Keene's Pointe Natural Beauty, Accents Luxury by Michelle d'Hulst Keene's Pointe is a luxury residential community boasting its own 18-hole Jack Nicklaus golf course, swimming pool, tennis courts, scenic parks and commons. The 950+ acre development-which is planned for 945 single-family homes priced in the $250,000 to over $1 million range-is situated near picturesque Windermere, Florida, a historic hamlet nestled among the state's most pristine chain of lakes. The design intent for Keene's Pointe is based on timeless images and concepts of the classic south. Plant selection, architecture and site amenities were designed with the explicit intent to create a sense of place that is familiar in many ways to many people. The design reflects a landscape that is very much a part of the sites natural environment, and creates a "naturalistic" aesthetic that helps to define the community. The palette of canopy trees, flowering ribbons of trees and shrubs and the use of berms and other landforms enhances the amenities of this community and its 18 hole Nicklaus Signature Golf Course and The Golden Bear Club. An open space system helps to unite all areas of the community, and the landscape is designed to facilitate pedestrian movement throughout Keene's Pointe. Public spaces are also integrated into the "natural" community fabric through the use of plant materials and strategic siting. Keene's Pointe is a community designed to have a heritage within its natural setting, and the design of every facet of the community enforces this theme. The views of the Chase Road entry provide an understated yet memorable introduction to Keene's Pointe. Views of the ellipse and rose garden are framed by mature oaks. The fifteen Live Oak Specimen trees were incorporated in the entry design to establish the community and set it apart from the surrounding developments. Magnolia trees embrace the well-manicured lawn to create an old south formality within the gently rolling, naturalistic landscape of Keene's Pointe. Beyond the magnolias a "ribbon of roses" creates a dramatic focal point inviting the panorama of the surrounding golf course. A serpentine buffer wall snakes through the landscape in response to the rising and falling hills of the golf course. The use of bougainvillea and flowering hibiscus at the entry typifies the Hawaiian heritage of Castle & Cooke, marking the entry portal. Openings in the trees provide views to the golf course, allowing for glimpses into the community. Brick columns and flowering vine covered fences and walls typify the architectural materials and aesthetic of the community, and are consistent with the heritage of the Keene's Point theme. While the Golf Course and Club House are open to the public, the residential area of Keene's Pointe is strictly private. Chase Road permits access to all visitors but a separate set of automatic gates prohibit non-residents from entering the private community. The other entry portal to Keene's Pointe, State Road 535, only provides access for residents. To establish continuity within the gated community and golf course, the entry signs, street signs, regulatory signs and directional signs were all custom designed by Shaughnessy Hart & Associates of Orlando, Florida. The homes in Keene's Pointe are separated into 12 distinct villages. Each village was designed with a different architectural style that is augmented by a unique landscape design. For example, the entrance to Hamilton Village features flowering annuals, Xandu Philodendron, Fakahatchee grass and Chinese fan palms that are all shadowed by Golden trumpet trees and Slash pines. Another village, Camden Village, was designed with Camellia, Formosa azalea, Dwarf red azalea and Dwarf confederate Jasmine. Two different species of trees-Wax Myrtle and East Palatka Holly-help to establish the entrance to the village. Four community-based commons were incorporated in the design of Keene's Pointe. Kirk Olney of Glatting Jackson explained that a concerted effort was made to provide outdoor leisure activities for all of the residents. The children can enjoy a play structure from Landscape Structures and an open grassy area provide plenty of space for physical activity. For families that want to enjoy a picnic together, a shade pavilion with tables is available. For the residents that just want to watch the action as it passes by, a swing bench shaded by a rose covered trellis is the ideal solution. To illuminate the landscaping in the evening, Glatting Jackson experimented with a new application of moon lights. The firm wanted to highlight the Live Oak Specimen trees that line Chase Road entry with Greenlee's 201 Bullet lights. At first the idea was to mount the 100 watt metal halide lights in the trees' branches and shine the light down toward the ground. They hoped this would look like the moon was shining through the trees' branches down to the ground, but Olney said the irregular shadowing looked unnatural. Then the idea emerged to simply turn the lights around and shine them back into the trees branches. This obtained the desired effect because the tree was illuminated with a silvery white glow that is reminiscent of the moonlight. To preserve the pastoral environment, Jay Hood, ASLA, who serves as director of landscape architecture for Glatting, Jackson, Kercher, Anglin, Lopez, Rinehart, Inc., Orlando, specified decorative lighting fixtures for the tree-lined roadways. Deregulation led Hood and developer Castle & Cooke, located in Florida, California and Hawaii, to enter into a lease agreement with Florida Power Corporation. At the time, Florida Power Corporation was already offering lighting systems including installation and maintenance as a value-added service to its customers. Hood approached the company and requested that it add Holophane Lighting's Arlington??????oe fixture to its product offerings. The eight-sided Arlington fixture is reminiscent of the street lighting lanterns used throughout the country during the 1920s. More than 450 luminaires were installed along Keene's Pointe streets, mounted on 16-foot decorative exposed aggregate concrete poles manufactured by Ameron. The fixtures utilize 100-watt high-pressure sodium lamps, which contrast with the metal halide accent lighting that illuminates the landscape and hardscape. Since pedestrian safety was a concern, lighting fixtures were installed six feet from the curb along the sidewalk. Single-head units are employed along all roadways, with double-head units utilized at entrances and exits, near the clubhouse and pool. When the landscaping was designed, a rhythm of live oak and magnolia trees was established along the boulevard. Fixtures are placed between the trees, which are 100 feet on center. Lighting fixtures are likewise spaced 100 feet on center, with illumination levels of one-half footcandle on the main roads. Luminaire spacing is 120 feet on neighborhood streets, with light levels at 1/3 footcandle. "One of the challenges we faced was how to achieve the light distribution required on the roadways using a decorative fixture," Hood related. "The goal was to create a sense of community and promote pedestrian safety without providing too much light. Because the optical system on the Arlington promotes efficiency and low brightness, we were able to place the light where it is needed without using a sea of fixtures and poles. Residents have commented that they love the lighting; it does the job while complementing the landscape." The fixtures are controlled by a photocell that illuminates them from a half-hour before sunset to 30 minutes after dawn. As part of the lease agreement, Florida Power Corporation maintains the luminaires. "This application is unique in that we worked with a local utility to solve a lighting challenge," said Hood. "The lighting system has provided the community with the roadway illumination required while preserving the area's natural beauty." LASN The concrete aggregate poles were also used to post regulatory and speed limit signs within the gated community. The continuity of design is expressed in the entry signage (below) that is finished with laser cut scroll work and two pineapples. The Washington pole from Ameron stands 16 feet tall and is crowned with an eight-sided Arlington fixture from Holophane. The ensemble is reminiscent of the street lighting lanterns used throughout the country during the 1920s. Continuity on the project site was established through custom signage that includes laser cut aluminum scroll work, pineapple finials, powder coated signs, and lattice work brackets that hold the name plates.