We’re kicking off this year’s Swamplot Awards for Houston Real Estate with a category that’s been a strong part of the program since the very first Swampies (back in aught-8): Favorite Houston Design Cliché.
What Houston building, shopping center, streetscape, home, interior, neighborhood, or yard cliché deserves recognition?
In 2014, the top honoree in this category was The Midrise Woodframe Apartment Building, AKA The Texas Donut; The Townhome Farm came in as the runner-up, trailed by strong contenders like The Oak Tree Stump. Winners in years gone by have included  The Typical Inner Loop Townhouse Plan,  Humping Bungalows, aka Humper Houses, “Lick ’n’ stick” fake-rock siding, Lone Stars, “Lakes of” subdivisions, and “Tuscanization.”
Who’s turn will it be this year — a jilted also-ran, or a newcomer to the scene? Well, that’s up to you. Your suggestions for this award may be inspired from stories you’ve read on Swamplot or from your own keen eye for overused detail.
Enter your choice in a comment to this post — or in an email to the Swamplot tip line, with the subject line “Nomination: Favorite Houston Design Cliche.†Nominations for this category will be accepted until midnight next Tuesday, December 6, after which the best-presented choices will be put on the official ballot and opened for voting.
You can submit as many nominations as you like, but your suggestions will have a better chance of making it to the ballot (and garnering votes once they’re there) if you make your point in a clever and convincing way. Photos help, too! Send images to the Swamplot tip line, but be sure to identify them and indicate what they’re for. If you need some guidance, here’s more information on how to make a nomination. And if you like a particular nomination someone else has submitted, feel free to second, expand, or improve upon it in the comments to help it find a place on the actual ballot.
Got it? Good. Send us your favorite clichés now!
The 2016 Swampies
