Das Ponto
Active Member
Houses** lol two infills right beside each other. Will be doing some more shooting for them and Design two group as well as I am friends with the architect.
More to come!
More to come!
City council approves almost all new rules on infill development in mature neighbourhoods
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Community members with the Edmonton Federation of Community Leagues told councilors they supported the majority of the changes, except for the one dealing with driveways.
City planners suggested that new homes should have a front driveway leading into a garage, at least in non-tree-lined neighbourhoods where the majority of the other homes do.
But community groups, developers and city councillors were all caught off guard by that proposal.
"Streets must be pedestrian friendly. They should not be assaulted with a row of front-yard parking lots," said Irene Blain, civics director of the West Jasper Place community league, referring to suburban-style developments where a sea of driveways, rather than large front yards, is the norm.
Mick Graham, with the Infill Development in Edmonton Association, also took issue with allowing front driveways in some streets in mature neighbourhoods.
"I think they are hideous and making them the prominent feature is an architectural mistake," he said. "If we're going to improve walkability, a bunch of driveways in a row doesn't solve that."
After approving all the other changes, councillors sent administration back to have another look at front driveways.
"We have to remember that all of this legislating is a work in progress," Mayor Don Iveson told council.
Ultra-modern black wall forces skinny home rethink by city council
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Ward 10 Coun. Michael Walters raised this Lansdowne home as an example when he called for a new approach to design regulations in stable neighbourhoods Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2017. SARAH O'DONNELL / POSTMEDIA
Edmonton councillors voted to re-examine how the city regulates the design of infill going into Edmonton’s stable, postwar neighbourhoods Wednesday.
“Build nice stuff that fits in. Don’t build Darth Vader architecture that’s polarizing,” said Ward 10 Coun. Michael Walters, leading the change in approach after being shocked by a 8.9-metre-high black wall now confronting one homeowner in the neighbourhood of Lansdowne.
“Any redevelopment at all that happens in a fairly stable mature neighbourhood should make an effort to respect the context and fit into that neighbourhood,” he said, before the motion at council’s urban planning committee. Councillors will get a report from administration with options to regulate design next year.
Only 34 property owners have split lots in Ward 10 in the last three years. Several created long, narrow skinny homes that are “polarizing” and turning residents against new development, Walters said, sharing pictures of one with black, metal siding and a blocky shape that cuts the neighbour’s view of the street.
“In an old, more rundown area, it’s ridiculous to assume you want to fit into that context. That’s a full-throttle renew,” he said, suggesting design requirements should be more loose there. “(But) this gradual renewal … should pay heed to the existing architecture.”