Creeping loft-ism

You know “lofts” have moved way beyond trendy when The National Association of Realtors magazine talks about loft developments around the country, in cities and in suburbs.  The Loft Goes Upscale and Suburban 

Authentic lofts — with their high ceilings, open spaces, and expansive windows — are fetching prime prices in former warehouse districts, while developers churn out new variations of the popular style in cities and suburbs across the country.

Part of this may simply be the rest of the country catching on to a Manhattan trend, part of this may be the widespread revitalization of many core urban areas around the country, and part of this may be Hollywood’s influence:

[SoHo architect Henry] Smith-Miller attributes the loft’s increased popularity in part to a spate of blockbuster movies set in lofts, including the gritty and dangerous “Fatal Attraction” (1987) in which Glen Close and Michael Douglas take a fateful elevator ride or the art-filled loft in “Unfaithful” (2002) where Diane Lane and her French lover Olivier Martinez rendezvoused.

These films and others, such as “Diva” (1981) and “Ghost” (1990), “transformed interiors all over the world,” says Smith-Miller, who still lives and works with his artist/architect wife Laurie Hawkinson in a SoHo loft.

That article talks about loft developments in Las Vegas, Chicago, Atlanta, and in the suburbs nationwide, most of which are new construction. Recognizing that not many of these new developments closely mirror “classic lofts”, one real estate agent said they should be called “clofts”, for condos with high ceilings.

Imagine “lofts” in a Las Vegas gated community….