What's the point of having a tree lawn, if it doesn't have any trees?
If you shade the sidewalk or street in the summer, those pesky pedestrians and bicyclists might get comfortable and decide to linger (cue urban pearl-clutching)
Seriously tho I wonder if some designers are simply blind to these nuances….
Seriously tho I wonder if some designers are simply blind to these nuances….
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Drove through here on Saturday and you couldn’t pay me to live in these. Whole thing looks and feels weird. (Btw the apartment building is all framed out)
I went through two weeks ago. I'm putting together a photo tour. The houses make a street wall, but boy howdy are they ugly. I struggle to put into words why. The brick color? Lack of brick returns on the sides? Windows? Lack of basements, so they aren't elevated from the sidewalk? The porches? The mansard roofs?
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If people are getting paid to live in them, sign me up. They may not be my aesthetic, but I’m willing to deal with that for a paycheck and a short walk to Missouri Baking Co.sc4mayor wrote:I don’t think anyone is getting paid to live in them…people are just buying them.
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You immediately discredit yourself with a statement such as "you couldn't pay me to live in these". That might be true but no one cares and it doesn't offer anything at all to the thread or larger conversation. It only sidetracks and waste people's time. So, next time, please don't.dbInSouthCity wrote: ↑Jan 03, 2022Drove through here on Saturday and you couldn’t pay me to live in these. Whole thing looks and feels weird. (Btw the apartment building is all framed out)
EVERY development has its flaws and La Collina is far from perfect. With that being said, the market response could not be more positive. The homes are selling quicker than they can be built.
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Is the market response strong? Is there a housing shortage?
The fact is this is a premier neighborhood in the region and yet McBride cant muster anything more than this trash. Meanwhile you see what other developers are doing in places like Gate, McRee and the Grove you realize the opportunity missed.
The fact is this is a premier neighborhood in the region and yet McBride cant muster anything more than this trash. Meanwhile you see what other developers are doing in places like Gate, McRee and the Grove you realize the opportunity missed.
It was the right development for the site which is evidenced by the fact that it is almost fully subscribed. I would be surprised if there were more than 5 lots left. The right market was identified and the project was well executed.JaneJacobsGhost wrote: ↑Jan 04, 2022Is the market response strong? Is there a housing shortage?
The fact is this is a premier neighborhood in the region and yet McBride cant muster anything more than this trash. Meanwhile you see what other developers are doing in places like Gate, McRee and the Grove you realize the opportunity missed.
There is a housing shortage and if that is your argument for the projects success you could use the same reasoning for the projects in the Gate, McRee, and the Grove.
I live in the neighborhood and anyone spending more than what McBride is selling homes for in La Collina tears down and does a custom build in the heart of it. There are 2-3 developers who specialize in that sort of custom infill on The Hill.
You didn't provide a reason for calling the project trash but comparing it to UIC built homes in McRee and Gate or almost any townhome or single family in The Grove doesn't help your argument. There is plenty to be desired with those as well.
New construction, short of custom builds, in the City and county use the same material and copy cat uninspired design. Get over yourself. Just because you don't like something doesn't give you right to call it trash especially without any evidence or real reason at all.
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Cheap ugly building materials is why it’s ugly. Massive green utility boxes and utility poles in front yards are why it’s ugly.
I have every right to call it ugly trash, which it is.
Edit: almost forgot the vinyl siding. Ugly.
I have every right to call it ugly trash, which it is.
Edit: almost forgot the vinyl siding. Ugly.
You called it trash not ugly which implied sub standard or inferior building quality. It’s not.
The green utility boxes you reference allow the electrical lines to be buried and have less utility poles and over head lines. Improving the aesthetic of the new development while also improving the reliability of its power grid. I believe the utility poles you are referencing feed power to the original part of the neighborhood.
The development used cement board not vinyl which is about 2.5 x more expensive and much higher quality.
Get your facts straight.
The green utility boxes you reference allow the electrical lines to be buried and have less utility poles and over head lines. Improving the aesthetic of the new development while also improving the reliability of its power grid. I believe the utility poles you are referencing feed power to the original part of the neighborhood.
The development used cement board not vinyl which is about 2.5 x more expensive and much higher quality.
Get your facts straight.
Maybe I should just accept that haters are going to hate
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Aw, c'mon. He's not discrediting anyone. Just making his personal preference clear. I'd say more or less the same thing. It's hyperbole, but that's okay. The fact is I wouldn't pick them either . . . unless there was a substantial financial incentive to it. And that's a fact. Is there something wrong with someone who does want to live there? Nothing but their taste. (And the proximity to Volpi Foods would definitely be a plus.) All that said, Grousing about developments is probably almost half of what drives the conversation on our fair forum. Defending developments is another big part. (And arguing about whether we should, or should not save a given piece of modernism makes up much of the rest with arguments about crime filling the corners.) We have spirited arguments and a little creative polemic is about par for the course. And "You couldn't pay me to" is a pretty standard choice.STLAPTS wrote: ↑Jan 03, 2022You immediately discredit yourself with a statement such as "you couldn't pay me to live in these". That might be true but no one cares and it doesn't offer anything at all to the thread or larger conversation. It only sidetracks and waste people's time. So, next time, please don't.dbInSouthCity wrote: ↑Jan 03, 2022Drove through here on Saturday and you couldn’t pay me to live in these. Whole thing looks and feels weird. (Btw the apartment building is all framed out)
EVERY development has its flaws and La Collina is far from perfect. With that being said, the market response could not be more positive. The homes are selling quicker than they can be built.
