Mount Pleasant Magazine Jan/Feb 2015

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founder said “loans were made with a handshake, building permits
took all of 15 minutes to pick up – 10 of which were devoted to
chitchat – and sales contracts were written on a half sheet of paper.”
While much has changed since the simple days of the company’s
inception, the guiding principle remains the same – “form always
follows function.”
But how does the company find the ideal marriage of the two
for modern families whose needs are far more complex than the
families of half a century ago?
“We have architects in Clearwater and also in Charlotte who
travel the country, continually looking at trends in lifestyle,” said
Lattif, “and their floor plans are a culmination of looking and
reviewing and altering our floor plans so that they constantly have a
sense of how people live and where they like to live.”
And perhaps that’s why this home – “the Port Royale” – feels so
inherently local.
“The homes we’ve designed for the Lowcountry have never
been built before and, as Art so rightly put it, we want to look like
we grew up in Charleston,” elaborated Lattif. “We’ve given a lot of
thought to how we design here versus anywhere else. It takes a lot
of effort by a lot of people to bring this to fruition.”
Savannah Classen of Jilco Kitchen and Bath was one such
person; Classen designed the kitchen and the bathrooms for 117
Rivergreen Place.
“We chose a refined cabinetry style to complement the other
... Ravenel was instrumental in
establishing widespread reform for
the treatment and care of the mentally
handicapped in South Carolina. ...
Architects in Clearwater, Florida, and Charlotte, North Carolina, continually study lifestyle trends to create floor plans that adhere to the Arthur Rutenberg
motto that form follows function. “In this home, there’s no ‘living room,’” explained Lattif. “It’s one large, open area. … this is where people live.”
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