Doing things in the right order when you decide the way the community of houses will sit on the land controls the wholeness of the new community. In some cases the "right" order is highly unexpected.
100 Houses
This sequence will show you some of the aspects of the design sequence which must be done very early on. If you only follow the sequence, the community—and, probably, its surrounding neighborhoods too—will be much, much, better.
These are the steps you will follow in making your 100 house community:
ROUGHLY LOCATE WHERE THE SWATHS OF HOUSES ARE
Houses are to be placed in alternation with agricultural land or parkland.
PLACE AGRICULTURAL/PARKLAND RIBBONS
Roughly, the parkland/agricultural land is to be in ribbons at least 3-400 feet wide, possible as much as 600 feet wide in places.
PLACE HOUSING RIBBONS
Houses are also in ribbons about 2-400 feet wide.
IDENTIFY TREES AND BUSHES AND NATURAL BEAUTIES
The places which are precious and must be kept or enhanced, are to be identified.
IDENTIFY THE BUILDINGS WHICH WILL BE TORN DOWN
Sites of buildings that will be demolished are natural places for construction—since already damaged as far as nature is concerned.
PLACE NEIGHBORHOOD CENTERS
Find natural places where beautiful buildings, or spots of special natural beauty, view, vegetation, demand a center which serves people from hundreds of yards around.
LOCATE NATURAL WATERCOURSES
PLACE GARDENS AS CENTERS
Find all natural beauties. Mark them. Include them either in a garden lot, or in a small pedestrian path. Draw each garden lot about 50 feet by 50 around each one. Some can be smaller. Some can be larger.
PLACE BUILDABLE HOUSE POSITIONS AS CENTERS
Adjacent to each garden lot, make a house lot. This is also a roughly square parcel.
PLACE SMALL SCALE LANES AS CENTERS
Adjacent to each house make a small pedestrian land. It can be as narrow as 2-3 meters; other can be up to 5 meters wide (this will later allow a parked car to stand there).
