Obamaville
The Washington Post writes about a new trend happening in the alleyways of DC. Tiny 200 square foot homes are springing up in Northeast DC.
“This is the dream,” says Rin Westcott, 28, who lives in Columbia and came out on a wintry Saturday afternoon bundled in a flower hat to help her friend Lee Pera with a tiny-house raising.
Pera, 35, wore safety goggles as she treated the cedar boards of her “little house in the alleyway,” one of three under construction in what is thought to be one of the country’s first tiny-house model communities.
If these affordable homes — which maximize every inch of interior space and look a little like well-constructed playhouses — are the dream, they represent a radically fresh version of what it takes to make Americans happy.
Yeah, you can imagine what the Post would be saying about these people building tiny houses if there was a Republican President. But, not a peep about the White House being unable to resurrect the economy, just this;
Although the diminutive homes are made of high-quality materials, they are priced for a flagging economy. They sell for $20,000 to $50,000, less than the down payment on a two-bedroom condo in a trendy D.C. neighborhood.
A “flagging economy” is all they squeeze out of their Thesaurus. By the way, that $50k price tag is more than half of what I paid for this three bedroom house on 5 acres, so enjoy yourselves down there with your doll-house sized home in the city that I recently abandoned.
November 28th, 2012 at 1:40 pm
Heh-when a Republican was President they talked about “Katrina cottages” http://inhabitat.com/katrina-cottage-follow-up/ .
Of course they were about 3x as large and nowhere near $50K. M
November 28th, 2012 at 1:42 pm
Got cut off-”Maybe there is an opportunity to make money of gullible bureaucrats…er, I mean decent and hard working government employees.”
November 28th, 2012 at 1:43 pm
BAMA PHONE … YA KNOW … BAMA HOME … YA KNOW!
November 28th, 2012 at 1:45 pm
Wow. I could probably pack about 500 of them things onto my land. Imagine the income!!!
November 28th, 2012 at 1:55 pm
Was wondering where all the occupants of McPherson Square went off to…at least the park is clean and trashless again.
November 28th, 2012 at 2:06 pm
Would it racist of me point out the similarities to the chattel houses of the old Caribbean plantations?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chattel_house
Probably.
November 28th, 2012 at 2:10 pm
150 to 200 SQUARE feet! The old saying “Never poop where you eat” evidently can’t be obeyed in one of these pretty sheds. Crazy stuff.
November 28th, 2012 at 2:13 pm
Guess it beats sleeping in a dumpster. But, really? These are repugnant on so many levels.
November 28th, 2012 at 2:51 pm
@6
Yes, but it would be appropriate!!
BTW, there is a common bathroom down wind. That outta smell good in the summertime.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:06 pm
I wonder what the building permit cost. Has the district sold off the alleys? If not these “homes” need to be built on skids so they can be pushed out of the way of the fire engines that need to use the alleys to fight fires in the neighborhood.
Out where I live a dwelling needs to be inspected during construction and receive a certificate of occupancy. It needs a bath room and a separate kitchen. You can build a cabin without all of the permits and inspections, but you can’t live in it full time. And your cabin is seen as an improvement so you pay property taxes on it. Where is the tax man in all of this?
November 28th, 2012 at 3:09 pm
Sheds are cheaper and bigger. There’s about 2k to 5k worth of materials and labor in these Obama homes, so I’m surprised they’re not complaining of price gouging as well.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:15 pm
200 square feet? Yeah, that’ll work out when the Missus pumps out a kid or three.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:22 pm
Frank Lloyd Wright spent years making tiny homes, but unsurprisingly his make thse look more like toolsheds. One thing that struck me is that since these don’t usually qualify for mortgages, how do you get rid of one once you upsize your family? You have to find somebody willing to buy a tiny house for cash, who doesn’t want a new one built to his spec.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:25 pm
Why don’t the just move to 1600 Penn Ave. No one is using that address. Might as well get some good out of it.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:29 pm
While I built myself quite a nice place in 220 Sq. Ft. I was used to truck sleepers of 8ft X 10ft. Mine is more than adequate for one person and a large dog, and is actually nicer in many ways than a big ol’ house,(How many of you have a shower with varnished wood walls?). I doubt that theirs are as easy on the eye inside as my “little log house on the prairie”: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4038576197901.2147935.1086639350&type=3
If you can’t get in because of my settings, maybe I would “Friend” you.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:30 pm
You guys really are out of touch, aren’t you? Pretty lame attempt to politicize a noble idea. It’s a nationwide trend, many are being built in urban and rural areas by people who could well afford go larger but choose not to. There are a lot of reasons to downsize, McMansions are so yesterday, many people prefer a smaller footprint, and monthly payment. Freeing yourself of a lot of superflous “stuff” can be liberating. Some self-aggrandizing people seem to need McMansions, and all the wasted resources therein, to feel good about themselves.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:33 pm
Reminds me of something that I built as a child with scrap lumber, except I called it a clubhouse/fort.
