![]() French doors on three sides of the courtyard open into the living room, kitchen and master suite. The home’s open-air entryway leads to a courtyard, where covered settees piled with pillows, containers planted with palms and the soothing sound of water from a wall fountain make a convincing argument for lingering outside. I’m with my family, and we’re pretending the lavish house to which we hold the key is ours, enjoying the sound the heavy wooden door makes as it thunks closed against the iron latch. Now, once again, I’ve come to Alys Beach as a guest, but this time it feels different. My life has been full since that first visit, including a round-trip move to California and back, and the much-anticipated birth of our daughter. The town, bookended by its precious beach and dunes to the south and 22 acres of preserved wetlands to the north, is committed to sustainability and is meant to be standing, alongside its untouched natural habitats, hundreds of years from now - a testament to the vision of the town founder, Jason Comer, whose family bought these 158 acres in 1977 and collaborated with DPZ in the design of the present-day community. Not least appealing was the fact that the community consists solely of green-Ĭertified structures that are fortified to withstand hurricanes. The more I learned about Alys Beach, the more I liked it. One of the things that really attracted me to the area is the custodial role its residents play in protecting nature. Alys Beach, like all of the towns along 30A, followed that lead. Seaside set the blueprint for a beach town built away from the beach, protecting the dunes. There, an alluring collection of shops, restaurants and pastel-colored cottages with vast front porches are all connected by lanes and pathways designed for pedestrians, not cars. Alys Beach is one of four New Urbanist communities along 30A, where the movement got its start in 1981 just up the road at Seaside. ![]() Duany is a co-founder of the Congress for the New Urbanism, which promotes high-density, mixed-use, walkable and ecologically sustainable towns. Photo by: Jon Whittle.īut what really drew me was how Alys Beach’s master plan, designed by Andrés Duany of the Miami-based architectural firm DPZ (Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co.), emphasized both community and a sustainable relationship with this fragile slice of Florida’s eco-systems. Walking along the beautiful, and also water-permeable, cobbled pathways, I peek through the occasional decorative cutout or gap in the wooden and iron doors that lead into private courtyards. Against a cloudless sky, Alys Beach was a sparkling oasis that reminded me at once of Morocco, Bermuda, the Mediterranean coast and Latin America - remnants of my traveling days, before family gave home life more appeal than the road. ![]() A cluster of whitewashed walls and peaked roofs eased into view. I remember my first glimpse of the town as I drove along Highway 30A, just west of Panama City Beach. After my first visit to Alys Beach and its neighboring communities - known collectively as the Beaches of South Walton - for a magazine assignment in 2008, I wondered if I’d found that place. We’ve envisioned a place with urban elements where we can be part of a community of creative, energetic, open-minded people while living more in tune with nature a place where our child can play freely outdoors, and her education can effortlessly expand beyond the classroom. As longtime New Yorkers who had moved to Florida for a job rather than for its virtues, we’ve spent an inordinate amount of time researching, discussing and imagining our idealized future home. My husband and I live 400 miles south of Alys Beach, in Orlando. I’ve pictured bringing my family here since before we were three. Yet it is no accident that we chose this one. Florida is our home, and this “first” could have happened at any number of beaches. Photo by: Jon Whittle.ĭavid dips Ailigh’s feet into the frothy white waves, eliciting excited babble her soft dimpled legs instinctively reach for the ground until her bare feet feel sand for the first time.
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