Comments on: Maryland Towns Outlaw McMansions

By: akdfjo

akdfjo — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 04:47:49 +0000

Iâ��ve sufficiently Southern to have a respect for tradition and culture.

What is the connection between "Southern" and "respect for tradition and culture"? Only southerners have a corner on the tradition and culture market? Have you ever been to Boston? London? TeotihuacÃ¡n? Respect for tradition and culture seems to be a basic human trait found in virtually all civilization. In fact, showing "respect for tradition and culture" is probably a defining trait for civilizations.

By: Herb

Herb — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 04:15:42 +0000

I live outside of a very small community (Population about 80), and don't have to worry about "Big Brother", neighbors or anyone else telling me how to live, how big or small of a home to live in or where I should go to the bathroom at. I just don't have all the worries expressed here in the article or comments. I don't have traffic jams or have neighbors living 50 feet from me. I chose this place because I don't want anyone telling me how to live. To those who do have those troubles expressed, Remember, you made the choice, so, don't complain.

By: Right Wing News

Right Wing News — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 02:22:35 +0000

Daily News For April 17, 2006...

Foreign Zarqawi, Al Qaeda Are Heading Out, U.S. General Says (I'm Skeptical, But This Is Still Interesting) Shiites Propose Deal......

By: floyd

floyd — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 00:49:45 +0000

MAC; a little zoning and codes were thought to be a good thing when started forty years or so ago. now it has gotten so bad that the local officials control every minor detail of design and structure of new housing. some communities even control numbers and placement of outlets,color and type of siding, uniform setbacks[not min or max]. some even regulate what type or age of vehicle can be parked in the driveway. what choices do you think the owner ought to retain [if any]?

By: Mr. Econotarian

Mr. Econotarian — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 21:01:08 +0000

People who want nice newer houses will move to the greenfield developments farther away from the city, putting greater pressure on transit (read: gridlock).

I should know - I am one of them.

By: McGehee

McGehee — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 21:00:49 +0000

Getting back on topic, I think the one reasonable objection to "McMansions" has to do with the way, in some communities, they're taking up almost the entire lot with the footprint of the house. That's ridiculous. Anyway, I'd much rather see rundown old houses bulldozed than such things (so little valued by some these days) as liberty -- which includes property rights.

By: Mac

Mac — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 19:11:58 +0000

So... you can't see why a community would put their own values and their faith and their love of their own way of life above profit? You can't see the reasoning behind the idea that the size and the price of a house doesn't have anything to do with the value and the culture of a community? You can't see the fact that a house that has stood for 120 years, and has housed generation after generation of a family - might not be worth more than any McMansion slapped together by some half-assed developer? So you, like so many other Gordon Gekko Conservatives, are convinced that the value and the flavor and the soul a community is based only the monetary value of the houses that populate it? Is that what your saying? Really? So... as the neighborhood in the community where you live and where George Washington lived is being bulldozed and rebuilt with poorly built little McMansions that all look alike, your ONLY though is "KACHING!! There goes the value of MY HOUSE!!"?? You have no sadness for the history, or the sense of community or the beautiful thing that's being bulldozed, but only a "Hallelujah!! Maybe they'll buy ME out NEXT!!"?? In addition, respectfully, I'd like to point out that you misunderstand the term "gentrification". Gentrification doesn't mean the tearing down of ruined and and putrid old neighborhoods and their rebuilding. That's known as "redevelopment". Gentrification typically means that older and more run down homes in older communities are being rehabbed and returned to their original worth and standing before they were allowed to be ran down. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that to you "gentrification" could only mean the bulldozing and rebuilding, but... there it is. Food for thought

By: Brown Sludge » Blog Archive » Authentic Conservatism Must Prevail

Brown Sludge » Blog Archive » Authentic Conservatism Must Prevail — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 18:52:54 +0000

[...] When Outside The Beltway bemoans people who dislike “McMansions”. [...]

By: aonymous

aonymous — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 17:41:32 +0000

Taxes should go down?

By: floyd

floyd — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 17:04:08 +0000

where i live they have lower limits on house size, so i'm not allowed to build my "dream" house. as long as it stays behind the set backs,easements and doesn't block aviation; i say have at it, they are going to tax you into the street soon enough anyway if you do. you can't own property if someone else controls your use of it. our freedom was not lost by force alone, it was lost by constantly narrowing our options.

By: dustbury.com

dustbury.com — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 16:51:28 +0000

House of the rising gorge...

I was headed east on Wilshire from May yesterday afternoon when I spotted a vacant lot: a teardown. One of the more modest homes on the western edge of Nichols......

By: Eneils Bailey

Eneils Bailey — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 16:34:24 +0000

I hate damn do-gooders, looking out for everybody, at some body's expense. I can see some of the same arguments here that are in the purposed SUV restrictions. How long before the government starts mandating the color, size, and model of your house furnishings. Whoops...sorry...that has already happened for your crapper.

By: my cat

my cat — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 16:23:51 +0000

I'm a middle class home owner in a gated community that still has lots on the market. I am planning to retire here. I dislike the McMansions that are being built because I can see that a shift is happening: my middle class enclave is becoming a rich person's enclave and I might be forced out. Granted, as rich people move in, the value of my house goes up, so I could make money if I sold it. But I don't want to sell it. I want to live here. My family has owed property here for forty years.
Yes my reaction is visceral. I dislike the big money people who buy in and them start demanding changes that will raise averybody's amenity fees and eventually force my departure from the place I have been connected financially and spiritually for most of my life.

By: CGHill

CGHill — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 15:33:42 +0000

I live in what my city calls an Urban Conservation District; the rules are somewhat more lax than in a true Historic District, and the emphasis is on preserving the "streetscape." You can build what you like, but you cannot exceed the height (in stories) of the original dwelling, nor can you extend beyond its original front line. Lots around here tend to be 8000-10000 square feet; this ordinance (which, I hasten to add, was requested by petition) would make it very difficult to build a 5000-square-foot house in place of a 1500.