@15, that is nice.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:33 pm
I thought shipping containers were the small, low cost housing of the future. Heck, a 20′ container gives you at least 160 square feet, and you can stack them if you want a second story.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:34 pm
@10. They can’t get permits because the buildings as living places are undersized per code. So what are they gonna do? Why change the code, of course!
November 28th, 2012 at 3:37 pm
My garden shed is bigger than those “houses” and I paid $300 for it at Sears.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:39 pm
#16- because it’s kind of difficult to have a proper jam session in a 200 square foot house. Or a good party.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:44 pm
Yeah, it’s downright unamerican (i.e.,they don’t consume enough resources)
http://www.cozylittlehouse.com/2011/06/why-small-house-movement-works/
http://rt.com/usa/news/small-tiny-house-estate-534/
http://www.smallhousestyle.com/
November 28th, 2012 at 3:51 pm
Seriously, Joe? Noble? $20,000 for a goddam garden shed is noble? Dumbass…
November 28th, 2012 at 3:55 pm
It is not nice to plagiarize, joe. Are you so unoriginal you had to steal your little rant from the first link?
November 28th, 2012 at 3:57 pm
Thanks Twist. That small one that I built is far from a garden shed, having a “tin roof” and so well insulated that I could not hear the rainfall from inside. Code level +25% insulation under floors, in walls n ceilings, e-glass windows, etc. made it very much more than a garden shed.
Yes to shipping container(s). Best storm shelter material on the market, and they needn’t be sunk to subterranean level, (just sink deep anchors and tie them in at the lockpoints in the corners of the containers). they can be insulated, sided with siding from vinyl to brick, and would last forever.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:57 pm
@15 Frank: There is something romantic (NOT THAT WAY!) in what you described but these folks aren’t about rustic living or choosing tiny. They are in the District of Columbia and I’ll bet dollars to donuts not one of them is self sufficient.
November 28th, 2012 at 3:58 pm
@16 Joe — a noble idea
I notice you’re not living in one.
AND UNPLUG YOUR FUCKING ELECTRIC METER ALREADY!!!!
November 28th, 2012 at 4:00 pm
Joe thank you for correcting me. I will now proceed to the nearest re-education camp so I too will know that tiny is the NEW BIG. What a concept, down size the American Dream because of someone else’ failures to lead, and then call it noble.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:03 pm
Joe kinda reminds me of Al Gore who tells everyone to lessen their footprint and then burns thousands of gallons of jet fuel to fly home to his mansion and it’s $20,000 electric bill.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:07 pm
Joe,
Nice attempt at a strawman. Well, not really. It was a crappy one but I was trying to be charitable. As the hamster wheel turns in your head, apparently anything that isn’t hobbit-sized is automatically a “McMansion”. That includes a staggeringly wide range of perfectly modest and reasonable house/condo/townhouse sizes that most of these people could probably afford to live in with the application of an equally modest amount of common sense.
I’m all about free choice, so I don’t even care if someone chooses to live in the square footage of a small mini-warehouse unit. When I consider where most of these are being built, however, I also think that the owners better damn well adhere to every single dotted I and crossed T of the zoning, building, public health and tax codes in their localities.
These new “homeowners” should experience every single drop of joy that can be found in obtaining the proper permits.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:10 pm
Do you know what would be cool? Make one of these tiny houses with wheels so you can tow it to different sites. Or build one into a truck so you could drive it. And what if they had places where you could plug the electric, sewage, and water in, some kind of park…
What?
November 28th, 2012 at 4:12 pm
Twist–don’t forget that the ocean levels are rising and that the earth has a fever, and sells that shit so well that he can afford to buy an $8.5 million mansion on the beach in Montecito.
