Preservation Homes: Built to Burn?

This morning one of the McMansions under construction in Sunset Hills caught fire around 4 AM. The house at 1419 Nottingham Rd, was still under construction by Preservation Homes, but looks to be burnt beyond repair.

~~The neighboring house, also under construction, shows signs of significant fire damage.~~

This area has been ground zero for tear downs recently, spearheaded by Preservation homes and other developers. The signs point toward arson, as the house had other signs of vandalism; the portable toilets the construction workers use had been overturned and burning embers were found in neighboring yards. The construction has been moving at a rapid pace as small duplexes and single family homes have been replaced by 6 and 7 thousand square foot houses that do not have yards and frequently use the park they border as overflow parking.

These houses have highlighted the irresponsible approach that developers have taken in the neighborhood as they clear the lots of any trees and build the house within inches of the edges of their lots. Many of the homes in the area shade the previously sunny gardens and yards of their neighbors and remove any feeling of privacy as they loom well above what would be perceived as an appropriate size.

veterancaptain08/01 01:26 PM

First of all, most of the homes built are in the 3000 to 4000 sf range in this neighborhood. They are anything but “McMansions”. Are you just throwing around terms you have heard and think will sound good in an article? Furthermore, developers/builders must adhere to very strict city of Raleigh codes and inspections as far as site planning, construction and how far they are setback from the street. So, they are built according to what the city will allow. It has nothing to do with the developer being irresponsible. If you ride through this neighborhood, any normal person will realize the value these new homes have added. Many of the original homes in this area are very rundown and are not taken care of by their owners. That includes the yards. So, I firmly disagree with David and I think most other people would do the same.

David08/01 01:57 PM

Well, no I am not throwing around terms, I would think labeling them “McMansions” would be opinion more than a technical term. And that is what I believe them to be. In my opinion these homes are built to be as showy as possible but don’t encourage community or the natural wildlife that that neighborhood is blessed with. “Preservation Homes” is a misnomer in the sense that they preserve nothing. These lots were heavily wooded prior to these new homes and now the entire block is shadeless save what is provided by the gargantuan proportions of these houses. The house that burned was $900,000 home sitting beside several others in that price range, at least two of which I know to be 6000+ sq feet in size.

“According to the City of Raleigh property valuation formulas, a lot is a lot. Current ITB real estate research shows lots valued at $100K on the Wake County Property Tax site. The new tax valuations will be $200-300K for the same lot, neighborhood depending. If you look around the site, you will notice a .25 acre lot is the same value as a .60 acre lot.“

From over the top

Any normal person might not agree with you Vet.

Mark08/01 02:46 PM

3000 to 4000 square foot houses in a neighborhood that has averaged less than 1500 for over 50 years definately qualifies these new structures to be out-of-scale. The proportions of these things not only makes them awkward, but lends to the psuedo-eclectic pastiche that is starting to wipe up and down the street in this neighborhood.

You could not be more correct in saying that Preservation Homes’ name is a misnomer. I have seen this company tear down house after house on this street, and haul everything from the hardwood floors to the roof rafters and foundation off to the landfill. How is this preservation? The word “home” has become a real estate marketing term. You cannot buy a home, you can only make a place to be your home. The falsities in their name reveal their motive: sell and profit at any cost. The gentrification of this neighborhood is a sad story, but is inevitable due to location and real estate value. It’s a shame that it is not being done more tastefully. They are even trying to rename a historically titled Raleigh suburb—Sunset Hills—to a name that they chose.

Obviously anything built will adhere to the city’s zoning ordinances and pass inspections, as veterancaptain suggested, but any educated person knows that this does not mean what is built is appropriate, tasteful, or respectful.

Mark08/01 03:40 PM

“The foremost characteristic of a McMansion is the impression of its largeness, particularly when compared with smaller, older nearby housing…

The typical square footage is in the range of 3000 (280 m2) to 5000 ft2 (460 m2).“

from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McMansion

Breigh08/01 03:46 PM

I agree with David and Mark. I live in this neighborhood and pass (or avoid passing) these monstrosities on a daily basis. It’s not that I have a problem with the aesthetics of the architecture (which i personally do) as much as I do with what’s going to happen to the wildlife and dappled serenity that makes Sunset Hills/Banbury Park so magical. These “McMansions” (in my opinion) take up all of the lot except for a nice 5 foot wide border of grass around the front (just wide enough for a quick 3 passes of the mower) and pave the rest. Oh yea, there are some fancy Crepe Myrtles. But those don’t qualify as trees to me. Oh and you bet that grass is bright green! And guess where the runoff fertilizer is going…straight off their steep lil lawns and into our city water! I’m not that thrilled about the “value” that the landscaping is adding to our neighborhood.

