What Does the Perfect Neighborhood Look Like Today?
Over the years, pop culture has presented the “perfect neighborhood” in a number of ways. Movies like Pleasantville show a city devoid of anything dangerous or unpredictable, while cult-favorite Gilmore Girls presents a quaint community anchored by a central town square and full of eccentric residents who take part in regular cultural events. Shows like The Jetsons even offer a futuristic take, where residents drive flying cars and live on stilts above the clouds. But what does the dream neighborhood look like to real people today? Perhaps the most important places in which we exist, where we live—or want to live—says a lot about collective values, needs, and aspirations. Below, AD talks with six people about their perfect neighborhood—maybe your ideal home base is on the list too.
A social-justice-focused community in warm weather
Dreamer: Hayley Haywood, EdD, 36
Occupation: Founder and chief equity officer of Elevating Access
Current location: Massachusetts, USA
“I feel like my ideal neighborhood should be in alignment with my values,” says Hayley Haywood. For her, that means a community underpinned by a commitment to social justice. “It would be a shared core value,” she says. “And the neighborhood would contribute to the soul fulfillment—or soulfilment, as I call it—of all the residents there.” She envisions a place full of creatives, holistic healers, doctors, educators, carpenters, and farmers, among others, who would all contribute their individual skills and passions towards collective success. “This way, no one worries about social isolation, and we are embodying the notion that ‘it takes a village’ knowing that we are stronger together.”
Climate would also play an important role in the community’s location. “I’d want it to be a place where you can connect with the land all year round, and you could grow vegetables and fresh food,” Haywood adds. Verdant trees and flowers would dot the landscape and a beach would be nearby for all residents to enjoy.
“The neighborhood would be designed with the purpose of bringing people together,” she adds. Circles, symbols of unity and connection, would define the layout. “There would be a community circle in the middle that would include a landscaped pool, lounge area, and barbecue space.” She also imagines a shared community center that could hold a performance space and other amenities. “It would be a place for people to celebrate and find joy without having to leave.”
Architecturally, the homes are uniform but not replicas. “I’m picturing large windows, glass, and wood,” she describes. “Homes would be sleek, natural, and modern while allowing people to connect with the beautiful views around them.” But nowhere would there be a white picket fence. “My perfect neighborhood would break down the fences and create space for people to come together.”
A warm-weather paradise with homes for artists
Dreamer: Teté Venegas, 34
Occupation: Travel Content Creator
Current Location: Bruges, Belgium and Playa de Carmen, Mexico
Teté Venegas, a travel content creator, knows exactly where her dream neighborhood would be: Honolulu. “I fell in love with it the first time I visited,” she says. “Everyone was very laid back and it was a very serene environment.” However, her ideal community wouldn’t be just any place on this island. Instead, it would be a neighborhood where all of her family and friends live, with a beach nearby that you could see at all time, free Wi-Fi for residents, and without any cars. “Ideally, you could only walk, bicycle, or scooter,” she says, unless you’re taking public transportation, which would be “well cared for.”
She says she’d love to live among artists, and it would be particularly cool if different residential buildings housed different disciplines. For example, there might be a music house or a painter house, and all homes would connect through sidewalks. Architecturally, La Muralla Roja, an apartment complex in Spain designed by Ricardo Bofill, would be the blueprint for her home base. “It’s the place that inspired a part of Squid Game and is made up of colorful, interconnected buildings with incredible ocean views.”
Aesthetics aside, Venegas envisions a community founded on mutual respect and amicable relationships. “I really love Japanese culture,” she says. “Everyone is very friendly and respectful, and it makes the country a great place to visit.” However, one of her most vital needs is good, warm weather. “I’m currently in Belgium, where my fiancé is from, and it’s difficult for me when so many days out of the year are rainy or cloudy,” she says. “I couldn’t live in an area permanently with bad weather.”
An eco-friendly neighborhood with room for creativity
Dreamer: Liz Clifton, 43
Occupation: Reiki practitioner and life coach
Current location: Cimla, Wales
By design, Liz Clifton’s dream neighborhood could be anywhere in the world. “It would be a place that could work anywhere,” she says. “Because the most important thing is that it would live in harmony with the natural environment.” Her ideal community would be one that exists in response to the nature around it, not one that tries to overtake what is already there. “It would be a place that makes the area better, that takes care of it better,” she explains.
But if she could magically create her model locale, it would be somewhere that offers a wide range of topography. “My perfect space has the forest, it has grassland, it has prairie land,” she says. “On the other side, you’ve got the coast, a lake, and a stream in the middle with water falling down to the sea.” The community would be self-sufficient and offer residents plenty of space to grow their own produce and raise animals, if they want. “It would be great to have a combination of registered medical care and holistic practitioners as well as counseling services to support everyone’s mental health,” she adds.