Liberal hypocrisy knows no bounds.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:13 pm
Yeah PP Ranger, I’m all for rational zoning, codes, and enforcement. So we agree on that. Zoning that madates conspicuous consumption, not so much.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:15 pm
I didn’t know I had an $8.5 million dollar mansion NHS. Could you direct me to my mansion?
November 28th, 2012 at 4:15 pm
Nah, let’s just shove 3-4 people into each one of these tool sheds (ahem…ecologically sensitive housing units) and see how well the water, sewer, and electrical systems can handle a population density worse than Hong Kong.
You start, Joe.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:16 pm
Joe–I’m talking about your hero, ManBearPig.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/17/photos-al-goree-new-8875_n_579286.html#s91230
Excelsior!!!
Now move into your tool shed and unplug your fucking meter.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:22 pm
Here’s another idea for micro housing. Building them in place is inefficient, and customization leads to that nasty conspicuous consumption Joe is going on about. So, let’s build these mini-homes in factories, then tow them to where they’re needed.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:28 pm
It’s funny to see how hard and traumatic it is for you guys to wrap your ossified brains around a pretty benign new idea, and how your own cognitive dissonance makes you go off in all sorts of irrational directions. I needed a good laugh today.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:28 pm
Mr. Blue’s really on to something here. Once they are built and towed to their final locations, we’ll need to designate them somehow, and why not give them a name that gives off a nice open and neighborly feeling.
It should be called a something “Park”.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:30 pm
Joe found a thesaurus.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:31 pm
Joe,
You missed my point entirely. But, I knew that was about 105% likely to happen. The people who undoubtedly voted for onerous layers of bureaucracy and arbitrary, patronage based permit systems should get to experience all of the misery and stupidity that resides within.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:38 pm
I’m always amused at the DC residents who’d rather live in a box then learn that the VRE and MARC exist.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:40 pm
And this is why I keep coming back. This is all very entertaining and hysterical – and I thank you.
@Joe – If you haven’t learned already, those of us who are regulars on this blog “all hate for a living… we hate everybody and everything.” (Who said this?)
November 28th, 2012 at 4:40 pm
Like it or not, we equate structures with class. Big structure, lots of class. Little structure, no class. Shack, shed, etc.
What’s wrong with living in a micro-house, if that’s what you want to live in?
It’s not a new idea. I believe the original term for this was “cabin.” Miners and trappers used them all the time…and still do!
November 28th, 2012 at 4:41 pm
Who in their right mind would buy that for 50 grand???
November 28th, 2012 at 4:44 pm
USMCE8Ret, it’s definitely no love fest.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:48 pm
What’s wrong with small houses? My little house is 1056 square feet. 3 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, laundry room, lots of closets, and it’s mine, all mine, ooh-oh mine all mine.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:48 pm
“Like it or not, we equate structures with class. Big structure, lots of class. Little structure, no class. Shack, shed, etc.”
With all due respect Pinto, I don’t like it, and I don’t buy into it.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:51 pm
#39: I like that idea. For the sake of efficiency during the winter months, let’s put these “parks” in places like Florida and Arizona. And let’s be hyped efficient with land use by putting them on really tiny lots.
Hey Joe, I think you’re on to something here…
November 28th, 2012 at 4:53 pm
I don’t like it either, Joe. I’m a minimalist at heart.
November 28th, 2012 at 4:55 pm
Yeah, let’s all get Mao suits too. And hows about a Yugo for each? Then let’s storm some Georgetown burgeoisie townhomes and pile the fruits of those capitalist pigs in the street and light it up! Then we can march on the utility companies and chant “Free Power to the People.” Yep. Sounds like a good time.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:00 pm
@51 As with anything else, forcing folks to do this would take all the fun out of it.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:02 pm
So, what do you think the Post’s take on a trailer home would be? I mean, some of those are only 650 square feet. Where’s the story about how novel and wonderful trailer home living can be? No, that isn’t happening, is it? It’s not about living small at all, is it?
November 28th, 2012 at 5:03 pm
Hey I got a better idea we take the houses and tow them out onto a frozen lake and cut a hole in the floor…
November 28th, 2012 at 5:06 pm
@52 Not if you are a commie or a Liberal. Telling other people what to do is your favorite past time. Loads of fun making other people do shit you have no intention of doing. It is all fun and games until someone looses and eye, THEN it is just plain FUN.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:07 pm
A trailer is a mobile structure, and that REALLY carries a stigma. Like it or not, we still think “trailer trash” when these are around, no matter how nice they are.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:10 pm
I’m still wondering if Joe lives in a one of these under 200 square foot houses he’s advocating.
