Prince Charles dreamed of building a new eco-friendly community – using traditional architecture – where people would live and work in close proximity. In 1988, he appointed well-known architect and urban planner, Leon Krier, to work on an overall concept for 400 acres of virgin farmland in Poundbury, Dorset. This ‘model’ village has a mix of town houses, cottages, shops and businesses at the edge of Dorchester in Dorset now housing up to 5000 residents . The developments at Poundbury are part of a wider movement called New Urbanism and one of the first examples of this was Seaside in Florida (where The Truman Show was filmed). Despite nicknames such as ‘Toy Town’ or ‘Charles Town’, Poundbury remains a popular place to live. Initially Poundbury was dismissed as an irrelevance, and was subject to unfavourable reviews in the press especially from those who disliked the ‘old fashioned’ style of the houses. However, the principles it was based upon have recently come to be accepted as good practice and the village is now considered to be very relevant to public policy and how best to build houses in the countryside. The development is now the subject of worldwide interest by planners, architects and housebuilders and many of the principles are being incorporated into other developments. Duchy of Cornwall official website: www.duchyofcornwall.org
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