Walton County’s coastal road, highway 30-A, has a recurring landscape feature found only a couple places in the world. Brackish captured lakes lie right behind the primary dunes and are alternately open or closed to the Gulf of Mexico, depending on the effect of storms. This project is on the secondary dune just above one of the lakes and it looks across the lake’s channel to the Gulf, toward the primary dunes which are among the highest in Florida. The sand is white and fine and the Gulf water is usually more green than blue.

Because the views are so extraordinary, the lots are relatively narrow perimeter lots. This house is 35 feet wide with six foot side setbacks, and planning these houses requires bringing light in mostly from the front and the back of the house. Windows on the long side elevations have to be carefully placed to preserve privacy. The garages are right behind the house and the rear yard is shallow so the garages have to be an asset for the street, the entry and for the back yard.