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Although the Dawsons pursue informal and simple lifestyles in the Valley and Alaska, they wanted a home that wasn’t plain. “The goal was to be somewhat ‘glitzy’—with lots of color in our retirement years,” Jack says. Graber developed ideas and sketches and updated the Dawsons in Ketchikan every week. “Jack and Sharon did not come out to see the project until it was half finished,” Graber recalls. “I really appreciated their confidence in me.”

Optimum Urban Living “Optima Biltmore Towers is in the center of a vibrant and active urban setting, with dining, shopping and movie theaters just outside our door,” says Dr. Kent Eller, president of the homeowners association board of directors. “The rooftop gardens and pool offer a serene resort-like retreat, right in the middle of one of Phoenix’s most popular intersections.” As with Hovey’s Optima Camelview Village in Scottsdale, the towers are desert-sensitive, with extensive overhangs and cantilevers, photovoltaics and glasswork to enjoy the sunlit climate. Throughout, angularity and transparency paradoxically define space that is lived in yet seen through.

Optima Biltmore Towers

At the Optima Biltmore, the Dawsons are surrounded by a garden atmosphere at street level and on the roof—colorful and lush with bougainvillea, gold mound lantana, Lady Banks rose, oleander as well as Chilean mesquite, palo brea and ficus trees. So, too, as with all condos at Optima Biltmore, theirs includes a covered vine-planted terrace, ensuring privacy and shade. They also frequent the rooftop pool and meet with their neighbors in event rooms and at the fitness center and other indoor and outdoor recreational areas. “What attracted us to the Optima first was the exterior of the building with its green areas, lots of landscaping and trees and its location close to many facilities within walking distance,” Jack notes.