Well? How about it?
November 28th, 2012 at 5:23 pm
Liberal mantra…good for thee not for me!
November 28th, 2012 at 5:26 pm
#58: Usually followed up with the Noble Excuse.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:27 pm
PN: WE do? Well, that aside, my point is that the story is ostensibly a celebration of small living–but only that type of small living that carries the Liberal Stamp of Approval. Down with the couple who reside in a four bedroom house! Down with the fellow who owns more than he truly needs! Down with those who earn more than others think they should! To me, this story is just a tiny tile in a large mosaic being assembled all around us. And I do not like the picture at all.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:39 pm
A few people choose to downsize and you guys start shooting off about Mao , liberal hypocrisy, being forced to live in a small house. “Paranoia strikes feel, into your heart it will creep” – Neil Young
November 28th, 2012 at 5:40 pm
strikes deep. Damn autocorrect
November 28th, 2012 at 5:41 pm
Air Cav…stripping off the pretty paint, it smacks of those crackerbox buildings that were built block by block in Soviet Russia.
I see the mosaic you describe, also.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:42 pm
So what does this all look like from the air? Anybody spotted it on a satellite map site yet? Looking at ‘boneyard studios’ it seems like somewhere there is a lot, with a lot of tiny homes on it which are currently classed as vehicles/trailers because they’re too small to pass zoning. DC “Shanty Town”? Please tell me it’s not as bad as that sounds.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:43 pm
Hey! Joey! Over here!
I asked you a question.
Do. You. Live. In. A. House. 200 sq ff. Or. Smaller.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:44 pm
Hey Joe. I think “you guys” is only me and, yep, I’m venting my spleen because I see a bigger picture here. And what’s with the Neil Young quote? The guy who sounds like a cat being tortured? “Southern Man” Neil Young? I prefer “Sweet Home Alabama.”
November 28th, 2012 at 5:44 pm
A lot of the small house movement (at least in more rural areas) are people in their 20′s or 30′s who are looking to build something that they can own outright rather than deal with a mortgage or people who are planning for retirement and choosing to move out of the city.
My wife and I currently have 1600 square feet in the middle of town on 1/5 an acre.
If we could go to 750 to 1000 square feet on 5-10 acres outside the city once the kid is out of High School why not?
The reason for the small square footage on some tiny homes (<200) is that in most states the permitting process is much reduced or non-existent.
And there are issues with shipping containers that can make them difficult to use. Though here's a great hunting cabin design that is well done: http://www.tincancabin.com/how-to-build/
November 28th, 2012 at 5:55 pm
Wanting a small house that you can buy up front without a loan is not the issue. It’s the disparaging and deriding of the guy with the BIG house on the hill as if he is somehow undeserving. I want Americans to be free to choose how and where they want to live, to drive what they want to drive, to live wherever they want–all without having the gubmint making it more and more difficult to do just that in an infinite number of creative (and loathesome) ways.
November 28th, 2012 at 5:55 pm
Looks like the pidegeon coop I built when I was a kid.
November 28th, 2012 at 6:27 pm
Heat from the flat screen TV = no need for a furnace.
November 28th, 2012 at 6:29 pm
Still having a problem with $50K for 200 sq ft or less. Wow!
But if that is what you want, go for it. Just don’t lecture the rest of us for making a different choice. OK?
Oh, wait. Too late. The hypocrites already landed.
November 28th, 2012 at 6:37 pm
OK, Carolina Home Plans has plans for small houses from 550 square feet up to 965 sq ft. One bedroom, one bathroom, plenty of windows and living space, nice porches and the cost to build is (depending on where you live) $79/sf to $125/sf. What’s the big deal?
For those of you who were not alive in the 1950s like me, the suburban housing developments were underway big time, and I remember my father’s annoyance at the size of what he called “crackerbox” houses, which were 1000sf to 1200sf, 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom Cape Cod-style homes on 1/4 acre lots. They are still there. They have held up quite well. They were originally sold for between $2,500 and $4,000, but it was 1952 and a lot of them were built for vets from World War II and the Korean War. I see some of them around where I now live.
I think the issue is that a lot of people are downsizing anyway because they got stung by the housing debacle and they don’t want to be in debt forever, nor do they give a crap about impressing anyone. I don’t think anyone is being ‘forced’ to live in these cubicles.
