The Eichler Homeowners - Page 3

It is obviously difficult to claim that there is an "Eichler type" of person, but many Eichler owners seem to exhibit a particularly Californian temperament. And the Bay Area Eichler subdivisions have certainly appealed to a segment of the population that shares many characteristics intrinsic to the Californian personality. Among the most-appealing characteristics is a tolerance of differences. And the combination of shared public space, open-planned interiors, and street-side privacy amount to an environment very conducive to a Californian lifestyle. Remarking in the national magazine 'Commentary' in 1956, the Stanford historian H. Stuart Hughes described the archetypal Californian and his preferred domestic environment, both of which seemed remarkably Eichler-like: "Virtually every oddity of behavior is permitted—provided it does not disturb the neighbors. For—contrary to what most Easterners think—the Californian has a strong sense of privacy. He puts a high, solid fence around his garden and uses it as an outdoor room." Hughes may never have known any Eichler owners, but he got it right when he described the lifestyle they desired.