As for city codes, just because developers meet them doesn’t mean that they are right or that we should sit idly by and watch 250 year old trees be cut down. Why can’t our city be progressive for once and actually protect what makes Raleigh the “City of Oaks”?

Obviously these “Preservation Homes” have struck a nerve with some people and I’m glad that we have somewhere to discuss it. New Raleigh!!!

actionUnit08/01 03:55 PM

In response to a similar personal conversation with Breigh regarding McMansions- we decided that Raleigh’s lack of preserving vegetation is turning it from the “City of Oaks” into the “City of Jokes”.

also- in my opinion, I consider McMansions to be any of a group of houses that are quickly built with little regard to their surroundings or historical relevance. size is one of the lesser contributing factors. you can have happy meal McMansions or you can have the big mac.

Chad08/01 04:47 PM

With environmental and cultural aspects in mind, I believe there are two issues that are sustaining this trend in development; lack of progressive leadership and lack of responsible citizenship.

The reasons the leadership of certain developers is a failure has been touched on in most of the previous responses. In my personal opinion, the progressive leader in development would have a 20+ year plan for energy/cost efficiency and implementation of future technologies into the house and would use design and materials to achieve that; would respond to natural factors (old growth trees, streams, grade, light, etc.) in deciding on the site and approach to construction; would appropriately respond to and sustain the culture/history/scale of the environment in which the house becomes a part of.

A part of responsible citizenship means investing in a house that fits your needs as well as the needs of your neighbors, city and environment. Let’s go ahead and let the market rule, but the market has a responsibility as well as everyone involved in development.

Monsaroe08/01 04:52 PM

http://www.preserva tionhomes.com/about

“Take a close look at the quality of Preservation Homes, and you’ll see why we are the most unique and one of the largest custom homebuilders in the market.“

Quality homes for quality people indeed.

David08/01 06:02 PM

It looks like this article has set off more than a few nerves. Tom Bland, President of Preservation Homes emailed us with his side of the story. The following is his email unedited in its entirety.
__________________________

The facts about the new homes on Nottingham Road are as follows:
The fire of last evening was the fifth of five new homes on the street. The sizes of the other homes, beginning with the first lot on the corner of Churchill and Nottingham are (approximately) 3600 square feet, 2800 square feet and 3,000 square feet. The sales price of these homes ranged from $750,000 to less than $800,000. Great care was taken by the builder and by the customers who bought them to make them look unique, somewhat nostalgic, and most of all to blend in with the existing architecture of the older homes that make Raleigh a great place to live. The yards of each of these homes, when they were duplex apartments for about fifty years, had not been mowed for several years. Most of the so-called trees were actually weeds that the owners never cared to maintain. Some trees were taken down to allow room for the homes. Extensive landscaping, mature plants, stone landscape retaining walls, and sod all have blended together to make this group of homes seem a much better fit for that neighborhood that the typical vinyl box built out in the suburbs. Interestingly enough, the buyers of four of the homes that are sold, all currently live, or were raised inside the beltline in Raleigh. The buyers of the home that burned lived just two blocks away, and take great pride in the neighborhood just as the writers of this column.
The facts about the duplexes that were on Nottingham:
The apartment homes there were built just after World War II. Each of the homes had seen their better days, and some featured floors that had a view of the ground below, toilets and tubs that had fallen through the floor due to leaky plumbing and neglect, spray-painted graffiti on interior walls (yes, while people were living there), cracked foundations, leaky roofs, cracked sewage outfall pipes, muddy ruts in the front yards causing erosion into the creek on Nottingham during heavy rains, multiple broken windows, and more. One would have guessed that, had it made sense to repair and let these duplexes remain, the landlord would have done so. Instead, the owners, who were neither elderly, pressured, or anything else decided to sell their rental property. Each duplex had two, two bedroom homes, totaling about 1100 square feet. So each duplex took up about 2200 square feet of ground space, not including the porch stoops and steps. The gravel parking area behind each home was not maintained and frequently had garbage in piles because the tenants did not always use their garbage cans. The new homes do not exceed the footprint of the previous duplexes, have yards and driveways that are heavily landscaped, have paved driveways, and, let’s honest here, they look much better than the run down rental units that were there before.
Opinion:
Unlike the teardowns being done in some parts of the city, none of the homes that were removed from Nottingham were owner occupied. Each of the renters were given appropriate notice to relocate. Some were given a month without rent by Preservation Homes so that they could have extra time to find an apartment. Some of the other nearby duplexes have abandoned cars in the front yard, do not mow the grass or pull the weeds at all, most need paint, leave furniture and debris on the curb that does not get picked up by the City of Raleigh, and simply look bad. The back yards of some of the homes appear to have never been mowed. There are apartments for rent all over the Triangle, so it’s not like they can’t find a place to live. So far as a sense of community is concerned, none of the duplexes that were removed had front porches. Each of the new homes on Nottingham have large front porches with rockers. The many walkers on Nottingham and Churchill all seem to enjoy greeting people working in their yards and sitting on their porches. That was one of the interests by the builder in adding large porches to the homes..
So what is it that this builder did that is so bad?

