Florida Gets A Taste of France

Citrus Square is an award-winning, mixed-use multifamily community that maintains its distinct architectural direction while incorporating European influence.

By Lauren Felechner Photography
By Jonathan Parks Architect

Behind Citrus Square's mixeduse residential charm is a vision from the beautiful, three- and four-story mixeduse buildings of Nice, France, according to Mark Pierce, president of Pierce Contracting Inc., and Citrus Square Inc. Photographs from overseas helped bring Pierce's Mediterranean inspiration to life, conveying a sense of authenticity to Citrus Square by infusing the community with foreign architectural details and accents. According to Chris Gallagher, designer and project manager of Jonathan Parks Architect (JPA), "Like a great French townhouse, we wanted to set an ideal background for any side of the spectrum, whether the owner wanted a more modern or traditional style."

Citrus Square brings a taste of France to Sarasota, Fla., with every detail meticulously planned and sought out, from the window and door reveals to the balcony moldings and classic parapets. Another main goal for this mixeduse community was simply walkability.

Gallagher explained, "It's all about the pedestrian experience. Some architecture is designed for people whizzing by at 50 miles an hour. Citrus Square is designed for people walking by." Sarasota's Downtown code encourages its residents to connect with the streetscape, according to Jonathan Parks, AIA, architect, Jonathan Parks Architect, and with the city's recent history of poorly executed Mediterranean Revival architecture; Citrus Square attempted to do something more authentic.

"Our office is known for doing very contemporary work. When we looked at what was successful in mixed-use projects of this scale we had to admit to ourselves that this was going to be a very modern building in terms of how it was built but with a traditional façade, and that was one of the most important gestures we could make," said Parks.

Although the design process began in the fall of 2005, the land acquisition for this community preceded that by five years, and continued for several more. The permitting process began in June 2007, construction began in January 2008 and took about 14 months for the residential and retail unit build outs conferred into 2010, Pierce explained. With one phase out of four complete, the project continues to move forward, having limited impact on the existing residents with the design of the circulation and staging to make it work, according to Pierce. There are a total of 20 units with six different layouts ranging from 550 square feet to 1,300 square feet. "We really took the time and trouble to make a special piece of architecture out of it," Pierce said. With no significant construction challenges for Pierce, he still experienced some bumps in the road with maintaining the simple 'box-like' concept for the community but presenting it in a more fashionable manner. The Florida Power and Light lines had to be removed and rerouted to the back of the property, as well as the installation of large footings for the original low quality soil.

Pierce, Parks and Gallagher were on the same page as far as the simple and cost-effective approach to Citrus Square that would make sure there were great quality details inside and out. Such steps were taken to achieve this as designing the shape/ roofline/structure of the community simply so that there would be more money to spend on the details, such as using aluminum for the balcony railings rather than cast iron. "We didn't build the tallest that we could and we didn't build on all the land and that's pretty rare. The streetscape and pedestrian experience really informed every decision we made. That's why we created the square that then defined the name of the building," Parks explained.

There is no doubt that Citrus Square is a child of JPA, as the Square has recently been announced a winner of the Multi-Housing News National Design Awards for low-rise development, while JPA took home quite a few titles at July's Aurora Awards, recognized for several of their singlefamily home projects. Citrus Square defines curb appeal with its walkability, proportions and details, creating a community involving both residents and retail. "People are always visiting the community and comparing it to some great urban place they remember," Gallagher continued, "Shops, cafes, and hair salons are what make a neighborhood. A visit to Barcelona drove that home for me. A pedestrian-friendly community needs places to walk to. It also creates a sense of ownership – shopkeepers up at the crack of dawn sweeping the sidewalks."

Lauren Felechner is an editorial assistant at Builder and Developer. She may be contacted at lfelechner@penpubinc.com.