Drive through Preston Hollow, and no two blocks tell the same story.
A stately traditional sits behind wrought-iron gates. Around the corner, a contemporary occupies the same street. Blocks away, a grounded mid-century survivor recalls an earlier version of the neighborhood.
“I remember when it was all parcels of land or ranch-style houses,” said longtime resident Sharon Montgomery. “It’s changed a lot, for better and worse.”
A newer resident described the mix in more present-tense terms.
“We love that the houses on our street are both modern and traditional; some are new, others have been around for decades,” said Marc Schultz.
The work of Dallas-based architect Max Levy helped shape the evolution between restraint and expansion. In a 2022 interview with D Home, designer Julie Cohn likened Levy’s architectural approach to “a lone wolf” in a place where bigger has often been associated with better.
Most visible in Old Preston Hollow, estates such as the storied Crespi Mansion operate more like private compounds than individual homes.
Gates precede façades along Strait Lane. Towering hedges conceal sprawling mansions on Meadowbrook Lane. Architecture reveals itself only after a winding approach on Hollow Way Drive.
Architect Scott Specht believes Preston Hollow’s enduring appeal lies in its freedom to embrace a variety of architectural styles rather than a single aesthetic.
“One of the things I love about Preston Hollow, and Dallas in general, is it’s not controlled by a government committee or a homeowners association that dictates design,” Specht said. “While not everyone loves being next to a modern house necessarily, it’s what makes it so much more exciting than a neighborhood where all houses look alike.”
That architectural freedom is reflected in the celebrated Preston Hollow Residence by Specht Novak Architects, a one-story home that dissolves into the landscape through expansive walls, floating roof planes, and reflecting pools.
“We wanted to make sure that you didn’t just have a house with the pool out back somewhere,” Specht said. “We wanted to make it feel continuous from one area to another.”
The approach reflects what the architect considers one of Preston Hollow’s greatest assets: generous lots that allow design around the land instead of simply placing a house on it.
“I think you have to sculpt the house according to the land, according to the foliage and trees, and according to the personality of the owner,” he said, adding that privacy plays an equally important role.
Specht frequently incorporates courtyards and layered transitions to separate public and private space — an approach he said is inspired by centuries-old architecture.
The philosophy echoes a broader characteristic of Preston Hollow that resists settling into a single architectural genre. Mid-century homes coexist with newly built homes. Traditional estates stand beside contemporary pavilions.
What endures, Specht said, are elements that made the neighborhood desirable in the first place: mature trees, privacy, and the freedom to build something deeply personal.
Projects that blend revitalization and preservation also endure, as represented by Max Levy’s iconic Stretto House.
Levy, whose work has earned more Dallas and Texas residential American Institute of Architects awards than that of any other living architect, described traditional homes as akin to classical music, and modernism as jazz.
In that framing, Preston Hollow resists becoming a single composition, but remains a multi-layered score — gradually unfolding into a symphony.
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