Not In My Back Yard

NIMBY gets whole new meaning.

Here are back yards, as viewed from a neighboring back yard (CIRCA 20th C.).



Here is the new improved backyard, 2007 version, looking over neighbor's outbuilding to the new dwelling.



It's all about setbacks. This lot is nearly 1/2 acre, zoned R-4. Therefore, by tearing the original house down and removing the original footprint, the builder is free to build according to the zoning, that means setbacks of 30 ft front and back, and 10 ft away from the side lines.

Net effect, large surface area of house, small surface area of grass and trees.


Front view from next door neighbor's front yard.


What the street scape currently looks like a few houses away.....


All perfectly legal under Raleigh's zoning ordinances.

Raleigh's Muni Code

The historical heritage of Raleigh and Wake County is among their most valued and important assets. The City is authorized by the North Carolina General Statutes, by means of listing, regulation, and acquisition, to safeguard the heritage of the City by preserving any property or district that embodies important elements of its culture, history, architectural history, or prehistory, and to promote the use of and conservation of historic districts for the education, pleasure and enrichment of the residents of the City and state as a whole. The purpose of these regulations is to provide the organizational vehicle by which certain areas, structures, buildings, and objects within the City's planning jurisdiction that have special significance in terms of history, prehistory, architecture, archaeology, and/or culture and possess integrity of design, setting, materials, feeling and association may be preserved and protected.

(Ord. No. 1992-66-TC-399-TC-15-92, §2, 10-6-92)

G. Milton Small House

From Raleigh Architectural Survey Phase 2

Besides the popular Wrightian style, the International-Style made an impact upon School of Design architects Eduardo Catalano and George Matsumoto. An independent architect, G. Milton Small, followed in the footsteps of his Chicago Institute of Technology professor and mentor, Mies van der Rohe. The best example of Small's work is clearly revealed in his commercial and residential architecture where sharp geometry, restrained elegance and good use and expression of materials are evident. The G. Milton Small House, 1951 with later additions, at 301 Lake Boone Trail, remains unchanged in its facade appearance and is the epitome of Miesian architecture in Raleigh. The single story structure is supported by a massive concrete foundation.

This house has builder sign in front. Here's hoping....

So what is the big deal about replacing old Raleigh?

From Raleigh Architectural Survey Phase 2

SIGNIFICANCE:

The significance of the private family dwellings in Raleigh lies in the rich diversity of their forms and shapes. The late nineteenth and early twentieth century dwellings reveal the variety of socio-economic patterns. In general, the surveyed domestic architecture of the previous century is more common and vernacular indicating the existence of ordinary citizens. As the new century slowly dawned, the dwellings take on the appearance of popular styles emulated from books and magazines. Hence, the 1920s and 1930s houses are less regional in character and style and more mainstream in appeal to the average homeowner.

Individually, the houses are not significant but as a collection of streetscapes, neighborhoods, and suburban development they take on greater meaning. The "American Dream" of individual home ownership was pursued on many levels by peoples of various means. The wide range of dwellings offered several kinds of specialized habitations for the poor and the wealth. In a sense, the diversity of the houses document the spatial differentiation of residential development of Raleigh society in the early twentieth century.

How did they know?

From Dallas Texas comes this effort, speaking directly to us.

NoMcMansions.org

We’re familiar with the phenomenon. A speculator “flipper” makes a fast-buy offer and tries to get a commitment to buy a house on an established residential block before it even appears on the market. Usually by approaching a retiree or the estate of a recently deceased resident. A developer then gets a large loan and levels the house, quickly erecting a new 5,000+ square foot house which consumes most of the surface area of the lot, and towers over neighboring houses. A certain type of realtor then sells the “supersized” house to an incoming suburbanite or someone from outside of Dallas who values the proximity of the house to the city. The parties involved can make anywhere from $80,000 to $200,000 per house.

Neighboring houses are now “overshadowed,” and since they are now expected to follow suit by selling, the value of the existing smaller houses is reduced to the raw land value.

