Here are some photos from around Las Catalinas, these focusing on the buildings and construction rather than the people.  As of November 2012 there are ten houses finished plus The Green House and Pura Vida Ride.  All are unique, all have different features, design choices, and materials.  But there is a common thread.  The same can be said of our precedent places– unique buildings and interesting variation within a range.

The range of variation you see expressed in the buildings so far is quite a bit less than is allowed in our architectural guidelines in some ways.  For example regarding roofs our guidelines would allow barrel tile roofs, flat tile roofs, corrugated metal roofs, and standing seam metal roofs.  But as it turns our all the home owners so far have opted for the barrel tile over a fiber-cement sub-roof – because in our area with our climate, salt air, and available materials that appears to be the most practical, longest lasting, best looking alternative.  So it isn’t forced uniformity – but it isn’t forced diversity either.  In a typical old Europe hill town there is a remarkable similarity in roofs – I suspect for similar reasons.  I like it.