazing to see traffic slow down, stop, and pull over. People want to see what they are. They're turning heads. The design teams have done a phenomenal job. ... They're as nice as custom homes or better. Some of the materials are just incredible, especially considering the size of the lots and what we have available. The homes are just stunning.”

Ted Brock, Weekley's project manager for Baldwin Park, says that while the houses are in the same architectural style and square footage as the ones his company builds in Baldwin Park, they are far from production homes in the level of detail. They might not be reproduced for mass-market appeal, but they sure were fun to put together.

“If it were Christmas and you could do what you want,” he says, “this is it.”

The New Urban Challenge team overcomes an unprecedented weather challenge.

It is a safe bet that Bill Wood will never name a child Charley, Frances, Ivan, or Jeanne. The on-site supervisor of the New Urban Challenge for builder David Weekley Homes, Wood had a tight schedule before an unprecedented four hurricanes hit the state of Florida in six weeks last summer. By the time the last storm plowed through Orlando in late September, the shortage of meters to restore electricity at storm-damaged homes was so critical that the power company took his meters off the poles. National sponsor Eaton's Electrical Business helped save the day with jobsite generators.

When the first storm, Hurricane Charley, hit Central Florida, only the Shingled Cottage had a completed roof and drywall. The Villa and the Classic Residence had been framed but were not yet roofed, Wood says.

“All three homes held up to 100-plus mph winds,” he says. “It's amazing. A few shingles blew off, but it could have been far worse.”

Crews barely had time to finish cleaning up damage from one storm before the next one hit. Some materials that were stored in trailers on site were damaged. The delivery of replacements was delayed because Interstate 10, a major east-west artery across the northern part of the state, was shut down for days. Inspections were delayed because inspectors were handing out ice and water to thousands of victims without power.

“We had a lot of people working but not getting anything done,” Wood says. “They were just trying to keep from losing what they had. The available subcontractors were putting people's lives back together. We couldn't stop them from doing that; we didn't want to stop them.”

Finally, as Hurricane Jeanne approached the region, all three houses were roofed and had windows, but none were ready for garage doors. Wood envisioned the force of destructive winds if they invaded the structural envelopes.

“Once wind gets in, it has nowhere to go but up,” he says. “I didn't want the houses to be 40 feet from their roofs. I had the trades build full garage doors and bolt them to the slabs.”

It worked. The only damage came from flying debris.

Wood gives credit to the management of David Weekley Homes, which gave him full support to get the job done, to local trade contractors who worked nights and weekends under some of the most difficult circumstances imaginable, to national sponsors who helped with rush orders to replace damaged materials, and to the architects and the interior designers who had to make quick decisions on changes when specified materials weren't available and made the houses the showhomes they are today.

“The design teams have done a phenomenal job of making them stand out,” he says. “The homes are stunning. Anyone would be proud to live there.”

The New Urban Challenge could not have been built without the support of its many sponsors, a select group of building product manufacturers and suppliers that contributed to this innovative project. A list of companies, their levels of sponsorship, and the products they provided, follows:

Pinnacle Sponsor
Pella Corporation: Pella Windows & Doors Windows, patio doors

Cornerstone Sponsors
Whirlpool : Appliances, laundry center
Gladiator Garageworks: Garage storage system

Lifestyle & Technology Sponsor
Best Buy: Digital lifestyle solutions, structured wiring, and consumer electronics

Founding Sponsors
James Hardie Siding Products: Fiber-cement siding and soffit panels
Timberlake Cabinet Co.: Cabinets and bookshelves

Premier Sponsors
Armstrong: Wood flooring and ceiling panels
Crossville: Ceramic, stainless steel, and glass tile
Delta Faucet Co.: Faucets, fittings, and bath accessories
Elk Premium Building Products: Roofing and ridge ventilation (Classic Residence and Shingled Cottage)
MonierLifeTile: Concrete roofing tiles (Villa)
Silestone By Cosentino: Natural quartz-surface countertops
Simpson Door Co.: Interior doors
Temple-Inland:: Structural lumber, sheathing, and wallboard

Underwriting Sponsors
Fypon: Interior and exterior trim
Goodman: Heat pumps
Heat-N-Glo: Gas fireplaces
Honeywell: Climate control systems
Johns Manville: Formaldehyde-free fiberglass insulation

