A Residential Design Citation of Merit is presented to the central two-story unit of the Style in Steel townhouses in Houston, Texas. Built in 1968, the townhouses were exhibited at the 1969 National Association for Home Builders (NAHB) show at the Astrodome Astrohall as a promotional development intended to showcase the virtues of steel in residential construction. The design, by architects Talbott Wilson and Hal Weatherford, is an elegant example of the International Style, marrying steel construction with cedar, terrazzo, stucco, brick, and travertine elements in a composition that balances precision and warmth. Having been subjected to several alterations prior to the townhouses being designated as protected landmarks by the Houston Archaeological and Historical Commission in 2007, restoration work included the rebuilding the forecourt’s cedar sunscreen and stucco walls; the original landscape brick privacy walls and paver ramp; demolition and refinishing of the altered components of the original carport; and the undoing of numerous other renovations that had compromised the building’s minimal character and meticulously planned functionality, restoring the trim dynamism of the original design. 

Mandy and Philip LeBlanc

Rodolfo R Fabre Design, FORMATION (Architect); Philip LeBlanc, Mandy LeBlanc, Rodolfo R Fabre, AIA (Design Team); Drywall Concepts (Contractor); MJS Light (Lighting Consultant); Leonid Furmansky (Photographer)