I expect McBride would disagree with you. The houses sold like hotcakes at the price point they set. If they'd invested more and sold them for the same price they'd have missed some opportunity. If they'd asked more for them they might not have sold as quickly, which would also represent missing an opportunity. I don't think they missed a thing. These houses weren't built as a public service. They were built to sell and sell they most definitely did. It's almost like there's some demand for good quality new housing in walkable neighborhoods in town. They're not to my taste, but I can respect that people like them.JaneJacobsGhost wrote:Is the market response strong? Is there a housing shortage?
The fact is this is a premier neighborhood in the region and yet McBride cant muster anything more than this trash. Meanwhile you see what other developers are doing in places like Gate, McRee and the Grove you realize the opportunity missed.
Anyway, let's keep it above the foundation and get on with the fight.
I might not like the design of the houses, but this development does a pretty good job with the space provided. Apartments + Single Family homes with room to grow in the future (on the Daggett side) is a good deal.
Put me in the they're ugly camp. McBride chose a design and price point that got them sold in the market at this time. We don't know if that's the only coordinates that would have sold more, as, or nearly as quickly.
Nextstl - La Collina Photo Tour
https://nextstl.com/2022/01/la-collina-photo-tour/
Nextstl - La Collina Photo Tour
https://nextstl.com/2022/01/la-collina-photo-tour/
Agreed. Also, get rid of those asphalt shingle faux-mansard roofs along the lefthand (western) side of the street and it's not bad. Those are the only aspect that is comically bad IMO.sc4mayor wrote: ↑Jan 04, 2022Ugly? Absolutely. Hard to hate the density and street wall though.
Some of them aren't so bad but I agree, in the effect in aggregate is a bit bizarre to behold. I assume the lack of basements was to save on construction costs but was that really necessary in this case? The houses not being off the street just looks wrong!
I think you got the making of a great West Downton/Mid Town development plan/infill project if you do away with the detached part and go with common wall on the above photo. A nice mix of 2-4 story brownstone type infill either single residential or mulit unit would make for some great central corridor infill
You know you're dealing with a suburban developer when they install these types of mailboxes (intended to be filled street-side directly out of a right-hand-drive postal vehicle). Don't they realize that parked cars will be blocking access to the boxes?
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Hey, at least they're trying. I'm all in favor of suburban developers building in the city if they can be convinced to build with real ubrnan density. We can worry about the style problems later. I may think these things look like something for the Griswolds, but . . . if the Griswolds move into the city and pay taxes on a reasonable amount of infrastructure I'll live with it. USPS can tell everyone to move the mailboxes later. (Or the residents will do it themselves when they realize how much easier life is with a mail slot.)
(And even these will look better as folks start personalizing them and the trees grow in.)
(And even these will look better as folks start personalizing them and the trees grow in.)
I'm excited that a great city neighborhood is experiencing a large development like this that has gone so well as far as filling the homes, and the apartment complex is coming along well too.
We can debate the design choices all day, and yes it'd be nice to have brick on the side, or mail slots instead of boxes, but at the end of the day, The Hill is gaining residents, expanding it's street grid, getting dense compact homes making great use of land, and the city finally adds a large new housing stock project that isn't just 4-8 luxury townhomes for in-fill that are unaffordable for 85% of the population.
Adding 58 homes, 220 apartment units and future 22 condos in a dense format like this is an absolute win and I hope that it's success spurs more compact developments like this around the South City area. New housing that is for the middle class is not easy to come by within city limits right now.
I do also agree with the above commenter that once these homes are personalized and there are some trees planted it'll lose the odd "Truman Show" vibes and quickly be just an extension of The Hill.
We can debate the design choices all day, and yes it'd be nice to have brick on the side, or mail slots instead of boxes, but at the end of the day, The Hill is gaining residents, expanding it's street grid, getting dense compact homes making great use of land, and the city finally adds a large new housing stock project that isn't just 4-8 luxury townhomes for in-fill that are unaffordable for 85% of the population.
Adding 58 homes, 220 apartment units and future 22 condos in a dense format like this is an absolute win and I hope that it's success spurs more compact developments like this around the South City area. New housing that is for the middle class is not easy to come by within city limits right now.
I do also agree with the above commenter that once these homes are personalized and there are some trees planted it'll lose the odd "Truman Show" vibes and quickly be just an extension of The Hill.
The mailboxes for the homes on Hereford are behind the sidewalk which makes more sense.
