26/03/10 – Dallas/Fort Worth – Apt/Lofts

Good morning everyone,
I guess I may be considered an early riser…:)
Matthew was surprised by the results of the graph comparing high-rise units in Toronto and Dallas/Fortworth (D/F). He commented that he didn’t expect a slower set of homes in D/F in this category. Actually, there may not be a slower set of homes in D/F because we did not use the same test in Dallas as we did in Toronto. So there may be some “confounding” in the results. Basically this means by using the new test we may have inadvertently added unknown variables that affected our scoring differently in D/F than in Toronto. Therefore, we should be careful when comparing results between these two cities. (BTW, didn’t we change the test after LA, too?)
We would be safer to look at individual trends rather than overall scores, comparing the categories that remained the same across both forms of the test. The slowhomers would need the scores in each category on the SlowHome test in order to compare, say, kitchens in the apt/condo/loft category between Toronto and D/F. I think we are only privy to the overall score…is that correct? We should be careful when interpreting anything from the “changed” categories on the SlowHome test, such as Environmental Performance and Siting. Of course, we can always go back and look at each individual floorplan for both cities and compare trends the old fashioned way…using your eyes.

James,
I think the heated downtown Toronto real estate market may well play a role in the results. The major problems in the Toronto apt lofts we analyzed were poor organization (often resulting from oddly shaped units or units with little access to light) and trying to put too many “extra” spaces such as dens or study spaces into the plan. Both of these could perhaps be traced back to a very competitive market in which space is at a premium and developers have a need to add more features to catch the attention of buyers.

I do not know for a fact but it seems to me the average size condo/loft unit is larger in Dallas. As a result, I see units that are wider allowing more principle living spaces to be located adjacent to windows.
It may also be that Dallas has more Slow Home friendly development and planning rules. We saw this in LA with infills and I know Dallas has adopted green ideals into its building codes.

[img]7507baxtershirecenter.jpg[/img][img]7507baxtershirecenter2.jpg[/img][img]7507baxtershirebeddoor.jpg[/img]

John,

First of all, I can appreciate your end of term rush at the university. Thanks for taking the extra time today on the site.

MollyK and Others,

You know in the course of looking in Dallas that I will not restrict my search to the practical and affordable. Here is the first in a series of houses in Dallas…This is a 5300sq ft mid century built in 1962. It is for sale at 889K – a bargain really for a home of this size, craftsmanship and amenities including an indoor pool. Here is the description…

“Known as the Round House, this spectacular, one-of-a-kind, mid-century modern is truly a work of art, beginning with the domed motor court covered in wisteria, the home offers a mixture of materials rarely seen. A rich opportunity to possess an architectural masterpiece that has only had three owners.

The Round House, commissioned by Dallas importer Eddie Parker, took nearly six years to build, with work completed in 1961. Constructed of steel, rock and concrete, it exemplifies a go-for-broke style. The home often utilized unconventional materials, such as the bamboo slices that frame the banister leading to the lower level and the plexiglass circles embedded in a rock wall near the entrance.

Hand-cut, walnut panels compose the living room walls and ceiling, which were constructed without benefit of error-hiding moldings. A thin ribbon of ceramic tiles dipped in 24-karat gold meanders through the house, traversing across the top edge of the curved entry wall and slicing vertically down the side of a bedroom. Designed for the home is an original and stunning, glass-and-tile combination for the main entry wall. The master bedroom shower is a curtainless, glass-and-tile framed, recessed square of terrazzo carved out of one corner of the room.

The stonemason spent three years completing his work; the cabinetmaker, five. The myriad of noteworthy details includes a sweeping, double-lined copper fireplace with two-foot airspace; Italian-glass, mosaic murals; solid brass hardware; hand-carved wood panels from China; bamboo-and-rattan, mat walls from China and the Philippines; hand-carved mahogany from Hawaii; and Japanese porcelain tile.”

John,
I have a request for Monday’s blog. I’m feeling unsure about my interpretation of “Siting”. Would you be willing to give some visual examples on Monday using each different home type? You know me…I want to be consistent in my scoring.
Also, can you explain more about the phrase “has an efficient building envelope” in #2 Environmental Performance? Thanks in advance.

MollyK,
That is a good idea. I think we will probably be able to do something on siting next Thursday. We have the first part of the week blocked in already in terms of topics.

BradW,
What a great addition to the site. I like the idea of searching for the “eccentrics” in each of the cities we are visiting. Thanks for the hard work. Perhaps we could twist your arm to offer a regularish segment about this on the site :)

BradW,
Thanks for posting the jpgs of this unique home. Hiring a stonemason for three years intrigued me, and I would have liked to see more examples of the stonework (in the photos here one looks excellent and the other not so much). It also seems like the patterned tile work is competing with the stonework, especially on that wall behind the large, curved, stone wall.
Do you have the link to this listing so that we might see more–please?

Sorry – previous me…

BradW,
Thanks for the listing! That wisteria-covered dome is really sublime. I think the mosaics and other tile work was done by the stonemason, as there doesn’t seem to be enough rockwork to sustain three years’ work.
Very interesting home in great condition. I like the time-capsule furniture as well. My family once owned a similar Danish modern dinette suite. (That website looks intriguing as well.)

