Seaside, Fla.

THE LITTLE TOWN OF SEASIDE IS WHERE IT IS BECAUSE OF the water, and in a true form follows function mode, the design of its houses incorporates features that make the most of that natural resource. Porches, often wrapping around every level of a house, offer residents the pleasure of the sounds and smells of the nearby Gulf of Mexico. Views of the water, formerly the province only of the fortunate few located right at beachfront, can be glimpsed from the very top of some of the homes. These aeries, variously called widow’s walks, crow’s nests, or observation decks, are highly prized and well used, and provide one more example of Seaside’s stated goal: variety of design within a common vocabulary.