Thomas Bland, President
Preservation Homes

Mark08/01 09:45 PM

Thomas,

Thank you for your letter. The main purpose of this conversation is to raise a relavant issue to be discussed intellegently by our reader audience.

I appreciate your response, but find several inconsistencies with it.

[Just because some of the existing duplexes in this area are dilapidated, does not mean that it is right for your organization to tear down and build structures that are completely inappropriate with regard to the existing houses on the street.]

“Each duplex had two, two bedroom homes, totaling about 1100 square feet. So each duplex took up about 2200 square feet of ground space, not including the porch stoops and steps.“

I vehemently disagree with this statement. Most of the said duplexes are roughly half of the size you claim.

“The new homes do not exceed the footprint of the previous duplexes”

The new houses easily double the previous footprints.

“So what is it that this builder did that is so bad?“

Mr. Bland, you ARE this builder. The issue is not whether you have done anything “bad.“ The issue is your moral (and environmental) responsibility as a citizen and more importantly, as a builder. How can you sleep at night, and call your company Preservation Homes? What are you preserving?

Spencer Bland08/02 02:51 PM

wow, all of you are so happy that a house burnt down, and im probably sure that it was one of you, or someone you know that did it! Breigh you talk abut how these houses take up all the space on the lot and that all the trees are cut down in the process, that the yards are so small they can only get three passes with the mower, and yes that maybe be terrible, but if you care so much for the environment, hmm sounds like a hippie to me, or did i offend you guys this time, so sorry of me. you speak of how much you care about your surrounding environment yet your yard, and you say you live close buy so im guessing yuo live in one of the duplexes with the neglected front and back yard, but if you care so much about the environment and wildlife, then do you part to change it, im sure the wildlife surrounding this area (which is probably a few birds and random squirrels and the stray dog) love to walk through the trash you leave in your front yard, if you like the environment so much, then move out of the city, its impossible to care for the environment today because noone else does. and have you stopped to think about all of the polution that the smoke billowing from this house has caused to the ozone layer, so while all of you “activists and hippies” are freaking out abuot some houses that may or may not be to big for their lots, the fact of the matter is that the house that im sure one of you set on fire is hurting the environment more than the three trees cutdown to make room for these houses.

and on another note you say that these houses take from the community, i think not, now i dont speak for everyone on this one, but i would much rather look at a well built 4000-6000 sg ft lot than a run down tiny version of the ghetto that is being displayed on adjacent streets to knottingham, if its your thing to make the city look as rundown as possible so you can try and preserve its “natural being” or whatever it is you people do then go ahead, but you will find that a majority of the cities population would rather drive by a house that makes them say “now that looks nice” than a house that would make them say “dear God to humans still live there.“

i’m going to end this post before i write a novel on how biased you people are on the environment, and how in reality there is NOTHING you can do to make it better, no matter how much you recycle, bike to work, use compost bins, or whatever you do, there is nothing you can do to make a HUGE significant change, not enough people care. so why dont all of you go go to whole foods by something organic, sit on your macromade couch and complain about establishment all day. thank you for you time.

Oh and I’m Tom Blands son and if any of you try and screw with my dad or my family, or anything or anyone related to me, i will find you and inflict serious pain on you, youve made you threats, ive made mine.

-Spencer-

Detective S. A. Hume, Raleigh Police Department08/02 03:03 PM

Regardless of whether you are for or against the new homes in the Sunset Hills area, we certainly do not want anyone setting fires that could spread to other homes and possibly causing injuries. With this in mind, if anyone has any information on the fire that occurred at 1419 Nottingham Road on August 1, 2007, please contact Detective S. A. Hume at 919-890-3187 or by e-mail . You may remain anonymous if you wish.