John,
I second your motion to have BradW present a new segment on a regularish basis entitled “Searching for the Eccentrics”. As the “staunch defender of luxury and excess” I believe Brad is a gold mine of undiscovered homes of “interest”. How do we twist his arm…aren’t you going to be in Toronto soon? Perhaps you can physically twist his arm if he shows up for the first round of drinks.
Brad…are you listening? :)
Terri,
Thank you, thank you for your willingness to tackle the statistics! I had to learn them in graduate school and hated every minute. I was never very good as crunching the numbers…I was more about the interpretation after the calculations were done. I salute you!
I also noticed the “closet beyond the bathroom” phenomenon in the Dallas condo/lofts…I have never liked that arrangement. Neither the bedroom nor the closet is a good place for guests to look upon as they travel to the bathroom. Personally, I’ve never wanted to walk that far to get to my clothes. Gee, I sounded like BradW just then…oh well, that can’t be all that bad.

TomE – great point about balance…I wondered why everyone using large dining tables and, I believe, John briefly mentions this in the video…also cool to see Ross – unbelievable imagination and edge…thanks

HI TomE!
Talking about point 2.
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I too feel we should see a dresser and one or two bed tables for a master room.
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Our symbol library for the jpeg does not include these pieces. Most dressers are about 18 inch deep, from like 2 to 6 feet long. And bedside tables I am not so sure but suspect 18 inch deep by 2. You could add one by creating it but I admit I am lazy in this.
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Is it required?
John about 9 months ago did a room by room discussion on bedrooms – http://theslowhome.com/room-by-room/bedroom-design/ , this past fall was the discussion on the book entry – http://theslowhome.com/checklist-review/step-5-bedrooms/ .There is no mention of a dresser or side table as a MUST have. Everyone I know has had some kind of storage system outside the closet for at least socks and such. Dresser, under bed drawers, luggage, those rolling carts with drawers.
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Then to the spacing/size if we do include them. Though I think it is not cited in the book (but in the room by room) there is a min. size of 10 by 12 for a bedroom. The size was based on a queen sized bed taking 5 by almost 7 feet. The closet should be at least 4-5 feet of rod space by 2 deep. Depending on the location of doors, closets, and windows (type) you can fit a dresser and two side tables in a 10 by 12 room. But looking at the size needed for a dresser and ability to maybe go off of two walls I think 13 by 12 is more realistic. I may post a jpeg on this later.

Mid America Mom

M.A.M.,
Yes, we could use a table with smaller dimensions. Sometimes, in order to fit a smaller rectangle in my plans, I just remove the last two seats on the longer rectangular table. I’ve never tried to create an oval table though.

If we’re bidding for some template additions…Another item I’d like on the template is the angled chair. A few people have inserted these, and I tried to copy them to a file, but they didn’t fit into my Paint files later (too large, and I couldn’t seem to reduce them). Paint doesn’t offer a 45-degree-angle manipulation (at least mine doesn’t).

[img]dresserfunctionalspace.jpg[/img]

Hi
M.A.M attached is a little diagram showing dimensions for the functional space required in front of a dresser, from a book “Human Dimensions and Interior Space”
Brad, thanks for the links to Independent Lens, good stuff. I went to the PBS site where you can watch some of the full length versions or buy the DVD’s.
Terri, the number of dining spaces, this is something I am wrestling with. I have 16 offical eating places, 6 in the dining room, 4 in the kitchen, and 6 outside for 1 guy! The inside spaces rarely gets used, dinner on the couch, watching the news, breakfast in the home office watching slow home. Weather premitting, I eat outside as much as possible, so the outside eating places get used more than the offical inside spaces. When guest come over, it is a walk down the street to a resturant. On the rare occasion I do cook for guest it is usually in the summer when we can eat outside.
Next winter the walls are coming down between kitchen and the formal dining room, to have an open concept arrangement. I am still pondering how many permanent dining seating position and temporary positions to have. Last family dinner was 22 people. (take out Chinese)
Anyway, I still have lots of time to resolve this issue
Cheers

Before we start Towns in Dallas/Ft. Worth. I went through a number of the Condo and loft plans today. Some findings on bedroom sizes and kitchen configurations.
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Notes: Some plans did not have room sizes. Some of our links did not go to the actual plan but to the development and I admit I did not go hunting in that metropolitan building or rarely performed a page click. Linking directly to the floorplan is so helpful in this exercise.
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BEDROOMS. I felt the footage in the master bedrooms in Toronto were under our min. slow recommendation of 10 *12 (120 sq feet) and wanted to compare. I am not able to access the Toronto data at this time to give you those numbers. But I can look at Dallas/Ft. Worth. In 58 floorplans the bedroom cited as the master bedroom had an average of 173 sq feet. The smallest was 108 and largest 280. In 29 floorplans I saw a second bedroom or room that was labeled as DEN that also had a closet. This room averaged 150 sq feet.
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KITCHEN. In new construction Toronto condos and lofts I think we can all agree that the single wall kitchen configuration was KING. And that style is not the most efficient to work in. I love U (configuration) but Dallas/Ft. Worth condos and lofts do not. The winner- L in all of its glorious forms.

In 66 floorplans:
28 were L (11 were the classic/ 13 were with an island, and 4 had a peninsula).
21 were a galley kitchen. 20 were the one wall with opposite island and 1 was the double wall type.
12 were U. (of which 2 added another “leg” making them a G)
5 were single wall.

Small graph about configurations is here – http://www.finehomebuilding.com/how-to/articles/planning-kitchen-five-layout-tools.aspx

Mid America Mom