Cottage Living magazine voted Forest Hills Gardens the top cottage community this year, saying the Queens neighborhood won out on the criteria of inspiring architecture and design, walkable streets, excited residents who envision change and bring it to life, innovative ideas on a regional or national level and something that brings a smile.
The area was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., whose father created Central Park. Its leafy, curved streets and Swiss cottage-like architecture has been emulated since it was built nearly a century ago.
The streets are curved to slow traffic and create a sense of calm, parks are frequent and small, the residents are diverse and the homeowner's association is strict, writes the magazine. There are 660 houses, 220 townhouses and 11 apartment buildings, it says.
"This original of cottage communities still inspires many newer developments that seek to replicate its simple yet timelessly effective design," the magazine says in its July/August issue, on newsstands June 26.
The other communities were: Ohio City, Cleveland, Ohio; Daybreak, Salt Lake City; Fields of St. Croix, Lake Elmo, Minn.; The Bungalow Belt, Chicago; Edenton Mill Village, Edenton, N.C.; High Point, Seattle; The Poplar Community, Boulder, Colo.; Armory Park del Sol, Tucson, Ariz., and Cottage Square, Ocean Springs, Miss.
Cottage Living is a lifestyle magazine that provides a guide to comfort, simplicity and personal style. It says it inspires readers with achievable ideas for creating simplified lifestyles through comfortable decorating, relaxed entertaining, casual gardening and easy traveling.