Participating Sponsors
Beam Industries: Central vacuum system
Broan-Nutone Medicine cabinets, door chimes, bath fan/lights, ventilation fans, and intercoms
Chamberlain Professional Products: Garage door openers
Culligan International: Water softener and reverse osmosis system
Dodge: Caravan minivan (Classic Residence) and Durango SUV (Shingled Cottage)
DuPont Weatherization Systems: Housewrap and flashing systems
Eaton'S Electrical Business: Automatic generators, transfer switches, and A/C disconnects
First Continental Mortgage Co.: Residential mortgage loans
Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition: Fire suppression system
Home Team Pest Defense: Termite control system and service
Hunter Douglas: Custom window coverings
In-Sink-Erator: Hot water dispenser and garbage disposer
JPMorgan Chase: Construction loans
Kwikset Corp.: Entry door handle sets and interior doorknobs
Laticrete: Tile and stone installation solutions
Overhead Door Corp.: Garage doors
Owens Corning Cultured Stone: Cultured brick (Shingled Cottage and Villa)
Rinnai Corp.: Tankless water heaters
Rubbermaid Home Products: Closet shelving
Sea Gull Lighting: Exterior and interior lighting
Shaw Industries Carpeting (Shingled Cottage and Villa)
The Sherwin-William Co.: Interior and exterior latex and enamel paint, concrete stain, and acrylic latex caulk
Suntrust Mortgage: Mortgage products and services
Wachovia: Real estate financial services
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage: Construction and permanent financing

Contributors
American Standard: Plumbing fixtures
Boral Bricks: Brick pavers (Classic Residence)
Cemex: Stucco (Villa)
Copper Development Association: Copper accent roofing (Classic Residence)
Portland Cement Association: Poured concrete
Simpson Strong-Tie Co.: Framing connectors

Local Suppliers And Subcontractors
AAA Plumbing (concrete pump)
AB Design (blueprints)
Alamar Services (landscape and grading)
Appenberry's (fountains)
ARtesian Pools (pools)
Artistic Masonry (fireplace brick installation)
B & A Utilities (underground work)
Bob Richards (miscellaneous services)
Builders First Source (LBM materials)
Builder's Insulation (insulation)
C & S DRYWALL (drywall installation)
Cast-Crete (lintels and steel)
CBS Builder Supply (roof trusses)
Collis Roofing (roofing installation)
Comfort House (portable restrooms)
Community Cleaning Services (cleaning and miscellaneous services)
Davy Fire Protection (fire sprinklers)
Del Air (HVAC)
Four Seasons Gas (fireplace installation and gas piping)
Gc Painting & Drywall (paint and drywall)
Grusemeyer Scott (surveying)
Hasting'S Garage Door Co. (garage opener installation)
High & Low Electric (electrical)
Installations Plus Of Central Florida (windows)
Iron Art & Fabrication (iron work)
Janego Construction (framing labor)
Jessup'S Specialty Products (mirrors, shelving, and accessories)
JR Bulldozing (excavation)
JRM Construction (concrete block labor)
KLM Plumbing (plumbing)
Kyle Milton (wallpaper)
Lighting Services Of Central Florida (light fixtures)
Mark Berland (iron detailing)
Mary Cotrell Cleaning Services (cleaning and miscellaneous)
MB Construction (framing labor)
Mitech Systems (low-voltage wiring, security systems, and central vacuum systems)
On Site Safety (workplace safety railing)
Orlando Decorative Concrete (concrete slab and flatwork)
Phil'S Trim (framing, siding, interior and exterior trim, and miscellaneous services)
Pommells Drywall Systems (drywall)
Prestige/Ab Ready Mix (poured concrete)
Prestige Granite (granite surfaces)
Radd Tannous Engineering (soil compaction tests)
Reliant Building Products (miscellaneous materials)
Redmon Design (landscape design)
Residential Building Supply (miscellaneous materials)
Ricardo Rodriquez Framing (framing labor)
Russo & Sons (dumpsters)
Rutland Gutter (copper roof)
S & B Aluminum (soffit)
Smyth Lumber (LBM materials)
Specialty Tile (fireplace travertine and slate tiles)
Stone Systems (countertops)
Superior Fence (fencing)
Superior Plastering (stucco)
Tarmac (concrete block)
31W Insulation (insulation)
Thornton Park Construction (hardscapes)
Traditional Floorcovering (flooring and tile)
Trojan Interiors (window treatments)