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Daniel Parolek

Architect, Urbanist, Author & Strategic Advisor: Created the Concept of Missing Middle Housing and Wrote the Definitive Book on Form-Based Coding (Zoning Reform). Voted "Top 100 Urbanist: Past and Present"

Daniel Parolek is a nationally recognized thought leader in architecture, design, and urban planning, with a specific focus on creating livable, sustainable communities and buildings that support them.

His expertise has been acknowledged through winning national competitions and awards as well as being sought after for contributions to various publications and resources.

Daniel has been instrumental in founding several nonprofit planning and architecture organizations, is a frequent speaker at national conferences, and has had his projects prominently featured in numerous publications.

His passion for diverse building types that bridge architecture and urban planning led him to establish Opticos in 2000.

A pioneer in Form-Based Coding, Daniel is known as one of the leading practitioners of this innovative zoning approach and co-authored a definitive handbook on the subject.

In 2011, he introduced the concept of Missing Middle Housing to address the housing gap between single-family homes and large condo buildings, aiming to facilitate communities in meeting the increasing demand for walkable urban living.

Daniel's design inspiration stems from his childhood experiences in the small town of Columbus, Nebraska, and he draws on those memories in his current work which focuses on creating vibrant, thriving spaces.

He holds a Master of Urban Design degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Bachelor's degree in Architecture from the University of Notre Dame.

Daniel has a rich professional background, including working with renowned architect Robert A.M. Stern in New York on diverse projects ranging from private residences to federal courthouses and entertainment complexes.

Outside of work, Daniel enjoys cooking and traveling, particularly to Rome and Lucca, Italy.

Highlights

Aug 27 · linkedin

More stories from residents of Culdesac raving about the quality of life the community delivers. In addition to the community being car-free, our team at Opticos Design, Inc. produced a design that broke the mold for development in the Phoenix region with a plan, courtyard building type design, and architecture that was desert-responsive, unlike anything else in the market, fostered a strong sense of community, and incubated small businesses within the community. I love to see the community evolving and thriving!

“Culdesac itself is really nicely laid out with great architecture, courtyards, and gardens,”-Resident

-Image living in a community with no car noise within. Until you experience this you do not realize how much noise tires and vehicles make. -Image a community where business owners also live in the community and become part of the social fabric. -Image a design that creates a micro-climate that has been measured 25+ degrees cooler inside the community than adjacent to it. -Imagine a home where you have direct access to a series of courtyards from your home.

Do you think you could live car free?

Realtor.com Julie Taylor Teri Slavik-Tsuyuki

For a design overview go to our site: https://lnkd.in/dKVzXxu7

Design team: Alexandra Vondeling Erick Bernabe

https://lnkd.in/g5-7nbVm

Aug 15 · linkedin

Rethinking what 120 dwelling units per acre looks like!

Resharing my thoughts about #courtyardhousing and #microunits something you have been considering?

A key design approach component is utilizing shallow building main body and wings which allows enough space for an interior-lot courtyard, units that have ample natural light, and all orient onto the courtyard.

The plan is efficient with no long, shared corridors.

Site location: Santa Maria, CA-Downtown Site size: 80' x 72' Number of units: 20 Density: 120 du/acre Unit sizes: 219-390 sf Parking spaces: 5 Bike Parking: 20 bike lockers, 2 surface space

Number of units:

Daniel Parolek
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Location

San Francisco Bay Area