November 28th, 2012 at 7:05 pm
I looked into some of these extra small houses for a while and I still think it’s a pretty interesting idea. I wouldn’t be able to fit all my stuff–so I’d have to get rid of most of my stuff. Stuff doesn’t really make me that happy, when you get down to it, and I’m pretty attached to some of it, but there are times I think a house fire while we were away is the kindest thing that could happen to us.
I have zero problem with other people having big houses, but I’m not entirely certain that my life is much better with a moderate 2BR home on half an acre than it was in a tiny apartment, except that I don’t share a wall with neighbors.
I don’t know how much of this is just yearning for the good old days of my 7′ by 7′ B-hut room in Afghanistan. Ahh, plywood heaven.
November 28th, 2012 at 7:15 pm
Mr. Blue – condo, 900 sq ft. But if/when we move we will consider going smaller.
November 28th, 2012 at 7:36 pm
My ‘hut’ in Kuwait was bigger- and more comfortable, and likely better built. My trailer in Baghdad even more so. And I can guaranfriggintee you no one paid 50k for either one, or even both.
What they are paying for is that land. SanFran is doing nearly the very same thing as this- only they cost even more than these do due to land costs.
My lawnmower has more room than people do in these things.
Want to know what’s next? Just wait- they’re gonna start STACKING them. Then, start calling them collectives.
In 5 years or so, this is going to be a ‘hi-crime’ area because the people are too close, and have no way to get away from each other. You can bet on this.
Would I use one for a hunting cabin? Probably- after adding a huge fireplace. And putting it on at least 20 acres if not more. But not within gunshot range of any neighbor for certain, let along within sight.
And if you think I’m some wastrel, fear not- my entire house is 100% solar powered. So there. (but I make up for it owning 6 cars and 6 motorcycles. So my karma evens out)
November 28th, 2012 at 7:38 pm
I just want to know when everything over 200 sq ft became a McMansion like #16 claims, especially when you have a family of 4? I like my large foot print, I want an even bigger foot print with land so I don’t have to live next to other people.
November 28th, 2012 at 7:42 pm
What doesn’t make sense to me is why anyone would want to live in DC at all, be it a mini-house, townhouse, or the White House.
November 28th, 2012 at 8:01 pm
Some people are buying up Airstream trailers, gutting and rehabbing them and living in those, instead of these over-built, overpriced, silly egocentric architectural displays.
Before the housing collapse, there were people building the oversized houses, having a few parties, and then moving out, within 18 months of moving in, to something more upscale — whatever that is.
November 28th, 2012 at 8:20 pm
I just did some quick math and they are paying 2.5 time more per square foot for a 200square foot house in DC. I live in a 3 bedroom 2 bathroom house with a two car garage and an unfinished basement. Sounds like someone is making a very bad financial decision, but that is just me.
November 28th, 2012 at 8:22 pm
Am I missing something? Do they do own the land? Or are they “squatting” in city owned alleyways? It is a little unclear from the article. Property in the city is still expensive. So buying a lot that is likely much much more than the tiny home, then adding the price of the home could still amount to a hefty expendature.
@ Joe while I agree with living in a smaller footprint, and practice it (tiny appartment kinda similar to tiny house); damned if you coming here with your nose upturned and your lecturing did not bring bile to my throat. I want an Escalade and a 10 gallon hat after reading your comments – sarcasm. Honestly, how many buzz words from WaPo did you recycle in your comments I lost track. But I guess recycling is a big part of the whole “(in)conspicuous consumption” thing.
~smoke-check
November 28th, 2012 at 8:49 pm
Those little cabins are not on permanent foundations. They are all on wheels, making it easy to hitch them to a truck and move them. The gallery of photos that accompany the article clearly show what look like 30-gallon water tanks being brought in to act as water sources, meaning they have to be refilled daily, and oddly enough, there was nothing mentioned about waste water outflow.
These are wooden, axle-mounted trailers, nothing else. Whoever has a snotty attitude about it, give it up. They’re trailers and they cost a hell of a lot more than they should for something that small. This is a serious ripoff. For the amount of money they’re spending, they could get a really nice double-wide in a nice mobile home park. $50,000 for these garden sheds? Come on!
But — this just tickles me pink — if you’re dumb enough to think that this alleyside location is better than a trailer park, just wait until DC decides it ain’t so hot and decides to move all of these people OUT, whether they like it or not.
