FINNEY CROSSING Snyder Homes received no opposition from neighbors or community leaders when planning the new development.   Photos: Shem Rose

FINNEY CROSSING Snyder Homes received no opposition from neighbors or community leaders when planning the new development.  

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Builder/Developer: Snyder Homes, Shelburne, Vt.
Architect: BSB Design, Des Moines, Iowa
Walk Score: 52
Metrostudy Says: Shopping, restaurants, and entertainment are all within walking distance. The neighborhood also is enhanced by plentiful trees, bike paths, and views of the nearby mountains. The one thing it lacks is access to public transportation but all the amenities that a homeowner or renter might need are within a mile.
DU/acre: 6 
Sales price: $150 per square foot 
Size of units: 750 to 2,400 square feet 

The developers of this 68-acre parcel near downtown Williston originally planned to develop 220 units but at the city’s urging upped the density by squeezing in an extra multifamily building. The site was ripe for a walkable residential development as it is a few minutes’ walk from a mixed-used area that includes a pharmacy, grocery, restaurants, a movie theater, and a community college.

Working with architect BSB, Snyder Homes developed a mix of housing options including single-family home, for-sale condominium flats, townhouses, and rental apartments. Floor plans optimize privacy by limiting windows that face other units and offering private entrances when possible. Other creative ideas include homes joined in duplex or even triplex configuration with entrances on different sides of the building.

The approach has paid off; executive vice president Chris Snyder says sales are “substantially higher” in this neighborhood than in non-connected communities.

Learn more about markets featured in this article: Des Moines, IA, Iowa City, IA.