Attractive Townhouse Design for Detroit

[A2Mike]

Most of the townhouses built in or near downtown Detroit within the last few years are simply unattractive designs that do not enhance the area and don't inspire very many people to want to live there. Here are two Atlanta designs which I think would be a great improvement. The first is a modestly upscale 1968 rowhouse development which relies upon good proportions and simple but well executed traditional details for an enduring appeal. The second, Regents Park in Buckhead, dates from the early 2000s and is admittedly a more ambitious project, suitable for the kind of central Detroit we hope it will become.

[Jayp213]

Absolutely!!!! That's what's unfortunate about the many things that Are proposed here... Lack of creativity...

[Mackinaw]

This is a good topic, as it is an area of need for the city. Not sure if either of these models fit in perfectly in our central neighborhood-- except maybe Brush Park-- but I can see them fitting nicely in infill situations up toward Boston-Edison or maybe West Village/East Village. The first is very put-together, basically a larger piece of architecture broken into units. Very reminiscient of the overall structure of the many beautiful 1920s townhouse buildings in the City of Grosse Pointe between Kercheval and Jefferson. The second seemingly recreates an Italian renaissance palazzo, looks like a typical Genoa palazzo-- cool, but certainly befitting only the most appropriate location.

I find the simplicity of an early American townhouse, like what you see in Old City Philly or Beacon Hill Boston, to be very attractive and replicable. Normally, when developers claim to be replicating this, they overcomplicate the design with some type of needless attempt at flourish, and they choose schotty materials. Or, they fail to create any differentiation from building to building.

Developers also try to imitate the more mansion-like facades of victorian era brownstones, like what you see in Brooklyn Heights, Jersey City's Van Voorst area, or various quadrants of DC. I say-- don't bother, unless you are sitting on endless money and hire the best craftsmen. I see no need to imitate when you will come up miles short of the goal. It's best to just preserve and restore whatever buildings like this the city has left, and unfortunately they are few [[one on John R. near the Fisher is beautifully restored for example, another on John R closer to Mack needs a savior...meanwhile, there are a few lovely individual Victorian townhouses left along E. Jefferson close to downtown, among Detroit's oldest remaining buildings-- mostly used as offices).

In conclusion, I think simplicity and differentiation are key, and the early American rowhouse is a model that can reasonably be duplicated, given its simplicity of form. I'd also embrace more modern, glassy townhouse/rowhouse designs.

[sumas]

Islandview Village has infill. The Messiah church has spear headed a lot. Existing homes are a 100 plus years old. I really like the 3 story brick town homes but even the cheap low income duplex housing is kind of cute with a victorian flavor. I fear those might not weather age well?

The second rendering you showed was very appealing. I might be in the market a few years from now. Our house is too big to maintain by ourselves and have to hire out for help. Grass, snow shoveling, daily maintainance seems overwhelming sometimes. I plod along and love our house but ..... gets a little pricey. Regardless of decisions we will stay in Detroit.

[Bham1982]

The first pic is actually quite common for Metro Detroit. You see this style all over garden apartment complexes from the 1950's and 1960's. One example would be all along Greenfield in NW Detroit. Another would be Crooks Rd. in Clawson/Troy.

The second pic would be kind of ridiculous in Metro Detroit. It's a very obvious Southern vernacular, like something you would see in New Orleans. Buckhead is the wealthiest neighborhood in Atlanta, and is essentially the "Birmingham-Bloomfield" of that region. It isn't really urban or anything.

Also, why are these townhouses? Aren't townhouses usually considered individual rowhouses, like you would see in London, Boston, Philly, NY's Outer Boroughs, and the like? These look like suburban style apartment complexes. No, not the type you see in Novi, but the type you see in Royal Oak and older communities with lots of postwar multifamily [[see DC suburbs, all over Northern NJ, places like that).

