Portland Shows the Nation What It Takes To Be Fit
August 15th, 2007
Attention will be directed to the Portland metropolitan area throughout the next year as Cooking Light, the country’s top food and lifestyle magazine, showcases the Arbor at Villebois community as a role model for healthy living.
The influential magazine, with more than 11 million monthly readers, announced that it will partner with Arbor Custom Homes, Oregon’s largest residential homebuilder, to design and build the 2008 FitHouse. Construction is expected to begin in October 2007 with a completion date of April 2008.
Portland, a top market for Cooking Light subscribers, is #2 on the magazine’s list of 20 Best Cities, surpassed only by Seattle. The list is a ranking of the top 20 American cities that best fit the Cooking Light philosophy, “Eat Smart, Be Fit, Live Well.”
Arbor Custom Homes has been selected to build the Cooking Light FitHouse in 2008 at the Arbor at Villebois community in Wilsonville, Ore. More than 10,000 visitors are expected to tour the home next summer.
“Being selected to build the Cooking Light FitHouse is a tremendous honor and will help showcase the Pacific Northwest culture and lifestyle that we incorporate in Arbor communities,” said Brad Hosmer, product development director for Arbor Custom Homes. “We work hard to make sure our neighborhoods are sustainable and have plenty of amenities for active families, which we believe will be a big draw for readers and visitors to the FitHouse.”
The Cooking Light FitHouse gives readers inspiration and ideas on how to incorporate healthy living into every aspect of everyday life. The unique combination of green materials and universal design elements will show how an environmentally responsible design can be attainable, functional, and most of all beautiful.
“After exploring a variety of communities throughout the country, we chose Arbor at Villebois because of its commitment to values such as close-knit neighborhoods, green building practices and aging-in-place philosophy,” said Wade Kaiser, director of the Cooking Light FitHouse. “When the project is completed, it will be a great testament to a healthy, active lifestyle.”
Kaiser said that the Cooking Light editors were impressed with the fact that Villebois is modeled after traditional European communities, and features an urban village center with sidewalk cafes, green space and a plaza for local farmer’s markets and seasonal festivals. The community has more than 160 acres of open space and parks, including bike and walking paths, dog parks and sports recreation areas.
“Villebois is a perfect example of a community that offers residents the opportunity to live a healthy lifestyle,” he said. “So many essential locations are within walking distance of the homes.”
Arbor Custom Homes began building homes at Villebois in 2005 and currently is on track to have more than 800 residential units when all phases of construction are completed in 2009.
Cooking Light will start the project by using an existing floor plan available from Arbor Custom Homes, and will make modifications as needed. Like all Arbor Custom Homes in the Villebois community, the FitHouse will be Earth Advantage® certified, which ensures that the highest standards of energy efficiency, indoor air quality, resource efficiency and environmental responsibility are met. This year’s home will emphasize aging-in-place and universal design attributes in particular.
Cooking Light will debut the completed home to its 11.9 million readers in its August 2008 issue.
The show home is anticipated to be a big boon to the local area next summer. The Arbor at Villebois FitHouse will be open for three months of public tours and because of its universal appeal and devoted readership, the magazine expects the home to draw thousands of readers from throughout the region. Tours will be available for a nominal fee with a majority of the proceeds going to a local charity to be determined by Cooking Light and Arbor Custom Homes. The home will be for sale following the conclusion of the public tours.