4 ms·

There's a lot we can do even in cities. I own a house now and it's pretty ridiculous how restricted the city makes your home. For example, I must set the house

There's a lot we can do even in cities. I own a house now and it's pretty ridiculous how restricted the city makes your home. For example, I must set the house back 25 feet from the front curb, and 15 feet from the back. Basically you can't legally extend just about any house and make room for a growing family. You must always move.

icantdrive55 10y ago
It's overly restrictive zoning, and towns that seem to have nothing better to do than enact new municipal codes. "Oh--apply for a Variance? But that's $1500.00 just for a nay. My little town has made a fortune off of denying variances. I was 25, and about to buy a broken down cabin in a coastal Marin town. The cabin was literally sitting, half way, on a dead redwood stump. I thought I just need to rebuild the foundation. I wont be increasing size, but just putting in a proper foundation. Yea! My first home! Went to the zoning department. The lady told me that house needs 75 feet of front yard, and 25 feet side set backs. I couldn't build because my cabin would be negative in size. The minute I started to rebuild the cabin, the county could red tag the cabin--leaving me with a piece land that's useless. (Now I know why the seller seemed nervous.) She said, there's always a variance. I was about to ask for the paper work. She looked me up, and down. She said, "They haven't approved a variance since I've been here. In retrospect, I should have just bought the cabin, and lived I it until it slid down the hill. I believe that old Redwood stump would have held, but I was young. These towns have enacted too many laws. I literally had a cop show up for having a sun shade on a relatives car. "It needs to be 25 feet back." Then a Fireman said the potted Bamboo plant needs to go--there a fire danger. He said the fine could be up to $350 if I don't remove the plant. Oh, and parking tickets. If the purpose of no overnight parking on streets is for the egress of emergency vecciles; why can my wealthy neighbors by quarltly overnight parking permits? I wish there was some way to turn back a lot of these fee producing muni codes, but they seem bullet proof. It looks like it easier to remove a federal regulation, than a local one?
Broken_Hippo 10y ago
You can often build upwards.
- Neliquat 10y ago
  Or as londoners do, downward.
- c22 10y ago
  Except you often can't since most single story homes weren't designed to support the weight of extra floors. You'll end up needing to replace the foundation and load bearing walls which means either demoing the whole house and starting over or raising the existing structure on hydraulic jacks then building a new foundation and first floor underneath it. Neither of these options are in the same ballpark of convenience or expense as adding a wing.
pbhjpbhj 10y ago
Not allowing houses to grow helps to ensure the are smaller houses. Something you relied on to get your house, others will this rely on that when you move out. I see the sense in it.
mason240 10y ago
There were anti-gentrification laws passed like in the city I'm and some of the first ring suburbs about 10 years. There was fear-mongering about people "destroying the charm of quaint 1960's neighborhoods of small single family houses" by knocking down to build larger, 3 story houses in their place.

icantdrive55 10y ago

It's overly restrictive zoning, and towns that seem to have nothing better to do than enact new municipal codes. "Oh--apply for a Variance? But that's $1500.00 just for a nay. My little town has made a fortune off of denying variances. I was 25, and about to buy a broken down cabin in a coastal Marin town. The cabin was literally sitting, half way, on a dead redwood stump. I thought I just need to rebuild the foundation. I wont be increasing size, but just putting in a proper foundation. Yea! My first home! Went to the zoning department. The lady told me that house needs 75 feet of front yard, and 25 feet side set backs. I couldn't build because my cabin would be negative in size. The minute I started to rebuild the cabin, the county could red tag the cabin--leaving me with a piece land that's useless. (Now I know why the seller seemed nervous.) She said, there's always a variance. I was about to ask for the paper work. She looked me up, and down. She said, "They haven't approved a variance since I've been here. In retrospect, I should have just bought the cabin, and lived I it until it slid down the hill. I believe that old Redwood stump would have held, but I was young. These towns have enacted too many laws. I literally had a cop show up for having a sun shade on a relatives car. "It needs to be 25 feet back." Then a Fireman said the potted Bamboo plant needs to go--there a fire danger. He said the fine could be up to $350 if I don't remove the plant. Oh, and parking tickets. If the purpose of no overnight parking on streets is for the egress of emergency vecciles; why can my wealthy neighbors by quarltly overnight parking permits? I wish there was some way to turn back a lot of these fee producing muni codes, but they seem bullet proof. It looks like it easier to remove a federal regulation, than a local one?

Broken_Hippo 10y ago

You can often build upwards.

Neliquat 10y ago
Or as londoners do, downward.
c22 10y ago
Except you often can't since most single story homes weren't designed to support the weight of extra floors. You'll end up needing to replace the foundation and load bearing walls which means either demoing the whole house and starting over or raising the existing structure on hydraulic jacks then building a new foundation and first floor underneath it. Neither of these options are in the same ballpark of convenience or expense as adding a wing.

pbhjpbhj 10y ago

Not allowing houses to grow helps to ensure the are smaller houses. Something you relied on to get your house, others will this rely on that when you move out. I see the sense in it.

mason240 10y ago

There were anti-gentrification laws passed like in the city I'm and some of the first ring suburbs about 10 years. There was fear-mongering about people "destroying the charm of quaint 1960's neighborhoods of small single family houses" by knocking down to build larger, 3 story houses in their place.