Cool car, cool houses, cool leaves

"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein) 11/26/2019 at 13:25 • Filed to: None

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I took this pic a few weeks ago on a walk through the neighborhood next to my parents’ neighborhood. I’ve always thought this neighborhood was way cooler than my parents’ neighborhood, because I love the 70s contemporary style houses that are sort of a transitional phase after mid-century modern, vs. !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

Somebody had a fun time doi ng all that raking.

fintail > Textured Soy Protein 11/26/2019 at 13:33

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I’ll wager it is a 280SE, 1969-73 (although production ended in 72, IIRC).

I too like some of the less traditional   70s middle class/upper middle class residential architecture. There’s a bit of it in my area, I suspect more than a little of it will be bulldozed in the coming decade or two for more trite mcmodern boxes and faux farmhouses (at least faux craftsman styles seem to be waning).

Textured Soy Protein > fintail 11/26/2019 at 13:37

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Here in the DC area it was semi-popular in the late 70s and early 80s. Midcentury modern was never really big here, it was very much the old-school postwar style brick boxes transitioning into the wannabe-colonials. So basically you’ll find a random subdivision of this style interspersed with the older/newer colonial style ones which are more common. They generally go for higher prices relative to comparables that aren’t contemporary style.

Back when I lived in Madison, WI there were a good amount of true 50s/60s midcentury/prairie style and then a decent amount of 70s/80s contemporaries. But by and large those were more individual houses in neighborhoods that were built piecemeal, rather than whole subdivisions of tract houses like were done here in DC. 

ttyymmnn > Textured Soy Protein 11/26/2019 at 13:46

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I never took many pictures of my Golf , but this is my favorite.

ttyymmnn > Textured Soy Protein 11/26/2019 at 13:47

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fintail > Textured Soy Protein 11/26/2019 at 13:49

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This area, including my specific suburb, grew tremendously during the 50s and 60s, and there are entire subdivisions of mid-century houses (low roofs, window walls, etc) that are very intact with many unmodi fied houses. There are numerous architect-designed mid-century places in the tonier areas as well. The 70s stuff can be a little more bland, but there are some more flamboyant styles, and it seems people here with a little money at the time often chose modern over traditional. It’s a lot more interesting than what I see built today, both for normal buyers, and those with 7 figures to throw around.

I think it might be the same here, too - a 70s traditional style might be worth more, and be less likely to be knocked down for a cliched box.  70s modern is jarring for a lot of people.  I like the natural woodwork, dramatic windows, often exposed stone or brick, etc.

Stef Schrader > Textured Soy Protein 11/26/2019 at 13:55

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This era has grown on me, too. Nice shot.

Textured Soy Protein > fintail 11/26/2019 at 13:58

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Most of the 60s houses here are more like an evolution of the 40s/50s postwar little brick boxes. They tend to be split-levels or 2-story like this , and then sometimes you’ll see some of them with those midcentury details like a full/partial window wall, or vaulted ceilings, or clerestory windows. B ut I’m not finding a handy one just at the moment.

Meanwhile, this is for sale in the neighborhood where I took the pics. I can dig it. 

fintail > Textured Soy Protein 11/26/2019 at 14:11

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I’ve seen similar to your postwar link in some subdivisions here, too. I think they tried to build something for everyone, as at that time home ownership here was a lot more attainable for normal working class/middle class people , and not everyone wanted something modern. The “modern” ones are more interesting these days, to me anyway.

I saw this place at an estate sale a few years ago:

https://www.redfin.com/WA/Bellevue/80-Cascade-Ky-98006/home/409164/nwmls-968792

Cool time capsule, untouched . Now back on the market, slated for demolition.  I cringe at what might replace it.

And then there’s this place that sold in OR a few years ago, wacky and I might change a couple things (carpets), but wow:

https://www.trulia.com/p/or/independence/492-mcnary-st-independence-or-97351—2086838659

RPM esq. > fintail 11/26/2019 at 14:15

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Then y ou’ll be happy to know I’m preserving one of those late- ‘70s/early-’ 80s Northwest contemporary designs with a lot of angles and glass . My old house was a decent ‘50s midcentury modern , but it was very much just a rectangular box with some drafty holes cut in it for big windows . The design of my current house is definitely of it’s time but a lot more refined than that.

fintail > RPM esq. 11/26/2019 at 14:32

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Very cool. There may eventually become a time when people regret tearing down some of these older places. Then again, looking at new money these days, maybe not.

Replacement value for some of these houses would be huge, too - materials cost a lot more now, and sometimes the design and workmanship just doesn’t exist anymore . Even my grandma’s house in an early 60s subdivision, a deluxe tract house at best, has features you won’t find in a similar house today (while the modern equivalent relative to incomes is probably 4x as expensive) . Most of the neighborhood is on quarter acre lots, too - where today they’ll use a 4000 sq ft plot.

Discerning > Textured Soy Protein 11/26/2019 at 14:47

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I love the 70's homes... in theory. We looked at a few and we just couldn't find one that would work with what we had in mind for the kitchen and master bedroom

RPM esq. > fintail 11/26/2019 at 17:28

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We got the angles and we got the windows and we got the doggos (well, had, as the one on the right recently departed this plane).

fintail > RPM esq. 11/26/2019 at 21:30

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Nice pic, good doggos, and the only way it could be more “PNW Contemporary” would be if the angle of the siding matched the roofline.

When I was a little kid, my family lived in a house with angled windows like that.  Built in the late 70s, I have a relatively vivid memory of it having harvest gold floors and counters in the kitchen.