Where are the massive stucco bay’s with tiny vinyl windows?

Am I the only one getting tired of this architectural style already?  Is this one architect doing all this work or is this the current trend in urban development?

Only so much one can do when basically the entire core of the city is zoned to allow one housing type that was designed for 19th century factory workers.

 He’s referring to the style not to the large row homes which were actually the type many wealthy people lived in in the first street car suburbs in North Philly, West Philly, etc.

I’d say these are WAY more attractive than those that try to fit in with red/pink brick and stucco.  At least from the renderings this departs from your typical double hung windows and uses probably cement fiber siding on the bays.  It’s 2012, we should be using modern building products.  Everyone feels obliged to use brick (and this does too) because that’s the historical style of the city but it’s really an anachronism. 

Thanks to KJO we have another bad design in the neighborhood. Personal garages in an urban city is ridiculous…Funny how NLNA allows curb cuts in some parts of the hood and not in others. They are the worst.

The architect only serves the owner’s interest.  I really doubt the architect here said “hey let’s build garages” and the owner said “good idea, I never thought of that!”  More like the owner said “I want garages” and the architect complied.  

Agreed on the garages though, they’re an urban streetscape obscenity.

normally i would agree with that sentiment… but no garages do not face 5th street. they face orkney, which is an alley and that’s where people should access their cars IMO. are you one of the neighbors illegally parking on the sidewalk who’s all butthurt that they don’t have “their” “parking” anymore?

 whoops, no garages face 5th street*

It all depends on context.  If it’s a street that sees a lot of foot traffic, then garages reduce eyes on the street and significantly alter the pedestrian streetscape.  

In this case the garages are on a street where people park on the sidewalk anyway, so as long as the residents of these houses are actually parking their cars IN the garages, it will actually be an improvement.

[...] to the ZBA to build twenty-two new homes at 913-931 N 5th St., just a half a block south of a seven-home development we told you about a few months back. This parcel is currently a parking lot, a warehouse, and a rather nice looking building [...]