Sommer Design Studios

06/10/2026

Most people can tell the difference between a neighborhood they love and one they don't, very few can tell you why.
I've been writing about housing policy and building codes lately — the technical stuff. But today I want to talk about something more fundamental: a building type that America perfected before 1940, forgot about for seventy years, and is finally starting to rediscover, The cottage court, and why it's one of the most powerful ideas in housing that almost nobody is building.

I’ve been writing about single-stair reform and federal housing legislation for the past couple weeks. The response has been great — architects, developers, planners, policy people.

06/04/2026

The Senate just passed the ROAD Act.
I wrote last week about what happens next — the HUD rulemaking, the code question nobody is asking, and what architects and developers need to do in the next 90 days.
That article just went from “likely” to “now.”

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/road-act-become-law-jeremy-sommer-aia-cnu-a-leed-ap-liyse/

Here’s What Happens Next. UPDATE — June 4, 2026: The Senate passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act today.

06/04/2026

It’s that time of year again.

Entries Now Open for the 2026 Urban Guild Awards!

Each year, we honor projects that demonstrate the highest standards of urban design and architecture while reminding the public and profession alike that great design is not only possible, it’s essential. 🔗⬇

05/19/2026

Our final Cottage court study for this client, homes facing the Main Street with pedestrian paths back to the smaller cottages around individual courts that are interconnected. All parking is at the perimeter, as these were envisioned as week stay rentals. The “density” for this court is 16.6 DU per acre…. 1.69 acres with 28 units

05/15/2026

This cottage court was planned to connect to two larger greens, using three house plans, one cottage with two custom homes on the street edge. The interior green is envisioned to have a series of formally planted trees to provide shady place to gather.

05/12/2026

Cottage court study, remove the street and have a shared park, with alleys on either side with gateway houses that face the main streets, which help pinch the public entrances into the court. The court allows for shared amenity and place for the community to gather.

05/12/2026

Welcome to ! 🥳
Please join us for this evening's Opening Party, 6 - 9pm at the Railyard Park in Rogers, AR.
Brought to you by Crafton Tull, Prism Design Studio and Laneshift, and supported by Destination Rogers and the The City of Rogers.
Ozark Beer Company will be serving a special CNU34 beer, Desire Line Lager, which you can enjoy while listening to live music in Rogers' downtown entertainment district, home to the 2026 Charter Award winning project, the 1907 Building. 🍻
Bus transportation to and from Rogers will be provided in both Bentonville and Fayetteville until 9 pm.
Special thanks to Verdant Studio for the beautiful poster design!
See you there!

05/12/2026

We are going to be looking at three cottage court studies we recently completed for a client…stay tuned

05/09/2026

"Growth Without Sameness: Why CNU 34 in Northwest Arkansas matters now."
Northwest Arkansas is hosting this year, and it is not an accidental choice. This is one of the fastest growing regions in the country, and one of the few still deciding what that growth should look like.
Learn more and register today!
https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/2026/05/01/growth-without-sameness-why-cnu-34-northwest-arkansas-matters-now

05/09/2026

Recent study we did for a client two different schemes for the same parcel, with a mix of housing types, one with a telescoping parks leading out to the reserve and one with a similar progression but more of a plaza at the center, which one do you like better?