November 28th, 2012 at 8:56 pm
Here’s a nice little number over in Matteson. 1800 square feet, fireplace, garage, nice lot, for $29,900.
http://www.solsticecommunities.com/homes_detail.aspx?src=104&id=5794#HomeDetail
November 28th, 2012 at 9:01 pm
I remember seeing these houses back in the early 70′s. We passed a bunch of them just east of St. Louis, Michigan. They were called, wait, it’s coming back….Got it. They were called migrant housing and the state shut them down as they didn’t contain enough space to be “livable”. I believe the ACLU was involved in that.
Oh, and Joey, where do you hang all your climbing ropes and your climbing togs in that little space? Or, do you rent a storage garage?
November 28th, 2012 at 9:07 pm
RE #73: While the little place that I built was but 220 s.f., it was adjacent to a 40′ X 74′ new barn. Plenty of room for my “Stuff” which is basically woodworking tools. This place was on the land of someone else, and is considered an “outbuilding” here in rural Florida. The landowner bought the materials, I did all labor, and it is considered “my place” for as long as I want it. I use it for a month at a time from time to time, since moving out after living in it for 3 years. I believe that the landowner has about $4,000 in it, and it appraised at $27,500 a year ago, for loan value, not taxable. Pretty good for an “outbuilding”.
November 28th, 2012 at 9:13 pm
@84 – Am I missing something here, or would you agree that waxing rhapsodic over what is a home-made wooden camping trailer is a bit ridiculous?
Hell, I’d live in a rebuilt Airstream before I’d move into one of those things.
November 28th, 2012 at 9:40 pm
There’s a lot more about their plumbing than I ever cared to know on the boneyard site: http://boneyardstudios.com/2012/10/01/tiny-house-appliances-water/
November 28th, 2012 at 9:42 pm
^ That was aimed at @81
November 28th, 2012 at 10:23 pm
@87 – ROFLMAO!!!
And these people are stupid enough to pay — what? — $50,000 for the privilege of living in something smaller than my kitchen? And they can’t even guarantee themselves a water supply?
That noise you hear? Me and my cats laughing so hard we fell over.
November 29th, 2012 at 3:06 am
Those houses are nothing more than a glorified shed. Seriously, if you actually want to waste money on a house like that then good for you, but it is pointless. Also, talk about dragging down the value of the neighborhood tremendously. For a homeless bum these would undoubtedly be paradise, so I’m not looking down my nose at folks in those situations, but these are priced out of their range anyhow.
November 29th, 2012 at 7:25 am
A couple of things keep coming back, in addition to the price per square foot. They are building mobile homes on site? Ya gotta know that is to get around some zoning issue.
Who owns the alleyway? Who do you call when your crap burner malfunctions??
This entire deal just looks like a variation on the occupy movement!
November 29th, 2012 at 8:05 am
I listen to Mark Levin on the radio a couple of evenings a week. I love the guy. If you’ve never listened to him, he’s a conservative, an attorney, a learned student of our Constitution, and a former member of the Reagan Administration. Anyway, in view of the class warfare fire that the current admin likes to stoke, Levin pointed out that while millions of obama’s minions enjoy disparaging “the rich” they would love to join that group, as evidenced by this week’s Powerball sales. I thought it a terrific observation.
November 29th, 2012 at 8:43 am
Unfortunately, I am not yet part of those evil 1 percenters. What? You mean “win the Powerball” isn’t considered effective retirement planning?
November 29th, 2012 at 10:01 am
Like Sig pointed out above, if you have a lot of stuff, it won’t fit, but having “stuff” doesn’t necessarily make you happy. And if it’s your stuff, it’s stuff, but what if it’s somebody else’s stuff? Then, in the words of the late George Carlin, it’s junk, so what do you do with it?
I can see this quickly turning into another shanty town like the good old days of the Gold Rush in 1848. Wait ’til the homeowners in the permanent structures behind these portable houses start complaining about the noise and the smell and the lack of sanitation and the rats, possums, racoons, coyotes.
And what happens when a real winter comes? DC can be notoriously nasty in a blizzard. Ain’t no one gonna come down the alley and clear it with a snowplow.
This was all done to get around the building codes and nothing else, by a bunch of people who are otherwise known as ‘squatters’ and who would be chased out by the police if they were living in tents along the alleyway.
November 29th, 2012 at 10:05 am
Sparky, you are part of the 1%. The 1% of the population that got off their asses and served their country.