Thank you,

Detective Hume, RPD

tim08/03 05:40 PM

I am writing in response to some of the ignorant comments that have been posted in regards to this article. I would like to know if those of you that seem to be relishing the fact that someones home was burned to the ground realize that this house was more than someones home. This house represents the lively hood of hundreds of families in this community you claim to care so deeply about. Preservation Homes provides a good living for it’s employees as well as contributing to the lively hoods of the suppliers and sub-contractors that they work with. Those people in turn contribute to the greater economy. This is the way that the American system works. If you don’t like it why don’t you buy the rest of the property that the owners have been so willing to sell for up to ten 5 times what they paid for them and turn it into a park? The simple answer is that you are to busy whining about how things are instead of doing something about. I am tired of people like you that complain about eveything when they are really just jealous that someone else worked their tail off to get something that they will never have. I bet you the people that live in these new homes are very proud of them and feel that they make a positive impact on this community. I am also sure that the people that build these houses take a great deal of pride in there job and what can be accomplished through hard work and team effort. Unfortunatly these are things you seem to know nothing about. You claim that you do not condone what happened yet in your artcle you seem to be happy that this happened. That is pathetic to say the least. You are liars spreading malice and I think you are not responsible citizens as you claim to. Maybe you should get your facts straight instead of making up the things to fit into your agenda. Get a life.

David08/03 05:48 PM

Tim,
No one here relishes in what happened to that house or Preservation Homes. We don’t agree with the aesthetics of the work being done in that area and we used this event as an opportunity to express that. I am sorry that you and others have had to resort to personal attacks to get your message across.

Mark08/03 06:53 PM

Freedom of speech is a beautiful right that is afforded to each and every American. It is a shame when it is channeled through the sort of biased and uneducated form of ethnocentrism represented in some of the comments on this thread. This conversation was meant to raise awareness of the gentrification that is happening in Raleigh, particularly inside the beltline. I agree that it is not fair to scapegoat Preservation Homes when there are many other developers in Raleigh building far worse housing than Thomas Bland.

I would like to personally apologize if any of the comments that I have made offended anyone, especially the owners, employees, and customers of Preservation Homes.

However, I fully stand by the comments that I made regarding the appropriateness of Preservation Homes’ work, as well as criticisms arraigning the sort of dishonest marketing savvy that the company uses to sell their product.

Also, I would like to comment on a statement in the above post:

“someones home was burned to the ground realize that this house was more than someones home…“

Remember the number one rule of real estate: say whatever it takes to sell. Even if this means distorting the truth.

I am convinced, that you cannot “buy” a home.

A man builds a house to live in. He takes a wife and bears children. They decorate it and choose furniture. It is here that they eat, sleep, laugh, and cry. They dwell and dream, building this notion of home. This notion is unique to all of them, as they are conscious and independent beings, each their own. It is sickening to me when people sell these notions as product. Fuck Rooms to Go.

Unfortunately, the world of Real Estate and Commerce simply has no respect for humanism or the deeply seeded dream-like emotions that each individual person contains. Dwellings in our culture are revered as commodity, and there is hardly more conclusive evidence of this phenomenon than in our everyday use of the word home.

It’s very easy to see buying as investment. But please, I beg of you, don’t be blinded by capitalism. Remember what it’s like being a child. The feeling of coming inside after playing in the cold, hands red and chapped. Warming up inside, and that stinging feeling in your fingers. Sipping warm, home cooked soup beneath a blanket. A developer can’t sell me that.

Remember the feeling, standing on a stoop watching the rain fall in the summer. The humidity on your skin. And at night, the fireflies lighting up the pine trees.

Its easy to forget these memories when you are all grown up, and society tells you that you have to be successful.

So, Mr. Thomas Bland, please don’t pass off everything that you are doing as good and as right and correct as you would have them seen; the people that you displace from these rental duplexes are just as human as you, but perhaps just not as fortunate.

tim08/03 07:07 PM

Let me retort by once again pointing out your ignorance to the “facts”. The house that was burned was a Home. The people that buy these houses are very involved in how they are appointed and I’m sure they feel that they have made very personal choices in that regard. I am certain that they had dreams of spending time with there families in their new home and maybe creating the kind of memories you point out. I feel that you are entilted to your opinions but don’t be so naive to think that yours is the correct one. Freedom of speech yes. Distorting truths to shape an argument so that others will feel the same way that you do, no. If you do not like free market capitalism move to another country. The truth is that you won’t. You love this country to much. Well then, stop complaining about the things you can not control. Let others live out there dreams even if they do not coincide with yours.

Chad08/03 07:29 PM

I believe that what Mark was saying is that a house isn’t a home until people are living in it. Even if the family is involved in the planning of it. Until then it is a bunch of different materials arranged in a way that will eventually support the needs/lifestyle of the future family. I think the objective in calling a structure that is partially built (or doesn’t exist yet) a home is to present an idea(home) as a noun that can be purchased.

