Our favorite Dubai-owned home developer in Southern California, John Laing Homes, has struck upon an unusual planning tactic to gather community feedback for a development in Sylmar: arts & crafts. Literally. To get an idea of what the local homeowners wanted in a new development, they handed out poster board and glue and asked them to collage their ideas. Glue sniffing was clearly encouraged:
"It was a hoot! We all felt like we were in first grade again," said Bob Feeny, a local real estate agent and president of the Rancho Cascades Community Group. "They gave us all scissors, glue and magazines and 20 minutes to put together our ideas of what the community should look like."
And what did they come up with? Lots and lots of pretty horses, and rainbows and flowers and oddly enough, Jessica Alba in a bikini (we knew they shouldn't have used all those US Weekly's). Actually, we're not kidding about the horses. With a nearby horse ranch and equestrian enthusiasts in the neighborhood, they wanted to ride their little ponies through the community. So John Laing officials presented the idea to the architectural firm - and we're absolutely in love with the name - Bloodgood Sharp Buster. Oh. My God. Let's just take a moment to contemplate that name. Ok, moving on. So the residents got their dearest wish: the development will be 44 homes (down from the originally planned 70) and 6 will accomodate horses, and a trail will be built to the ranch. Another happy development story brought to you by Elmer's Glue.
·Neighbors cut, paste concept for new tract [LA Daily News]