NotHardUp1
What? Me? Really?
There is a house about a mile from mine, on my route to work. It is noticeable for two reasons. It is at a tee intersection where accidents have repeatedly happen. Across from the tee was a big highway sign with a double-ended arrow to warn drivers at night from the cross street at night, so they know the road is ending. That sign was plowed down over and over and over, usually in daytime accidents. The cause is the street not ending is a main road, even though only two lanes, with no shoulder, and drivers regularly speed along it, and apparently cars entering the road at the tee interrupt the flow without enough time to clear the near lane, or similar, and the speeding car goes careening off into the ditch, taking the sign with it.
This scenario has happened at least 10 to 20 times in just the last couple of years. The county has replaced the sign about 10 times, and everyone thought a stop light was imminent, but the solution was just to remove the sign permanently since it didn't stop accidents. Roll, TIDE!!!
A casualty of the traffic problem is the house on that corner. It had a driveway onto the main road, the one that doesn't stop, and a ditch with a culvert under the drive was flanked by modest brickwork to accent the drive. As cars coming down the hill swerved to avoid T-boning cars pulling into the right of way, they often landed on the poor man's brickwork. It was destroyed multiple times, and rebuilt. One of the reasons is that there is no shoulder on the roads here in Huntsville. No shoulders, no curbs, no sidewalks, and no bike lanes. That is true for the vast majority of the incorporated areas of Huntsville and Madison. It was all done on the cheap. Only the oldest downtown areas or the new housing developments have them.
The house was a nice house forty years ago when it was built. It was about 3,000 square feet, including a large walk-out basement. It had an in-ground swimming pool with a large brick retaining wall with a wrought iron fence atop. There was a tennis court, also fenced. It sat on a 4-acre tract. The only resident appeared to be an old man, seen on a riding mower at times. It was not hard to imagine a family spent many hours in the pool and on the court.
When it was listed for sale this winter, it seemed likely the man had died, or gotten past being able to live alone. The siting of the house is interesting because it backs up to a large estate that was obviously one of the legacy farms in the area. Behind him is the large plantation house built in the 50's probably. The couple living there likely built it, and were in their 80's when I met them by chance in a doctor's waiting room a couple of years ago. So, the house on the corner was probably originally built for one of the scions, but maybe changed occupants after they left. Dunno.
As the listing lingered, one wondered who would buy four acres on a corner with constant accidents, with it rapidly going commercial, but with it across from a large farm field and on another border, a large pasture. It was hard to imagine a family with children being comfortable near the heavy traffic and notorious accidents. The house was large, but dated, and a simply ranch design, not a modern McMansion with a pretentious facade and high ceilings and the trappings of the bourgeoisie.
Then, two weeks ago, I noticed a couple of trucks parked beside the basement and some kind of renovation going on. I figured someone had bought it and was flipping it, or fixing it up before moving in.
A few days later, I saw bricks being torn off. Wasn't sure if if they were going to side it, or were fixing foundation problems.
Last week, I could see all the way through the basement. They had torn out all interior walls there. I figured someone was making it a modern open design and were putting in steel beams so they could remove posts.
Nope.
They're moving the house. It has now been moved over and is being prepared to relocate. The main floor is probably 2,000 sq. ft.
The county is widening the main road, just from there up to the highway a mile above, due to a new Costco putting in and turning lanes. The actual need is to widen the main road for a nother two miles in the other direction, but the county being cheap, they will not. It's going to be years and years of congestion here, with the county refusing to raise taxes and the state capping tax rates via the Alabama Constitution. It's really a redneck ghetto of sorts.
But, the house is dying a premature death, if a necessary one. At least it's being moved instead of razed.
The intersection. The pic is an older Google pic. The yellow arrow sign was replaced with much larger one until they stopped replacing it at all. There is none there now.
The approach from the south. It all looks misleadingly rural. There are housing divsions everywhere, and very large multifamily developments. The road is never empty, and it is fully suburban, despite the fields in the view.
The house listed, and the culvert again destroyed.
The house.
The plantation house down the road another half mile.
Oh, and if this is all too boring, don't read it.
This scenario has happened at least 10 to 20 times in just the last couple of years. The county has replaced the sign about 10 times, and everyone thought a stop light was imminent, but the solution was just to remove the sign permanently since it didn't stop accidents. Roll, TIDE!!!
A casualty of the traffic problem is the house on that corner. It had a driveway onto the main road, the one that doesn't stop, and a ditch with a culvert under the drive was flanked by modest brickwork to accent the drive. As cars coming down the hill swerved to avoid T-boning cars pulling into the right of way, they often landed on the poor man's brickwork. It was destroyed multiple times, and rebuilt. One of the reasons is that there is no shoulder on the roads here in Huntsville. No shoulders, no curbs, no sidewalks, and no bike lanes. That is true for the vast majority of the incorporated areas of Huntsville and Madison. It was all done on the cheap. Only the oldest downtown areas or the new housing developments have them.
The house was a nice house forty years ago when it was built. It was about 3,000 square feet, including a large walk-out basement. It had an in-ground swimming pool with a large brick retaining wall with a wrought iron fence atop. There was a tennis court, also fenced. It sat on a 4-acre tract. The only resident appeared to be an old man, seen on a riding mower at times. It was not hard to imagine a family spent many hours in the pool and on the court.
When it was listed for sale this winter, it seemed likely the man had died, or gotten past being able to live alone. The siting of the house is interesting because it backs up to a large estate that was obviously one of the legacy farms in the area. Behind him is the large plantation house built in the 50's probably. The couple living there likely built it, and were in their 80's when I met them by chance in a doctor's waiting room a couple of years ago. So, the house on the corner was probably originally built for one of the scions, but maybe changed occupants after they left. Dunno.
As the listing lingered, one wondered who would buy four acres on a corner with constant accidents, with it rapidly going commercial, but with it across from a large farm field and on another border, a large pasture. It was hard to imagine a family with children being comfortable near the heavy traffic and notorious accidents. The house was large, but dated, and a simply ranch design, not a modern McMansion with a pretentious facade and high ceilings and the trappings of the bourgeoisie.
Then, two weeks ago, I noticed a couple of trucks parked beside the basement and some kind of renovation going on. I figured someone had bought it and was flipping it, or fixing it up before moving in.
A few days later, I saw bricks being torn off. Wasn't sure if if they were going to side it, or were fixing foundation problems.
Last week, I could see all the way through the basement. They had torn out all interior walls there. I figured someone was making it a modern open design and were putting in steel beams so they could remove posts.
Nope.
They're moving the house. It has now been moved over and is being prepared to relocate. The main floor is probably 2,000 sq. ft.
The county is widening the main road, just from there up to the highway a mile above, due to a new Costco putting in and turning lanes. The actual need is to widen the main road for a nother two miles in the other direction, but the county being cheap, they will not. It's going to be years and years of congestion here, with the county refusing to raise taxes and the state capping tax rates via the Alabama Constitution. It's really a redneck ghetto of sorts.
But, the house is dying a premature death, if a necessary one. At least it's being moved instead of razed.
The intersection. The pic is an older Google pic. The yellow arrow sign was replaced with much larger one until they stopped replacing it at all. There is none there now.
The approach from the south. It all looks misleadingly rural. There are housing divsions everywhere, and very large multifamily developments. The road is never empty, and it is fully suburban, despite the fields in the view.
The house listed, and the culvert again destroyed.
The house.
The plantation house down the road another half mile.
Oh, and if this is all too boring, don't read it.
Plus there is a feeling of history. And, on a practical level, an older house has wear, so unlike a brand new house, there is no worry about the first ding in the woodwork!