Who says traditional design has to be expensive?

Who says traditional design has to be expensive? The Neighborhood Housing Development Corp. (NHDC) of Gainesville built homes designed by architect Robert Orr of New Haven, Connecticut, for $42 square foot, according to David Herkalo, NHDC director. The NHDC hired building subcontractors to construct the homes, which had to meet special design standards because they are in a historic (although economically depressed) area of Gainesville, the Pleasant Street neighborhood. The Orr designs include eight-foot-deep wooden front porches, and wooden windows.They have large eaves, and the clapboard exterior is made of HardiPlank. The two-story, 1,400 square foot home in the photo includes a back porch. The homes are selling for $57,900 to $62,900, which does not include the cost of the land or demolition of existing structures, Herkalo says. Including these costs, the city paid $78,000 to $82,000 each to build the Orr homes. The NHDC has built a dozen new homes and rehabbed another 15 to 20 units in the Pleasant Street neighborhood. A master plan for revitalizing the 50-acre neighborhood, including reestablishing commercial uses, was designed by Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company.