HomeDiagramsDatabaseMapsForum About
     

Go Back   SkyscraperPage Forum > Discussion Forums > City Discussions


Reply

 
Thread Tools Display Modes
     
     
  #81  
Old Posted Apr 16, 2021, 4:38 PM
Steely Dan's Avatar
Steely Dan Steely Dan is offline
devout Pizzatarian
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Lincoln Square, Chicago
Posts: 29,635
Quote:
Originally Posted by hammersklavier View Post
This is a major point that needs amplification. In older cities where traditional housing typologies never really died (though they did come close), like Philadelphia and Chicago, there is still a great deal of local expertise on how to build to these typologies, which makes pro formas for building new ones easy because the parties involve know how to do it. In cities where knowledge of how to build to these typologies is lost, the lack of knowledge makes attempts to build them seem risky to lenders who are unfamiliar with their economics...which then makes it impossible for these projects to pencil out because they're low-margin to begin with.
yeah.

and it's not just the local building culture, but also the local residential culture that goes hand in hand with it.

because chicagoans have been living in flats en masse for generations, they are a totally normal thing here.

chicago home-seekers don't automatically go "what the heck is this? 3 houses stacked on top of each other? that's weird. no thanks."

in a different market where flats are a much less common typology, that "strangeness" factor might also make lenders more shy.
__________________
"Missing middle" housing can be a great middle ground for many middle class families.

Last edited by Steely Dan; Apr 16, 2021 at 4:49 PM.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #82  
Old Posted Apr 16, 2021, 5:41 PM
the urban politician the urban politician is offline
The City
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Chicago region
Posts: 21,375
^ Absolutely, and that's a great point by Hammersklavier.

The "expertise" to build narrow-lot, alley facing garage-style buildings in Chicago is abundant. Whether it be SFH, townhomes, or 2-3 flats.

Those vintage narrow single-lot-wide 6 flats are basically extinct, though, mostly because I'm pretty sure they will never comply with modern building codes. But wider 6 flats (ie two 3-flats essentially smacked together) are being built left and right in Chicago.
__________________
Supercar Adventures is my YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4W...lUKB1w8ED5bV2Q
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #83  
Old Posted Apr 17, 2021, 6:03 PM
Emprise du Lion Emprise du Lion is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Saint Louis
Posts: 325
Quote:
Originally Posted by edale View Post
One of the hallmarks of American suburbs is that everything is separated. Apartment complexes, which were not always meant for the poor when they were built, are not special in this regard, nor are they indicative of a desire to "keep the poors contained" as has been claimed. A lot of the suburban apartment complexes that now are home to lower income people, used to be desirable, modern developments! They're cordoned off from the single family, because different uses and even different intensities of the same use, are separated in suburbs.
And we have a winner.

It should be noted that when an older complex like the one mentioned in the OP becomes undesirable that a new complex then comes in to fill that "luxury" void.

There are plenty of these going up here in metro St. Louis, in addition to plenty of recently completed ones. It's the same garden style of 3 or so floors, parking, separated from the surrounding area, but these come with hardwood floors, stainless appliances, in-unit laundry, large community pools, gyms, clubrooms, etc. Some of these complexes are even commanding higher rents than luxury buildings in the city with the same amenities that are actually in walkable neighborhoods.

I debated living in such a complex because it was going to be closer to my job than living in the city, but in the end I couldn't bring myself to pay city prices for a non-urban experience.
Reply With Quote
     
     
  #84  
Old Posted Apr 17, 2021, 9:49 PM
PhillyRising's Avatar
PhillyRising PhillyRising is offline
America's Hometown
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Lionville, PA
Posts: 11,777
So I live in a suburban community that has been planned and developed since the early 2000's. It's called Eagleview here in Chester County, PA. I live in one of the two apartment buildings on the one side of the Town Center Square, directly across the square are two buildings that house 5 restaurants, a coffee shop, a highly regarded independent book store, a salon and a Rite Water Ice, a condo building bookends the east side of the square, and soon a third apartment building now under construction the west side book end of the square. Behind that are townhomes with leasable stores on the bottom floor. So you buy the house, the work space on street level is yours to use for your business or rent it out. Behind them are townhomes and single homes. There is another section of homes and more apartments/townhomes for rent on the other side of the creek and trees behind my building. Then there are offices in their sections. On top if it all is that this is an exceedingly walkable community. People are out and about all the time here....moreso than any other development in area. I did a 5 mile walk today and never left the community. I sold my house 7 years ago because I hated owning a house. I don't want to fix things. I don't want to renovate anything. I want convenience and just call to have things fixed when they break and not be worried about it. So it works for me.

This is a video of my community. It's 6 years old and it's missing a number of things built since they filmed it. You can see my building on the town center square. They added the second building of restaurants since...the 55+ apartments and the new personal/memory care building up hill from the Town Center. I can go from my apartment to the 55+ building and the assisted living place in the next 20 years and never have to move far! LOL!

https://youtu.be/MhVz73S7Zco

This is another video by the Group that developed where I live...and you can see their philosophy. I absolutely love where I live...I feels like a good community where people care about each other and everyone says hello as we are out an about. It's like Stepfordville. The Square was so utitlized last summer duing the pandemic and people would just sit in socially distanced groups and just hang out. They put out more tables and chairs in the grove under the trees for this summer.

https://youtu.be/dhpJwXxXfyw

Last edited by PhillyRising; Apr 17, 2021 at 10:08 PM.
Reply With Quote
     
     
End
 
 
Reply

Go Back   SkyscraperPage Forum > Discussion Forums > City Discussions
Forum Jump


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 7:48 AM.

     
SkyscraperPage.com - Archive - Privacy Statement - Top

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.