What It Takes to Create a Community

How do you turn 17,000 acres, 5,000 acres or even 300 acres into a single community that works?

By thinking about what kinds of infrastructure, amenities, recreation and vocational opportunities will attract residents to the area over the long term, community planners and developers say.

"We try to understand what, and who, that user is, and that's not easy to do," said Robert Folzenlogen, director of planning and design for AllianceTexas Hillwood Properties. The company is developing Alliance Town Center, a 1,000-acre piece of a 17,000-acre parcel outside of Dallas.

When thinking about Alliance Town Center and who will use it, Folzenlogen considers five or six types of users, including individuals, young married couples, families with children and empty nesters.

"They'll need health services, education, entertainment. . . . We look at what they need for medical, emergency care, a lifestyle that supports healthy living, with fitness centers, for example, emergency and acute care, assisted active living, and assisted living and retirement," he said.

Sam Colgan, president of Pulte Homes' Phoenix West Valley division, said that planning a senior community means looking at "function and value in an integrated design that would facilitate their participation in the lifestyle of the community."

To create a community with longevity, Colgan said, the design has to feed the wants of today and tomorrow. "We have to understand the consumer, and not just replicate what we've done before," he said.

Colgan said that the Sun City communities developed by Del Webb, part of Pulte, have been evolving as the customer has evolved. "They're living longer, smarter and healthier lifestyles, so we offer a lot of staged amenities. We engage the current population of the community and ask what we could provide differently. We try to keep function spaces as flexible as possible. We even get them involved in focus groups. This helps in smaller communities and even larger communities," he said.

"Our customer is really different. They want a community. It's not just all about the house," said Robert McLeod, chief executive of San Diego-based Newland Communities. "They could probably find the same house from the same builder two miles up the road in a standard subdivision and it would be cheaper. Our customer is really looking for that 'tranquil, peaceful environment where I can hang out with my friends' place."

One way that developers build community is by creating infrastructure that keeps people together, such as community centers, swimming pools, workout facilities and multi-function rooms that can be put together for big parties and celebrations.

But developers are also building community by adding connectivity. Newland Homes and Del Webb build intranets into their communities, which allow residents to log on and sign up for volunteer opportunities in the neighborhood.

"In San Diego, at the 4S Ranch, they're able to talk, blog, see the calendars for schools. They can see what's happening there," McLeod said. "Seventy percent of the people go online once a day to see what's happening in their community. They really want to connect with their neighbors."