Why is infill so much more historic on the North Side? (new construction, living)

[RogersParkTransplant]

Originally Posted by eschaton

I like El Burro a lot. But every time I go there, I sort of regret I didn't pick something with a little less grease.

Yeah...the carne asada fries are dangerous.

I just noticed a brand new and very modern looking row house on Emlin, right behind the Rent-A-Center that faces E Ohio. Doesn't look bad, but definitely an interesting exception to the pattern.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by RogersParkTransplant

Yeah...the carne asada fries are dangerous.

I just noticed a brand new and very modern looking row house on Emlin, right behind the Rent-A-Center that faces E Ohio. Doesn't look bad, but definitely an interesting exception to the pattern.

Funny, I went right down Emlin and didn't see it. There are two new-construction rowhouses being built on Forland though which are exceptions, being contemporary in terms of their style. Maybe you saw the back side of these?

[RogersParkTransplant]

Originally Posted by eschaton

Funny, I went right down Emlin and didn't see it. There are two new-construction rowhouses being built on Forland though which are exceptions, being contemporary in terms of their style. Maybe you saw the back side of these?

Totally possible -- sort of a blue-gray color with big glass windows? They're not totally out of character, just not as consciously close to the older style as most of the new stuff going up. Anyway yes, on the whole I am really happy that there seems to be an effort to maintain the character of the neighborhood. I have been a little sad that some of the oldest houses on Spring Garden Ave (across 279, near Madison) are slated for demolition, so it's a big consolation that the area isn't changing too much as a whole.

[Sciulli]

The Chile Relleno Burrito is SO good at El Burro. I recently went vegetarian and it's food like this that makes it so easy to stop eating meat.

I'm not sure about the topic here, but I love that newer houses are being built with care to match the surrounding architecture in the North Side. Maybe part of it is that the North Side is still not really a "cool" neighborhood so people that do come here aren't too concerned with attracting young people with more modern looking buildings.

[UKyank]

I predict hardiboard will be this generations aluminum siding (or insert whatever outdated cladding on some older buildings you see).
Glad they're bucking the trend.

[bluecarebear]

Originally Posted by eschaton

Anyway, obviously there are different strokes for different folks here. I'm not going to claim that the historic styling is objectively better, even though I subjectively think it is. But why can you really only find it in Pittsburgh north of the Allegheny?

I've been mainly looking at new rentals and the modern style is what is popular. I'm guessing it's also the cheaper way for developers to go.

[Lobick]

I can only speak to this with any real knowledge or specifics as it applies to the Central Northside where the ACCA (Formally CNNC) has spearheaded a lot of the infill housing. I know that October Development has done some great stuff in Deutchtown.

Anyway, the ACCA has been at the forefront on the Northside at attempting to jumpstart infill construction within the neighborhood. I know it's been a point of emphasis, at least since I moved to the War Streets in 2009. The desire to impact the design of proposed infill housing and preserve the asthetic is also a major reason that the ACCA backed the proposed expansion of the historic district to much of the rest of the neighborhood. While it was defeated, I still believe the expansion is likely to occur in the not so distant future.

This is an RFP from 2013 that sought to build on the momentum from the Federal Hill project, specifically addressing infill: http://www.alleghenycitycentral.org/...ember-2013.pdf

There are a handful of non-historic new construction, see:
Home on Pittsburgh's North Side brings green living to urban setting | TribLIVE
But that's all privately financed.

Finally, I think that the neighborhood has been able to control much of what's been built simply because there hasn't been a really "hot" development market on the Northside so the community development organization plays a bigger role in the project than other areas of the City. The self-selection of those drawn to living in a historic neighborhood against a more modern aesthetic may make developers more hesitant about building such a structure as well.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by Lobick

There are a handful of non-historic new construction, see:
Home on Pittsburgh's North Side brings green living to urban setting | TribLIVE
But that's all privately financed.

The design isn't awful, but I'm really let down they didn't hew to zero setback. It's not like those are high traffic streets. I'd much rather have the same building built to the corner and then have a larger interior and rear yard.

[Geeo]

I owned a house in East Allegheny (Avery St.) from 1988 to 1998 and the East Allegheny Community Council was very active in buying and restoring what they could. The infill was just starting back then and the Council worked with a developer for a row of houses on Avery at the site of a large apartment building fire that blended in with the existing architecture.

There were people then who were adamant that any new construction adhere to historical standards, and a lot of it has in the last 20-odd years. But I though East Allegheny was a designated historic district, so I'm confused about the new construction.

It was a great area in which to live, by the way.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by Geeo

I though East Allegheny was a designated historic district, so I'm confused about the new construction.

The city historic district is only the residential streets south of East Ohio, along with everything fronting on the park. Hence the bulk of the northern part of West Deutschtown, and all of East Deutschtown, have no protection.