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| This one is safe |
Now that warmer weather has set in ... the applications for demo permits have ticked up in the building department. A large number of the houses marked for demo are wood frames.
We wondered if that’s because they tend to be in worse condition or less expensive than their brick and stone counterparts. Preservationist Elizabeth Finkelstein of The Wooden House Project attributed the trend to rising real estate values in working-class neighborhoods, some of which happen to have a large concentration of frame houses.
“I think the wooden houses right now are especially vulnerable because of the trend in people moving to places like Bushwick and Greenwood Heights,” she said. “People can’t afford to buy in Brownstone Brooklyn anymore, so they’re moving to frame-heavy neighborhoods. Developers follow. While Park Slope and Cobble Hill have been expensive for a long time, homeowners in Bushwick have only recently been able to cash out. I think they’re taking advantage of the market, at the expense of some of these houses.”
4 comments:
How about a moratorium on demolition in all of Queens!!!!
There is noting great about "stick" houses. They sag, rot, creak and BURN.
Most have ancient wiring with DIY mods and poor plumbing along with layers of lead paint.
I personally would not put loved ones in an old, wooden house unless it was totally gutted and equipped with all new infrastructure and sprinklers.
Even then.....
Roof neglect and damage shortens the life of these house. I suspect a lot of these house were not maintained properly and a full restoration might wind up costing more than a tear-down and a new building.
Don't forget on a tear-down you get to build to whatever the legal limit is, and many of these houses are significantly smaller than the lot's buildable lines.
Also important is that most of the wooden houses (especially in Astoria) were built before the NYC Consolidation, which means minimal construction standards.
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