Duany Plater-Zyberk Launches Development Arm

Aiming to assist municipal clients that desire New Urbanist developments, Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co., the Miami-based icon of New Urbanist planning and theory, launched a real estate development company in November.

With investments from "institutional" sources, The Fund for New Urbanism LLC will option and permit at least 10 New Urbanist projects during the next 30 months, says Andres Duany, founder of the firm.

Cities in California, Colorado, Florida and other places where there is significant opposition to sprawl and an undersupply of housing are likely targets for the firm, but no deals have been announced.

"The selection of sites for development is the privilege of developers, who usually make their selections before consulting with municipal planners or retaining a designer," Duany says. "Consequently, the resulting projects often fail to meet smart growth objectives."

After the initial development and entitlement phases are complete, the company will seek local development partners to assume control of its projects.

"We are interviewing quality developers," Duany says. "Over the years, our firm has worked with many of the best, and if we deliver the right project, everyone benefits."