Urban cul-de-sacs

[James Bond Agent 007]

Originally Posted by badrunner

Cul-de-sac is just real-estate-agent-speak for a dead end, because no one wants to live on a dead end street .

In Edmonds, WA all the dead end street signs say "Street Ends." Here in KC I'd say probably 80% of the dead end street signs either say "No Outlet" or "Street Ends." Really funny how some places don't want the word "dead" on their signs.

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

I found a few in a rare neighborhood of post-war bungalows in Highland Park, MI: https://goo.gl/maps/u82NMpZcHaUXbj55A

Wow, I never knew this neighborhood existed.

Given the location, I wonder if this is one of the first postwar, suburban-style African American neighborhoods in Metro Detroit. I believe this corner of Highland Park was majority black since 1960, at least, so these homeowners have probably always been predominantly AA.

Also doesn't appear to be urban renewal, just a random market-rate development on a (previously empty?) scrap of land. Also appears extremely well-kept considering the devastated surroundings.

I've also noticed a few postwar, bungalow-style ranch enclaves near Central High, and in the Dexter Davison area, which is weird, because those areas were fully built out nearly a century ago. I guess just scraps of leftover land. Also interesting that these enclaves were built post-white flight, and appear to be market-rate. Maybe AA developers? Or Jewish developers who had faith in the old neighborhood and who resisted redlining.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by Crawford

Wow, I never knew this neighborhood existed.

Given the location, I wonder if this is one of the first postwar, suburban-style African American neighborhoods in Metro Detroit. I believe this corner of Highland Park was majority black since 1960, at least, so these homeowners have probably always been predominantly AA.

Also doesn't appear to be urban renewal, just a random market-rate development on a (previously empty?) scrap of land. Also appears extremely well-kept considering the devastated surroundings.

I've also noticed a few postwar, bungalow-style ranch enclaves near Central High, and in the Dexter Davison area, which is weird, because those areas were fully built out nearly a century ago. I guess just scraps of leftover land. Also interesting that these enclaves were built post-white flight, and appear to be market-rate. Maybe AA developers? Or Jewish developers who had faith in the old neighborhood and who resisted redlining.

I don't think Highland Park became a predominantly black city until the 1970s or 1980s, so these were probably built for white families. I also don't know about the history behind why they were built here, but my suspicion is that the area was re-developed to build housing that could compete with the newer suburbs circa 1960. The architecture on the street behind the cul-de-sacs is mixed between post-war bungalows and pre-war brick houses: https://goo.gl/maps/RqmrxLqmiwzJpLrB8

This area is walking distance from the Ford Model T plant, so it would've been prime location for dense housing in the years between 1910 and 1930 or so.

[sopas ej]

Originally Posted by James Bond Agent 007

In Edmonds, WA all the dead end street signs say "Street Ends." Here in KC I'd say probably 80% of the dead end street signs either say "No Outlet" or "Street Ends." Really funny how some places don't want the word "dead" on their signs.

For the longest time, in California, for dead end streets, our signs said "NOT A THROUGH STREET." Only within the last few years have I been seeing more signs that say "DEAD END." I used to associate "DEAD END" signs with other states.

"NO OUTLET" is usually used for a street that branches off to more than one street but none of the streets take you to a main thoroughfare; they all dead end.

[jtown,man]

We need tons more of these in our cities. Steely is right though, as long as they let peds and bikes through, they are great.

[Pedestrian]

This is the entrance to Presidio Terrace, a private gated dead-end street/cul-de-sac in San Francisco which is home to some of the city's elite. The house on the left just past the gate is that of Sen. Dianne Feinstein.


https://www.instantstreetview.com/@3...-5VUg1TPIU83Dg

They let no one through who doesn't live there.

[edale]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

This is the entrance to Presidio Terrace, a private gated dead-end street/cul-de-sac in San Francisco which is home to some of the city's elite. The house on the left just past the gate is that of Sen. Dianne Feinstein.


https://www.instantstreetview.com/@3...-5VUg1TPIU83Dg

They let no one through who doesn't live there.

You sure about that? I walked through last April no problem. It's interesting to see the big houses with yards in the middle of the city. And a large synagogue towers over/behind some of the homes.

