Escena Palm Springs: SoCal's first modern tract houses in decades

"Escena is believed to be the first single-family tract house development in Southern California built in a modern architectural style since the actual "Mad Men" era, when builders such as Joseph Eichler and the Alexander Construction Co. brought Midcentury Modern to the masses. The bet driving this development: that a new generation raised with smartphones, Ikea stores and hybrid cars understands that modern design is built into every object of their lives."

"When it comes to home, the prevailing, post-recession sensibility is simple but cool. It's smart and efficient. It's comfort without excess. Escena houses, Poon says, are designed for the modern person who thinks, "I don't want to be the guy driving the Hummer.""

"So here on the north side of Palm Springs, where Gene Autry Trail meets Vista Chino, you will see no faux Italian villas striving for "Under a Tuscan Sun" romantic rusticity. No Spanish tile, no Moroccan arches, no board-and-batten ranch-house siding with a Western accent."

Architect Anthony Poon and developer Andrew Adler created Escena, a tract housing development in Palm Springs that represents a return to modern architectural design for mass-market homes. The development equation—iPhone plus modern sofa plus Prius equals Escena—reflects the designers' belief that a new generation raised with contemporary technology and design understands minimalism and efficiency. Unlike typical Southern California developments featuring faux Italian villas, Spanish tile, and ornate styling, Escena houses embody smart, efficient design without excess. The development targets modern homebuyers who reject ostentatious consumption and prefer comfort combined with contemporary aesthetics, marking the first significant modern architectural tract housing since the original Midcentury Modern era of builders like Joseph Eichler.

Read at Los Angeles Times