[401don]

30 yrs. ago young singles lived in what were known as "walk-up" apts. These 3 story buildings were cheap, entry-level housing and you would often see flags in the windows for drapes. Now due to price/land considerations these same units are being built in the Toronto market and sold for $400,000+, marketed as "garden townhomes".

[Eric_c]

Some of the infill condo townhouses in Islandview Village. They use the alleys with the garages off the back. These are on Field and Sheridan and Townsend Generally between Lafayette and Kercheval.

[emu steve]

Anyone like these [[near the Nats ball park in D.C.)?

Go to D.C.: Capitol Quarter.

http://www.eya.com/Established_Neighborhoods

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

Anyone like these [[near the Nats ball park in D.C.)?

Go to D.C.: Capitol Quarter.

http://www.eya.com/Established_Neighborhoods

The Old Town Alexandria colonials really fit nicely there, but the National Park Seminary and Brownstones at Potomac Park really caught my eye.

[samn]

how 'bout these?

nice court in the middle, made of quality materials, pedestrian-friendly...

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

how 'bout these?

nice court in the middle, made of quality materials, pedestrian-friendly...

But people might complain that the courtyard design doesn't preserve the streetwall

I note their facebook page hasn't been updated in awhile; does anyone know how things are going over there?

[Bham1982]

how 'bout these?

nice court in the middle, made of quality materials, pedestrian-friendly...

Isn't there a courtyard building like this in Highland Park, on the East Side of Woodward? Looks to be long-abandoned, but still standing last time I passed by.

Unfortunately, we have largely lost the ability to build nice townhouses. The craftsmanship largely died a long time ago, and labor costs have skyrocketed. Good union salaries for craftsmen are not really compatible with lavish designs on a budget. In the past, workers were badly exploited [[obviously an awful thing) but the low labor costs made high quality design much more feasible. It's the same reason the architecture in Dubai is much more spectacular than in rich Western countries.

Even at the high end, modern townhouses are lacking. There are million dollar+ townhouses near downtown Birmingham that look pretty silly. Mediocre at best. A tumbledown ghetto block of rowhouses in West Baltimore displays more quality.

[emu steve]

BTW, when I look at say Ford's Landing [[Old Town Alexandria) I wish I were rich enough to afford one.

Those are houses I'd spend money to buy... Something incredibly unique and worthy of big bucks.

[emu steve]

Anyone like these [[near the Nats ball park in D.C.)?

Go to D.C.: Capitol Quarter.

http://www.eya.com/Established_Neighborhoods

Those row houses look a hundred years old but look brand new... [[they are say 5 years old but replicas of very old row houses). Nicely done.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

Those row houses look a hundred years old but look brand new... [[they are say 5 years old but replicas of very old row houses). Nicely done.

They do mimic a lot of the row houses one sees around a lot of DC.

[Gistok]

The architectural style of these townhouses is a modernized version of Georgian architecture.... originally found in 18th Century England and USA. To somehow suggest that any of these styles shown by the OP would look ridiculous in Detroit is in and of itself ridiculous....

https://www.google.com/search?q=geor...w=1280&bih=879

[A2Mike]

The Atlanta Regents Park townhouses were inspired by John Nash's terraced houses in London, particularly Cumberland Terrace. They were scaled down and simplified without greatly compromising their fine proportions and innate refinement. They are not an American southern vernacular idiom, although said vernacular often did borrow elements of English and other design precedents. London's climate is a lot closer to that of Detroit than that of Atlanta, and Nash's houses have not been said to look ridiculous there. As to their continuing desirability, a perusal of London real estate listings will not show that it has suffered.

[Jimaz]

Attachment 26194
Click For Street View

Just yesterday I discovered this odd, isolated block of townhouses in Shelby Township. Frankly, I don't know what to think of it. It seems out of place in its isolation but maybe there's some greater plan. Yes, it does have ground floor retail. It almost has a European feel once you get into the middle of it.

Does anyone know anything about this development?

