London Calling

“To walk alone in London is the greatest rest.”—Virginia Woolf

If walking alone in London is the greatest rest, then traveling as a trio makes it the most lively place you can be. This past October, we had the privilege of taking a five-day trip that felt like a month as we hit the city and then sojourned to the tiny village of Evershot in Dorset, England. It was all to visit the internationally lauded New Urbanist town of Poundbury on the outskirts of Dorchester. Founded by King Charles III when he was the Prince of Wales, Poundbury hosted the 2023 International Making Cities Livable conference as architecture pros gathered to study “The Ecology of Place.” Learn all about it at www.IMCL.online. Poundbury’s design influence in Britain compares to Seaside, Florida, in the US. An influential book by the King of England, A Vision of Britain, includes a section on Seaside and the interest that led him to meet with Seaside cofounder and visionary Robert Davis and town planners Andrés Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk of DPZ CoDesign shortly before breaking ground on his UK development in 1993. It was a thrill to see Poundbury in person and attend the conference on behalf of the Seaside Institute and VIE.

We spent the first night in London at One Aldwych (read all about this in our editor Jordan Staggs’s article, “One Aldwych Comes Alive: Culture and Comfort in Covent Garden”) before the Prince’s Foundation hosted the opening night reception at the Garrison Chapel in Chelsea. Our five-star accommodation in Dorset was the rural escape at Summer Lodge Country House Hotel, Restaurant, and Spa in Evershot (see it in our December 2023 issue). Its four acres of beautiful gardens and picturesque settings are a short jaunt from Poundbury. The lodge has been the star of several movies, including Jane Austen’s Emma, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Emma Woodhouse. We thoroughly immersed ourselves and enjoyed exploring the area where famed and revered author Thomas Hardy lived.

The idea behind Poundbury is to enable people to live more sustainable lifestyles. Its land is owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, the estate set up in the fourteenth century to provide the heir to the throne income independent from the Sovereign. The ascension of King Charles III to the throne meant a new owner for Poundbury. The latest Duke of Cornwall, Prince William of Wales, took on the role from His Majesty and has shown passion for the development.

Jordan Staggs, Seaside Institute executive director Christy Milliken, and I made great travel mates, effortlessly mixing work and pleasure in what felt like an art form. As vice chair of the Seaside Institute, I am excited (and a tad nervous) to officially take the gavel of the incumbent chair from the incomparable Jeff Zehnder, founder of Zehnder Communications, at the annual Seaside Prize Weekend. February 2–4 marks its thirtieth year as we honor individuals and organizations whose innovations help reimagine how modern communities are built and shape our lives. Victor Dover and Joseph Kohl of Dover, Kohl & Partners Town Planning (DoverKohl.com) are this year’s Seaside Prize recipients, and we are thrilled to recognize their contributions. E. F. San Juan (EFSanJuan.com), a third-generation custom moulding, millwork, and cabinetry firm located in Youngstown, Florida, is a presenting sponsor of the Seaside Prize Weekend, and their craftsmanship has transformed many of the town’s homes and the esteemed Chapel at Seaside. Company founder Ed San Juan has created magnificent custom wood boxes to hold the coveted Seaside Prize keys, giving the awards the heritage and dignity they deserve.

It truly is a small world, after all, as people are genuinely more alike than we often realize. The New Urbanism movement echoes this sentiment with its vision and tenets of learning and creating worldwide. It’s a privilege to travel, as it truly opens the mind to the fact we are all connected.

To Life!

Lisa Marie Burwell
CEO/Editor-in-Chief/Creative Director

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