[montréaliste]

Originally Posted by edale

You sure about that? I walked through last April no problem. It's interesting to see the big houses with yards in the middle of the city. And a large synagogue towers over/behind some of the homes.

Oops. That sort of burst that little balloon. Lol

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by edale

You sure about that? I walked through last April no problem. It's interesting to see the big houses with yards in the middle of the city. And a large synagogue towers over/behind some of the homes.

No actually and glad to hear you walked through with no trouble. I always assumed there was a good chance somebody would call the cops if they saw a stranger walking through and this is one neighborhood where the cops would respond. I've been tempted to drive through just to check it out many times over the years but decided the potential hassle wasn't worth it.

Of course if your complexion is right, who knows.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by montréaliste

Oops. That sort of burst that little balloon. Lol

What balloon?

Note the white SUV parked next to the gate. I'm guessing that's security for Feinstein. The gate is mostly ornamental and there's no gate guard so you can walk in. But as I said, I'd bet there's a decent chance somebody would call the cops about a dubious stranger.

[craigs]

Yeah, my guess is that when Feinstein is in DC, it's open to the public but when she is home it's probably difficult to just wander around in there. I know I drove in there a couple times with no security issues.

[badrunner]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

This is the entrance to Presidio Terrace, a private gated dead-end street/cul-de-sac in San Francisco which is home to some of the city's elite. The house on the left just past the gate is that of Sen. Dianne Feinstein.


https://www.instantstreetview.com/@3...-5VUg1TPIU83Dg

They let no one through who doesn't live there.

That's not really a cul-de-sac though. It's a gated community with a road that loops around. It kind of reminds me of Fremont Place on Wilshire: https://goo.gl/maps/X5KDgd9wUaheaHFJ8

[Nantais]

Originally Posted by bilbao58

It means the same in French: https://www.larousse.fr/dictionnaire...l-de-sac/21022

In fact, not only does it literally mean "dead end street" in French, it also means "dead end" in the metaphorical way that "dead end" is also used in English.

But actually, these kind of streets are never named "cul-de-sac" in French, but "impasse".
The word "cul-de-sac" is still used, but never to officially name these streets.

[montréaliste]

Originally Posted by Nantais

But actually, these kind of streets are never named "cul-de-sac" in French, but "impasse".
The word "cul-de-sac" is still used, but never to officially name these streets.

In France maybe, but in Québec, the word cul-de-sac is used on road signs.

[Nantais]

But is it used to name the street on the sign, like this example below ?

[10023]

Originally Posted by jtown,man

We need tons more of these in our cities. Steely is right though, as long as they let peds and bikes through, they are great.

I agree.

The problem with American suburban subdivisions with cul-de-sacs is that they make walking in anything resembling a direct path impossible. But if you could marry the traffic calming attributes of fewer through streets with pedestrian paths allowing cut throughs, it is the best of both worlds.

[bilbao58]

Originally Posted by Nantais

But actually, these kind of streets are never named "cul-de-sac" in French, but "impasse".
The word "cul-de-sac" is still used, but never to officially name these streets.

I've never seen "cul-de-sac" used as part of the name of a street. As I said earlier, the two I lived on, one near Toronto, the other near Houston, were named "Court."

[bilbao58]

Originally Posted by montréaliste

In France maybe, but in Québec, the word cul-de-sac is used on road signs.

Would not surprise me. Stop signs in Québec say ARRÊT. Stop signs in France say STOP.

[sopas ej]

Originally Posted by bilbao58

Would not surprise me. Stop signs in Québec say ARRÊT. Stop signs in France say STOP.

I believe it's an EU directive that all stop signs say "STOP." They say that in Spain and other EU countries, too.

In Mexico, all stop signs say "ALTO."

[bilbao58]

Originally Posted by sopas ej

I believe it's an EU directive that all stop signs say "STOP." They say that in Spain and other EU countries, too.

Maybe, but I first saw them in 1979, before there was an official EU.

ETA: I just read that they used to say STOP in Québec as well until somebody somewhere got the idea that they were a danger to the culture. I remember STOP signs in Ottawa had English and French in 1972. They were English-only in Toronto.