Alys Beach???

[skier]

Has anyone taken the tour of Alys Beach?

My understanding is that ALL of the houses in the development will be whitewashed stucco with white concrete roofs (just like the sales office directly on 30A). That could be really tough on the eyes with no contrast and bright white reflecting the sun all summer long. The buildings will lack any color save for shutters here and there--sounds really drab to me. Also, a large number of the homes will literally have zero lot lines. The walls of the homes will be separated by one inch of space. Virtually no porches and all of the courtyards will be cutoff from sight of the roads or other homes. Lots of privacy but no sense of community like in Rosemary, Watercolor or Seaside. They may sell homes quickly in the beginning, but my bet is over the long haul the place will not fair as well as the other mega developments. Alys just doesn't seem to fit the panhandle mold (or the mold in any other beach development that I am aware of). Just my two cents--

 

[Kurt]

Seen Greek islands? It works there, as well as other places. The white buildings contrasted with the deep blue water is stunning. Of course there you have terraced hillsides and cliffs.

Personally I'm going to wait and see. My early opinion is it will be too tight for my taste (as every 30-A development is), but I have no doubt that it will be in as high demand as any other developments close to the beach.

 

[sunshine]

I hope WU doesn't mind if I post this link - it describes the development along 30A perfectly. We got a style for everyone here!

http://www.waltonundercurrent.com/fjord.htm

 

[Kurt]

I hope WU doesn't mind if I post this link - it describes the development along 30A perfectly. We got a style for everyone here!

http://www.waltonundercurrent.com/fjord.htm

:rofl:

 

[katie blue]

I have a neighbor in seacrest who thinks the Alys Beach design (white stucco/courtyards/walls) is the greatest thing she's ever seen. So it's appealing to some for sure. Personally, I'm withholding opinion until I see how much green space will be preserved. Sounds like the units themselves won't have any lawn or vegetation to speak of (or if so, would not be visible to the eye outside of the walled-in courtyards), so it would seem to make sense to balance it all out with a lot of greenery. Lots of greenery. : :wink:

I've had a hard time getting in tune with the "walls" idea-- I need to see what they have in mind. My neighbor thinks it's awesome, but I'm on the fence about it. (heh! :laughing1 ) Because if a buyer wants that kind of privacy, and doesnt want to see their neighbor at all, i'd *imagine* they'd be more drawn to, say, buying a house or lot in a beachside neighborhood.

I trust these guys to build something nice, though, they sure have a good track record. I mean, they practically defined the style of architecture that's now universally recognized as 30a/Walton style. I like that they're putting their "park" right near the beach access too. It will give us Seacrester's a fun destination on our beach walks.

BUT, that said, i hope go to great pains to preserve open-ness whereever possible to balance out the walls everywhere.

 

[Kurt]

I agree that landscaping will make a huge difference. I like a lot of different styles. White makes colors really stand out. Colored doors, shutters, and other stuff will add a lot of character, along with gardens, etc.

 

[Kurt]

I trust these guys to build something nice, though, they sure have a good track record. I mean, they practically defined the style of architecture that's now universally recognized as 30a/Walton style.

Who do you mean by "they"? DPZ?

And what is the universal 30a/Walton style?

 

[katie blue]

Who do you mean by "they"? DPZ?
And what is the universal 30a/Walton style?

i read an article in a realty information site last month about how seaside's cottage/frame/balcony architecture was being recognized as an "identifiable" style attibutable to our area, and it was now being studied and copied to an extent by a few "new urbanist" developers in Europe. They were supposedly giving props to seaside and were intending to emulate it to some degree. That's what i was referring to. If i'm uninformed, I apologize.

 

[Kurt]

i read an article in a realty information site last month about how seaside's cottage/frame/balcony architecture was being recognized as an "identifiable" style attibutable to our area, and it was now being studied and copied to an extent by a few "new urbanist" developers in Europe. They were supposedly giving props to seaside and were intending to emulate it to some degree. That's what i was referring to. If i'm uninformed, I apologize.

No apology needed - I was just confused. Duany Plater-Zyberk (http://www.dpz.com - great links page there) are the town planners leading the new urbanism movement which sort of started in Seaside and was influenced heavily by Italian towns designed around a piazza, but as far as the architecture - a lot of different firms have contributed.

Everyone copied Seaside (and many still do). Which was copied from southern / cracker and northeastern coastal styles. And then a lot of folks copied Rosemary which drew from Charleston and the caribbean. Many now are copying WaterColor, which again relies heavily on influences from cracker / southern styles. Some call it cracker chic which is kind of funny in a mildly ironic way.

If SoWal has a style it is a blend of all those. People all over the world study examples of SoWal town planning and style. No doubt there will be entire college courses devoted to SoWal one day. I hope they leave out stucco boxes which will surely be covered in the South Florida class. :roll:

Not to be forgotten is Jeffrey Prescott, a Destin architect that early on published a couple of books with cottage designs - http://www.classic-cottages.com. Most are designed to fit on 50' lots. The cottages draw heavily from Seaside / southern influences. The well-done stock plans have been used by many builders and owners for many years in SoWal.

Tom Christ is a long-time local architect who draws influence from the islands. And Matt Savoie came over from New Orleans and brought a lot of French quarter / creole style.

 

[stormweary]

Hasn't anyone been to Bermuda - the most beautiful island ever - Aly's Beach is based on Bermuda architecture - however, they do have a lot of pink houses there, certainly not all white. I'm going to have to take a ride down there and see how it is coming along. Don't you just love the Aly's Beach vehicle as seen in their parking lot and in the Seaside 4th of July parade!