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Why was it nicer in 87? What are the headaches now?
I suppose you will say 1) houses were cheaper and 2) there was less traffic?
I got here in 1997.
Actually, the area has certainly lost and gained with growth.
I used to drive from home in Cary just a few minutes west and see Wake County farms and nature in abundance. Those days are history. Municipal water and sewer services expansion has rendered all land as a target for dense development.
We have to go much farther to see country.
Traffic? I am not certain how much "worse" it is. It isn't a real concern to me. However, congestion does extend out as far as development does.
First house here was built in 1986. I told the neighbor next door to our rental house where we were moving, and he said, "Oh. Yeah. I used to hunt squirrels in those woods."
One benefit, though, of that neighborhood... The builders just opened up enough woods for the house and driveway. We had three 90+ oak trees on .22 acres.
Even our .33 acres now, from 1994, has mature trees in the 100' range.
Today, both would be scraped and a couple of generic ornamentals, or a few trees planted right up against the house to be targets of routine chainsaw massacres.
So, I wasn't born and raised here, but I surely have some empathy for folks who recall simpler times and a different pace of life.
I got here in 1997.
Actually, the area has certainly lost and gained with growth.
I used to drive from home in Cary just a few minutes west and see Wake County farms and nature in abundance. Those days are history. Municipal water and sewer services expansion has rendered all land as a target for dense development.
We have to go much farther to see country.
Traffic? I am not certain how much "worse" it is. It isn't a real concern to me. However, congestion does extend out as far as development does.
First house here was built in 1986. I told the neighbor next door to our rental house where we were moving, and he said, "Oh. Yeah. I used to hunt squirrels in those woods."
One benefit, though, of that neighborhood... The builders just opened up enough woods for the house and driveway. We had three 90+ oak trees on .22 acres.
Even our .33 acres now, from 1994, has mature trees in the 100' range.
Today, both would be scraped and a couple of generic ornamentals, or a few trees planted right up against the house to be targets of routine chainsaw massacres.
So, I wasn't born and raised here, but I surely have some empathy for folks who recall simpler times and a different pace of life.
Our style of development is terrible for being close to the countryside as it eats up all country side. Its now eating up countryside as far as 50-60 miles from Raleigh. Where do you go now? European style cities don't have that issue. Drive a few miles out of Amsterdam and your in countryside. Drive 30 miles outside of Raleigh ( in the west direction) and your still not in countryside. Which is why I so vehemently oppose all the scattering of developments and the push to expand in places far away. North Carolina is a small state. Our Piedmont is all but gone now.
So when a housing development is built next to a farm or woods, who wins and who loses?
Loser? A local who perhaps moved there for its rural qualities and has no interest in development. Other losers of course are the environment , and farmers who want to preserve their way of life. Winners? Developers obviously. City leaders as it bolsters their resume " look at the change we have created". People who want to cash out, and people moving in looking for a new home.
In the long run though as the area matures and growth eventually stagnates, everyone loses out to higher taxes ( required to pay for upkeep of city services as the infrastructure ages).
It doesn’t seem realistic for any city to be stuck in time. I don’t know the development rules for this area. Is Raleigh the only bad guy? It seems like Chapel Hill does a good (?) job of limiting development?
It doesn’t seem realistic for any city to be stuck in time. I don’t know the development rules for this area. Is Raleigh the only bad guy? It seems like Chapel Hill does a good (?) job of limiting development?
Chapel Hills limit doesn't work as its surroundings have no such limit, which only means the sprawl skips over chapel hill and heads further out ... aka Chatham/Alamance county. We need more lax zoning inside cities and to stop building so car centric. Never going to happen so instead Ill watch the entire state get paved over in freeways byways highways interstates 4 lane expressways McDonalds. McDonald inside the target inside a starbucks inside of sushi joint running a bogo. next to a harris teeter on street number 2838383838 name greenpinefarmfield in the millionth neighborhood named parkstoneskylandgreenviewpine... yawn. I miss George Carlin.
Chapel Hills limit doesn't work as its surroundings have no such limit, which only means the sprawl skips over chapel hill and heads further out ... aka Chatham/Alamance county. We need more lax zoning inside cities and to stop building so car centric. Never going to happen so instead Ill watch the entire state get paved over in freeways byways highways interstates 4 lane expressways McDonalds. McDonald inside the target inside a starbucks inside of sushi joint running a bogo. next to a harris teeter on street number 2838383838 name greenpinefarmfield in the millionth neighborhood named parkstoneskylandgreenviewpine... yawn. I miss George Carlin.
His post makes sense. Yes, it is sarcastic, but it is well done with the generic neighborhood names.
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