Elevated Architecture

Cedar Rose at Windingwalk, Chula Vista, Calif.

By Kathleen Stanley

WHY IT WORKED: Location, price, and better-than-average interior appointments all contributed to Cedar Rose's success, but it's the high level of exterior architecture that really pulled in the buyers. Charming Craftsman-, Spanish-, and Prairie-style elevations feature numerous details that give the street scene plenty of punch.

All garages at Cedar Rose are set back and disguised with porte cochere structures over the driveway or partially hidden by gutsy beamed trellises.

Considering the relatively small square footage—homes range from 2,089 to 2,491 square feet—each house has an open, livable floor plan. In Plan 1, for example, open sight lines pull you into the house from the living room to the dining room and into the almost 16-foot-wide kitchen/breakfast nook/family room area.

First-time move-up buyers get plenty of bang for their bucks. Standard offerings include Whirlpool appliances, wood-burning fireplaces in the family room, front-yard landscaping with irrigation, and recirculating hot water.

Cedar Rose is one of the first neighborhoods to open in Windingwalk, a 1,200-acre, master planned community in south San Diego County. The community will include approximately 2,200 residences, recreation centers, community facilities, a public park, retail elements, office space, and elementary and junior high schools.

PROJECT CREDITS Project: Cedar Rose at Windingwalk, Chula Vista, Calif.; Sales started: November 2003; Sales through June 2004: 91; Units planned: 156 (91 released); Price: $495,000 to $541,000; Unit size: 2,089 to 2,491 square feet; Builder/Developer: Brookfield San Diego, Del Mar, Calif.; Architect: Starck Architecture, San Diego; Landscape architect: Howard & Associates, San Diego; Interior designer: Design Line Interiors, San Diego