[canuck]

Attachment 26194
Click For Street View

Just yesterday I discovered this odd, isolated block of townhouses in Shelby Township. Frankly, I don't know what to think of it. It seems out of place in its isolation but maybe there's some greater plan. Yes, it does have ground floor retail. It almost has a European feel once you get into the middle of it.

Does anyone know anything about this development?

Pretty interesting, Jimaz.

At first, when I looked at the link picture I noticed the wide sidewalks which was funny looking in the middle of nowhere. Then as I looked into your streetview link it became apparent that the street level had retail like old time Detroit had. I think what happens here is that this main road is a lead-in to the more suburban residential areas. I think it is a good experiment to retry this and see where the ball hits the post or actually commits a goal. The telling thing will be whether the residents of this commercial street coexist with the business setting without being judged trailer something or other. This looks like a newfangled version of a Montreal street to tell you the truth, with lots of renters and small buslnesses in high density.

[Jimaz]

... This looks like a newfangled version of a Montreal street to tell you the truth, with lots of renters and small buslnesses in high density.

Yet the irony is it's only a quarter mile from that poster child for sprawl, Hall Road. There must be a story behind this place.

[animatedmartian]

And the irony is it's only a quarter mile from that poster child for sprawl, Hall Road. There must be a story behind this place.

The only story is that Shelby Township, in their master plan, has certain areas designated as 'villages'. What this means is that these areas are zoned to resemble that of a more dense neighborhood with more 'character' than the typical single-family home on a wide lot. The one highlighted is known as Lakeside Village, apparently.

Big PDF file warning:
http://www.shelbytwp.org/departments...esidential.pdf

This is not unusual, actually. Macomb Township, Troy, and other suburbs have similar planning and zoning practices where certain areas of their respective cities that are zoned for higher density and, in some cases, a new downtown area. This is important because it helps retain residents and allows for a greater number of residents given that Detroit's suburbs are pretty limited in land area due to Michigan's annexation laws. In other parts of the country, annexation is pretty common which means cities can expand with sprawly development without having a need for density. In either case, the goal is to expand the city's tax base for as long and as much as possible. Without Michigan's strict annexation laws, Shelby Township might as well turn out like Frisco, Texas.

Here's some other areas around Metro Detroit with density in mind:
http://goo.gl/maps/C20bw
http://goo.gl/maps/XQSsk
http://goo.gl/maps/Dfywd
http://goo.gl/maps/pazIU
http://goo.gl/maps/HM3s7

[Jimaz]

The only story is that Shelby Township, in their master plan, has certain areas designated as 'villages'. What this means is that these areas are zoned to resemble that of a more dense neighborhood with more 'character' than the typical single-family home on a wide lot.

Thanks, animatedmartian. I learned a lot.

The one highlighted is known as Lakeside Village, apparently.

Yes, I saw that on a map in your PDF. It's nice to be able to put a name to the place. Unfortunately, Googling it hasn't turned up much yet. "Lakeside Village" isn't so unique on this planet.

[animatedmartian]

Thanks, animatedmartian. I learned a lot.

Yes, I saw that on a map in your PDF. It's nice to be able to put a name to the place. Unfortunately, Googling it hasn't turned up much yet. "Lakeside Village" isn't so unique on this planet.

That's actually the most ironic thing about it. These sort of developments are meant to 'give an area a sense of place', yet every time there's one developed, they have the most generic names like any other suburban subdivision. My expectation is that most won't find these development to be anything like an actual urban area which is what these developments are supposed to mimic. In any of these developments, they all have enough parking space for cars so what incentive is there to use anything other than a car? Just defeats the purpose IMO.

[kathy2trips]

Lovely! This where people would want to live!

[Patrick]

BTW, when I look at say Ford's Landing [[Old Town Alexandria) I wish I were rich enough to afford one.

Those are houses I'd spend money to buy... Something incredibly unique and worthy of big bucks.

Depends on the development in Old Town. A lot of post 1990 structures weren't built very well. Corners were cut.