She dreams of a collection of housing styles. “Some people love living in an apartment and having that togetherness, so I’d want that,” she says. But she’d also add single-family homes with yards for residents who prefer that option as well as properties on the edges of the neighborhood that are even more separated for those who desire privacy. “It would be a whole range, everything all-encompassing,” she explains. Simple construction that makes use of local, natural materials would be her preference. “I’m seeing beautiful timber houses and perhaps even thatching on the roof,” she imagines of her ideal neighborhood.
As far as shared activities go, she’d hope for boundless opportunities for creativity to “enable joy for everyone in the community.” For some, this could mean farming the land or working in their yards, but she also envisions dancing, music, or making art. “I’d love a beautiful space where the community, as much as it wants to, could come together to create.”
A walkable neighborhood full of quaint homes
Dreamer: Sydney Holmes, 32
Occupation: Founder of No Ifs PR
Current location: Astoria, Queens
Sydney Holmes is at a critical juncture in her life. “I’ve lived in New York for 11 years now,” she says. “And I’m 32, married, and thinking about whether I want to have a kid and move somewhere with more space. I’ve really been pondering what that ideal place would look like if I were to move out of the city.”
For her, walkability and community—two things she currently has in Astoria, Queens—are integral to her dream scenario. “Those would be absolutely nonnegotiable,” she says. “I really want an area that has beautiful houses but also its own little enclave where you can walk and get a coffee or groceries.” She would love to live with like-minded people who are true neighbors, not just people who live near each other. The opportunity to enjoy community programing—like concerts in a park—would be special, but she’s especially keen for a theater. “I love doing theatre, but I also think it’s really important to live in a place where you can see the arts performed by people in your community,” she adds.
She’s not a fan of new-build McMansions and wouldn’t want to see homes larger than 3,000 square feet, but would be happy in an otherwise architecturally diverse area. “I would live in a midcentury house,” she adds. “But it would be cool if someone had a super contemporary home and someone else had a classic Victorian, things like that.”
Easy access to nature would be key. “Whether that’s hiking, the beach, or a really big lake,” Holmes says. “I just don’t want to live somewhere where it’s really flat.” She would also prefer a climate with all four seasons. “I’m very pro-snow.” Her most wishful ask, however, is something most people could probably agree on. “All the homes would be under $100,000,” she says. “But that would be a total fantasy!”
A quiet family home in the mountains
Name: Isa Khan, 33
Occupation: Photographer/Cinematographer
Current location: New Delhi, India
Travel photographer Isa Khan’s dream neighborhood is not much of a neighborhood at all. “I don’t see any other house nearby,” he says. He pictures his perfect place somewhere near mountains with a small home for his wife, kids, and mother. “There’d be lots of flowers, lots of plants, and little kids running around. There’d be a lot of nature for myself and my family.”
As a frequent traveler, he’s visited a number of places and says each trip makes him wonder what life would be like living there. “Every new country that I go to, I always change my mind, and I’m so impressed that I want to completely shift my life to that new country,” he says. Though ultimately, he says it’s family that makes up his dream place to live. “I’ve always seen that home is not a structure of wood or bricks, it’s the people who really matter to you,” he says. “If I have that, I don’t think I would need anything very desperately.”
A beach escape with vibrant nightlife
Name: Jumoke ‘Smiley’ Munu, 31
Occupation: UIUX Designer & Travel Content Creator/Experience Curator
Current Location: Lagos, Nigeria
“If I could snap my fingers, I’d live in a bustling city center, the kind that thrums with life and possibility,” says Jumoke ‘Smiley’ Munu, a Lagos-based UIUX designer and travel content creator/experience curator. While she’d want to be around towering skyscrapers, her home would be just steps from the beach. “Picture floor-to-ceiling windows framing a vista of turquoise water,” she instructs. Palm trees would dot the landscape and sway next to the rhythmic pull of the nearby sea. “That’s my happy place,” she says.
An avid traveler, she says Southeast Asia has always held a special place in her heart and could see her ideal neighborhood existing in this region. “A city center like Kuala Lumpur would be the ultimate dream,” she adds. No particular architectural style calls her name, but she finds the clean lines and open space of modern design to be compelling. “There’s a certain elegance and functionality to it that resonates with me.”
As far as neighborhood amenities go, she has three nonnegotiables: safety, history, and nightlife. “My top priority is a neighborhood with an exceptionally low crime rate,” she explains. “Feeling completely secure when walking the streets at night, no matter the time, is crucial.” Further, she’d enjoy a place with roots—you might see it in the city’s buildings or in local shops that offer traditional crafts or foods. “This connection to the past adds a layer of richness and cultural significance to the daily experience,” Munu adds. Lastly, she’d appreciate easy access to live music venues, trendy bars, or even a night market. “The ability to step outside and experience the city's energy after dark is a major draw.”
Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
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