David08/03 07:46 PM

If anyone can cite what ‘truths’ that may be distorted, we would be glad to correct them. At this point I have no evidence that the houses there are as small as Bland says they are. In fact there is much evidence that they are much more in line with what was reported in the article- to quote an article profiling Preservation Homes’ work:
Throughout much of this more than 7,000-square-foot home, Bland used exotic Indonesian Merbau plank flooring, ...

tim08/03 08:14 PM

Ok, now i will point out the lies for you so that you can remove them from the artcle.
1) The neighboring house, also under construction, shows signs of significant fire damage.
Actually it probably will cost less than 1000 dollars to repair
2) This area has been ground zero for tear downs recently, spearheaded by Preservation homes and other developers.
Preservation Homes has built 5 homes inside the belt line. A rather small spearhead of the number of tear downs.
3) The construction has been moving at a rapid pace as small duplexes and single family homes been replaced by 6 and 7 thousand square foot houses that do not have yards and frequently use the park they border as overflow parking.

Five houses in 3 years is not a rapid pace, the houses all have yards and there are people that live in all of the surrounding homes that use the park to park their vehicles. Not just the people that live in these homes.
4) These houses have highlighted the irresponsible approach that developers have taken in the neighborhood as they clear the lots of any trees and build the house within inches of the edges of their lots.
All of the lots have trees remaining on them hence saying all would be inacurate. The homes are set back acording to town ordinance which would be several feet, not inches as you mantain.
5) Many of the homes in the area shade the previously sunny gardens and yards of their neighbors and remove any feeling of privacy as they loom well above what would be perceived as an appropriate size.
They may shade the lots adjacent to them, but how do you think the people that live in them feel about the piled up bags of trash they have to look at and smell. Im sure the rats and roaches are happy about that though so i won’t contest that one.

Looks like it will now be a very short peace. Thanks.

David08/03 08:47 PM

Well, you got us! Your point on number 1 has been noted, we were plain wrong, and now it’s corrected. Lucky you! Your intimate involvement with the builder is obvious when you can know such specific figures.

Now, seeing as how the other points are limited to opinion and not fact, I don’t feel inclined to make any further changes.

I will point out that the irony of your poor spelling with regards to piece, is not lost. It will indeed be a very short “peace,“ because this little blog has extracted enough anger and rage from you and others like you that there hasn’t been *any* “peace.“ If you want to be civil and talk about aesthetics, design and community, you are welcome here, regardless of your position. I have an option for you and anyone else that can’t communicate without breaking down into rage when talking about Raleigh development: don’t read us, and don’t comment.

tim08/03 09:07 PM

There you go again with assumptions. I would expect nothing less. You do not know me. You should not profess to know my relation to anyone. As for rage, nothing i have posted can be construed as rage. Just my opinion that once again differs from yours. I have been nothing but civil. As for the miss spelling i would expect nothing less from someone like yourself who rails against elitism but can not help but point out a simple mistake. I would say that is elitism in every respect. As far as reading and posting, I beleive there is something about freedom of speach. I am displaying my freedom to say the you do not “disiminate truth” as you state. I am sure that you will figure out some more lies to post, so have at it. I am done arguing with you.

Russ08/14 12:16 PM

I am sorry to read most of this from both sides. I wish people on both extremes could take a breath for a while and recognize that a serious crime has been committed by someone. I don’t believe anyone is condoning the crime but I also don’t think this is the proper venue for the “McMansion” discussion. Please do that somewhere else if you can.

I live in one of these new homes (3,800 feet for the record); I have a family in one of these homes. I despise the thought that my family, by purchasing this wonderful new home, is somehow ruining some perceived neighborhood character and would prefer to think that my wife, dog, and young children are a wonderful addition to the neighborhood. We’re active citizens in the community and are protective of our wonderful neighborhood. The other families living in these homes are also lifelong Raleigh folks who are adding to the character, not taking away from it. We are the people walking our dogs through the park (and picking up their poops); we are the people who are saddened by the privileged teenagers who drive their SUVs through the park when it rains; we are the people who are saddened when “no parking” signs are knocked over; we are the people trying to make this part of the world a little better (not via capitalism, via community activism and just plain-ole friendly relations with our neighbors).

I’ve lived in Raleigh all my life; I know this area very well. Before I moved here, I lived just a few miles away. And I’d prefer if angry discussions about the politics of teardowns was taken somewhere else. I met the would-be owner of the burned-down house and he has lived in the area for a long time as well. We are not and should not be dragged through a political discussion here. It’s an issue that has it’s place; I don’t believe it’s right here. Please give us a break.

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David Wednesday, August 01, 2007