While many neighborhoods have broad constituent sympathy for the idea of limiting construction that disrupts a neighborhood, people are often unaware how to do anything about it. Neighborhood associations typically are not touching the issue for fear of creating a “hot potato” by offending certain individuals with an economic interest in the redevelopment. Well-spoken and well-funded representatives from the development and realty industry say a zoning overlay would severely limit individual rights, and have attempted to delay any action and dissipate Dallas into smaller neighborhood groups that have little collective influence.


The citizens group Dallas Citizens for Responsible Development (DCFRD) will be launching a broad awareness campaign to promote the idea that new development in existing neighborhoods needs to be “better, not bigger.” ... The goal of the group is to educate Dallas citizens on the reality of their property rights, and demonstrate to the Dallas government that citizens need an effective tool in place to provide some reasonable limits to new construction in existing neighborhoods....

The goal of DCFRD is to get a Zoning Overlay passed by demonstrating a visible level of support within Dallas and disseminating information through the site that educates homeowners and provides suggestions on how to show support for responsible development.

In addition to the outward signs of the awareness campaigns, many citizens are working directly and meeting with their council members, the zoning commission and other government bodies to ensure that reasonable building limits and controls are part of the proposed zoning overlay.

A zoning overlay is not intended to stop homeowners from renovating or improving their own houses. In fact, it encourages the expansion and/or improvement of existing houses. In addition, each neighborhood will still determine its own standards once an overlay is in place.

Nor does the overlay halt new construction and improvement of neighborhoods. But development companies are attempting to spread the idea that the zoning tool would create a “block war” within communities that have differing opinions on what limits should be. In reality, the overlay would primarily affect only new developed houses and simply limit their overall size, setbacks and height to proportionate levels in comparison to neighboring houses. It would eliminate that quick-flip profit of a larger house, which isn’t a popular notion for certain developers and realtors currently enjoying the lack of zoning controls.

Unregulated construction not only destroys the character of a neighborhood, it provides little economic benefit except for the parties who profit from the sale. Unregulated development is now rampant on many Dallas streets, with development companies running hundreds of crews to feed the teardown boom. The unregulated construction is not only disturbing and hazardous to existing residences, it is fueled by a low-interest economic housing “bubble” that has spiraled out of control and will leave behind an inconsistent legacy in many neighborhoods.

Let's read that again.

Unregulated construction not only destroys the character of a neighborhood, it provides little economic benefit except for the parties who profit from the sale.

Credit where credit is due

This is the story of a pretty little house up the street and what it went through to become a home again.

I cannot show the original house, but this is how it sat for fall and winter after the men with sledgehammers were done with it.



[Note: there are two demolition styles in this area, the big yellow dinosaur that munches it up in 2 days, and the non-resident laborers who are hired to hand demolish most of the structure. I can't say which has the greater advantage, I would not know how to measure that. I do not know if building material reclamation is being made in the slower method, but I do know the smash and scrape method does not recycle anything, other than a hazard or two.]

Along came the sign of a builder of good reputation in the area, who, to great sighs of relief, has made the best of this situation. Notice that the building design, although larger, is compatible with the tone of the area. The new house is designed be just a little taller while getting in its 2nd floor and attic rooms, and does not tower over the house next door. It respects the setting and the neighbors.

My research shows this house is being done by indivdual investors. Whether the investors or the builder came up with this design, it is a step in the right direction.





This is how it can work ... if we do not remove all the smaller housing stock ... to weave together a diverse older neighborhood.

Mansions on Medway?

Looks like the first re-development on Medway is in process. This property changed hands June 5 and is for sale as a building lot. Funny, looks like a house and lot to me. The name on the flier matches the name of the person who brought our neighborhood the first 1.4 million manse on Royster. That would be 4x the value of the previous lot usage.



Here are pictures of both the house in question and the look of this wonderful settled street. Medway backs up to the new Oaks at Fallon Park development, an R-10 residential development. Up the hill from Fallon Park, Medway could face substantial changes if this redevelopment trend is unrestrained.