KCRag Forum

KCtoBrooklyn wrote:I think the design looks fine. Could be better, but could definitely be much worse.

As for the Old Hyde Park board wanting the design to mimic historic architecture, I think that is a mistake and it rarely turns out well. Plus, it's not as if he is plopping this down on Janssen Place - unfortunately much of the historic character of the surrounding area has been lost so a modern building won't look terribly out of place.

John Hoffman is also behind the new single family housing currently being build in Beacon Hill and Longfellow, although those are designed by a different architect, Randy Kietzman. I think the Beacon Hill homes are looking quite nice, but the way the Longfellow houses are presently look concerns me.

Where are the Longfellow houses being built?

On the 2700 block of Charlotte. Two homes currently under construction with six planned in total.

I didn't realize that Hoffman was part of Urban Coeur. That makes me feel much better about this development, as I have been impressed with most of the work they have done in the past. This being said, I'm not sure I like the look of twenty9 Gillham either so maybe I just don't like their renderings.

These Longfellow houses seem very interesting. I love that this company is so dedicated to infill in this neighborhood.

Are the new houses being constructed on those lots by Travis Newsome Realty Co.?

KCtoBrooklyn wrote:On the 2700 block of Charlotte. Two homes currently under construction with six planned in total.

Thanks, I'll have to check them out.

I took photos yesterday of the two houses currently under construction on the east side of the 2700 block of Charlotte.

Snout houses. Great.

The OHP apartment building passed the City Plan Commission unanimously yesterday. I caught the tail end of the deliberations, but there didn't appear to be anyone there in opposition.

chaglang wrote:Snout houses. Great.

The OHP apartment building passed the City Plan Commission unanimously yesterday. I caught the tail end of the deliberations, but there didn't appear to be anyone there in opposition.

You have a pretty broad definition of a snout house. I certainly don't think that the garage is the dominant feature of the house, and you don't have to walk past a bunch of garage to get to the front door. The garage protrudes a little, but that allows for an overhang over the front door (if you expect people to walk to your house, you need to have somewhere for them to be out of the rain while they're waiting for the door to open). Because the garage door is only one-car wide, I expect it's probably a tandem garage, which also requires a longer garage. So, while I would prefer a garage in the back, this isn't offensive.

My reaction to the design (garage) was immediately negative.

"Because the garage door is only one-car wide, I expect it's probably a tandem garage, which also requires a longer garage. "

Doesn't look deep enough for a tandem. The houses look like they are built on a slab so maybe there is a laundry room behind the garage portion of the house.

My reaction to the design (garage) was immediately negative.

I think the whole thing is a little modern to be modern, but would you call it a snout house? I normally reserve that for those houses where the garage sticks out so far you can't see where the front door is. Like this



I guess it's all a matter of degree.

Sure it's a snout house. The garage is the dominant feature and protrudes well past any other part of the house. Compounding that, the front door is recessed into the facade.

A simpler approach would have brought the front door into plane with the front of the house, recessed the garage, and then run a roof across from the front door to the garage. That would also allow people to get from the front door to the garage in the rain, though I suspect in reality they would use an interior door to the garage. The way they are designed, all that garage roof does is get people from their car to the front door. There's no shelter to encourage people to spend time outside, which is a shame. Those look like they're facing west, so even if the homeowner wanted to spend time in front of their house, they couldn't. It would be too hot on summer afternoons/evenings

One could minimize the garage door as a feature on these houses if only they didn't choose a plain white garage door, and instead picked one that had more character and design that fit in with the house, or having the garage door painted the same color of the house, where it fades as a prominent feature.

FangKC wrote:One could minimize the garage door as a feature on these houses if only they didn't choose a plain white garage door, and instead picked one that had more character and design that fit in with the house, or having the garage door painted the same color of the house, where it fades as a prominent feature.

All of that. A stronger window arrangement on the house might also help. As is, the simple form of the garage helps it dominate.

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To be honest, the very first thing I noticed on these houses when passing by the other day was the garage. Whether or not you wanna call it a snout house, doesn't matter. It is certainly a powerful aspect of the house.

They are really unattractive houses.

I just wish they were exactly the same and had smaller windows.

taxi wrote:I just wish they were exactly the same and had smaller windows.

large windows are a huge selling point for a home. they're selling to the market

it's also a sign that a home is well insulated these days

flyingember wrote:

taxi wrote:I just wish they were exactly the same and had smaller windows.

large windows are a huge selling point for a home. they're selling to the market

it's also a sign that a home is well insulated these days

I think taxi is fucking with you.