RealEstateJournal | Gritty Inner-City Lofts Make Their Way Into the 'Burbs
RealEstateJournal Gritty Inner-City Lofts Make Their Way Into the 'Burbs By June Fletcher
From The Wall Street Journal Online
Next month, Martin Sickles is moving into a loft apartment with all the hallmarks of a converted urban warehouse, from wrought-iron railings to a spare brick exterior out of the Industrial Revolution.
But his loft isn't in a century-old factory building on a gritty inner-city block. It's in a new development in rural Palmetto, Ga., surrounded by meadows, stables and an organic farm that will grow things like asparagus and edible flowers. 'It's my little piece of New York,' says Mr. Sickles. 'But New York is too urban for me.'
Coming to a subdivision near you: the McLoft. Amid ranch houses and McMansions, developers are putting up buildings that look like they're out of downtown Manhattan or Chicago. Unlike urban lofts, which started out as last-resort housing for arty types, these condos can be some of the priciest housing in suburbia. Instead of stepping out into sidewalks where vendors peddle gyro sandwiches and counterfeit handbags, residents are just minutes from mountain-bike trails or the mall. And while city lofts are known for creaky freight elevators and exposed ventilation ducts, their country cousins come with floating faucets, bidets and designer kitchens."
From The Wall Street Journal Online
Next month, Martin Sickles is moving into a loft apartment with all the hallmarks of a converted urban warehouse, from wrought-iron railings to a spare brick exterior out of the Industrial Revolution.
But his loft isn't in a century-old factory building on a gritty inner-city block. It's in a new development in rural Palmetto, Ga., surrounded by meadows, stables and an organic farm that will grow things like asparagus and edible flowers. 'It's my little piece of New York,' says Mr. Sickles. 'But New York is too urban for me.'
Coming to a subdivision near you: the McLoft. Amid ranch houses and McMansions, developers are putting up buildings that look like they're out of downtown Manhattan or Chicago. Unlike urban lofts, which started out as last-resort housing for arty types, these condos can be some of the priciest housing in suburbia. Instead of stepping out into sidewalks where vendors peddle gyro sandwiches and counterfeit handbags, residents are just minutes from mountain-bike trails or the mall. And while city lofts are known for creaky freight elevators and exposed ventilation ducts, their country cousins come with floating faucets, bidets and designer kitchens."
posted by Patrick Leblanc at 4:35 PM
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