Pardee Homes Earns "Green" Gold at
2007 Gold Nugget Awards

Los Angeles, June 20, 2007 —The 2007 Gold Nugget Awards program has bestowed major awards on Pardee Homes’ new home designs, with the California Green Builder honor highlighting accolades that included an additional Grand Award for architectural design, as well as Merit Awards for architectural design and master-planned community. The multi-regional homebuilder’s honors were all for projects in its San Diego market.

Portico at Pacific Highlands Ranch was named the 2007 California Green Builder winner, with judges commending the neighborhood on several scores. “These homes demonstrate that it is possible to build stylish, thoughtfully designed homes while incorporating mainstream ‘green’ construction techniques,” said the judges. “The upscale residences are spacious and inviting despite their compact lots, and show how builders can make homes more energy- and water-efficient, while at the same time saving trees and landfill space. These are ‘green’ homes that are marketable and set a good example for the homebuilding industry to follow.”

Portico is part of the master-planned community of Pacific Highlands Ranch, which earned a Merit Award at this year’s competition. Pacific Highlands Ranch shares Portico’s focus on environmental sensitivity, with approximately 750 acres of preserved open space that includes more than 150 acres dedicated to a habitat restoration program, which Pardee Homes initiated as part of its commitment to Pacific Highlands Ranch.

Also in Pacific Highlands Ranch, Arabella, Plan Two, won Pardee Homes’ second Grand Award in the Gold Nugget program, for architectural design on a small lot. “With references to historic California architecture, the warm colors and natural stone materials are at home in this coastal ranch land setting,” said the judges. “The rear placement of the garage allows the living space to borrow from the adjacent drive and expands the feel of this floor plan.”

Pardee Homes garnered an additional Merit Award for Carriage Run Plan Two, for architectural design on a small lot; Carriage Run is part of the company’s Carmel Country Highlands master-planned community in San Diego.  Pardee Homes President and CEO Mike McGee said the honors reflected the company’s commitment to exceptional neighborhood design and location, and to housing that addresses multiple environmental concerns.

“Each of our architectural winners is also part of our company’s LivingSmart® program, which we initiated in 2001 to bring our buyers quality, lifestyle-focused designs that reduce energy consumption, promote healthier indoor air quality and conserve water and other precious natural resources,” said McGee. “The Gold Nugget honors for these efforts are tremendously gratifying and we are deeply appreciative.”

The oldest and largest program of its kind in the United States, the Gold Nugget competition honors creative achievement in architectural design and land use. This year’s program drew 577 entries, in categories that included residential, commercial, land planning and green and sustainable projects. Judges were prominent builder/developers, architects and planners from the 14 Western states served by PCBC. See www.goldnuggetawards.com. All winners were celebrated May 31 in San Francisco, as the premier highlight of PCBC, one of the nation’s largest regional conferences and expositions for professionals in the real estate development field.

“Gold Nuggets have long been regarded as the standard bearer for the best in our business,” said Pardee Homes Executive Vice President and COO Hal Struck. “Honors in this prestigious program are significant to all of us in the homebuilding industry.”

Architects for Pardee Homes’ award winners include Bassenian/Lagoni Architects of Newport Beach for Portico and JZMK Architects for Arabella. Both firms have contributed additional designs to Pacific Highlands Ranch neighborhoods, which also feature architecture by Robert Hidey Architects and planning by Latitude 33 and McLarand Vasquez and Partners of Irvine. “We sincerely thank all of these firms for their contributions to the recognition for Pacific Highlands Ranch,” said Senior Vice President of Marketing Bob Clauser.

Established in 1921, Pardee Homes is one of the oldest building companies in California and is noted for superior master-planning concepts, quality homes, responsive customer service and dedication to the educational and civic goals of the communities in which it builds.

Pardee Homes maintains regional operations in Corona, Sacramento, San Diego, Valencia and Las Vegas. New home choices address a spectrum of households. Pardee Homes places particular emphasis on the concept of creating homes “for the way you want to live,” in master-planned settings that also include schools, parks and preserved open space. See www.pardeehomes.com.