A striking aerial photo of a circular housing development from a plane window has sparked viral attention on Reddit and new appreciation for one of Florida’s most curious communities.
On May 1, Reddit user u/cgatlanta shared an image of the Rotonda West community in Charlotte County, captured from a flight bound for Miami International Airport. The photograph quickly drew attention from other Reddit users, receiving more than 23,000 upvotes and 1,300 comments to date.
“Looked out the window of my flight to MIA and saw this [odd] community,” the Reddit user said.
The image shows the strikingly symmetrical, circular neighborhood with street patterns radiating from a central hub, giving it the appearance of a crop circle. From above, Rotonda West appears almost mathematical in its precision—a rare view that has fascinated viewers online.
Alexei Morgado, a Florida-based realtor and CEO of Lexawise Real Estate Exam Preparation, elaborated on the unique development for Newsweek: “Rotonda West’s amazing shape was the idea of Joe Klein, CEO of Cavanagh Communities Corporation, in the late 1960s; its development started in 1970, with the first official residents moving as early as 1971.
“Its shape is quite eye-catching but not as unique as we may think; it actually took inspiration from radial city layouts, a clear example of this being Paris, while an obscurer one would be Washington, D.C.,” he added.
While the town’s unusual layout may not have been an accident, it has certainly sparked a range of intrigue and a fair share of banter online.
“A housing development designed and laid out in the design that you see,” one viewer said. “It was started years ago.
“I believe there are a lot of vacant lots there, burrowing owls nest in the open areas, lots of people travel there to see those owls.”
Another added: “Anyone else think this looks like the Millennium Falcon?”
“Pac Man lives there,” a third viewer joked.
“The odder part of that picture is the neighborhood just to the right of the picture, meadows and villas in which was developed in the seventies and has no houses, just streets upon streets of nothing,” another viewer commented.
Several viewers had quickly identified the image as being of Rotonda West shortly after it was posted.
“This is why I love Reddit,” one viewer said. “Within 15 minutes someone had your answer,” while another added: “I lived in that community once upon a time.”
Morgado said that the design of Rotonda West features a central hub and eight pizza slice-shaped segments.
“Klein aimed to create an aesthetic design that didn’t sacrifice functionality, and the circular shape offers just that: it has a really efficient traffic flow, allows quick access to healthcare and public safety facilities, and facilitates community planning,” he said.
He noted that the beauty of the community is further enhanced by the presence of canals and green spaces, adding: “The design was also influenced by WWII airfield layouts in Southern Florida.”
Newsweek reached out to u/cgatlanta for more information via Reddit.
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