South Scott Street 2

January 21, 2015.

The concrete cinderblock foundation is finished. 

Iceberg House, again.

Another view of the iceberg house in the former vacant lot.

Photo taken right after dawn, Sunday, Feb. 1st.

Iceberg House.

This house has just been painted all-white and it looks like a big, giant iceberg. With a black roof on top, HAHAHA.

Corner S Cortex & Baudin. Used to be a vacant lot.

The Houses in the Lot Across the Way Are Being Painted.

The first has a grey-and-white finish.

 

 

The second one is just being started.

North Scott Street

This whole entire city block, viewed from North Scott Street at Bienville Avenue, sat vacant for the longest time, even from before Katrina. Black Raspberry bushes with the most luscious berries grew up astride the fence around the perimeter.

Now last summer a sign proclaiming a new rehabilitation hospital went up. This last week the developer started driving piles.

South Scott Street

There is a vacant lot at 434-436 South Scott Street. It used to contain two single shotgun houses. Both of them got flooded after Katrina. Being rentals, they did not qualify for federal grant aid under the Louisiana Road Home program, so they sat and rotted for years. The one (#436) started leaning against the other, so it came down. A couple of years later, the other came down. The lot sat vacant and neglected for several years.

This past summer city officials took photos of the lot. That spurred the owner(s) to action, clear the lot, trim the grass, and to sell the property (properties).

Now this past week a "gradall" appeared with several timber piles. A new house or two will be going up soon.

Progress on the Houses across the Street

Photo was taken December 12, 2014 at sunset. The houses are almost completely hardiplanked.

Progress on the Second House.

A lot has transpired in the second house in the lot across the way.

Taken 5 November, 2014, after sunset.

The roof rafters are up

Taken 21 November, 2014 during sunset.

The roof is done and the clapboards are being installed.

Second House in the Lot across the Way.

Taken 3rd November, 2014

A second house is now going up in the lot across the way from my house. It's halfway up to the top!

A New House in the Lot Across the Way.

Photo taken October 26, 2014, early evening.

 

Since I took a photo of the lot across the way last, the new house arising in it has been topped out and sheathed. It is of the Victorian-style camelback type. The finishes appear they are going to be the builder's "standard" variety -- single-hung windows that pretend to be double-hung, box eaves, asphalt-tab shingles and hardyplank siding (at least it isn't vinyl siding!).

 

The houses are going to front on S Cortez Street.

 

 

Lot Across the Way -- a House Frame Goes up.



 

Photos taken October 17, 2014. A house frame has gone up and is now being sheathed.

A New Foundation.

 

Photo taken October 10th.

 

 

The lot across the way has acquired concrete foundations and concrete cinderblock piers for two new houses. Before the piers went up, I thought these would be high-priced houses but they look like Habitat for Humanity house foundations.

 

 

And they could very well be! Because before the construction started, my partner remarked that he heard someone outside a hundred feet away, talking into a cell phone, with authority, that there are activists in this neighborhood who did not want housing in this area!

The Lot Across the Way All Torn Up.

They drove piles yesterday. A lot. And the tracks for the pile-driver tore the grass up, really bad.

Looking from Telemachus Street.

Looking from the street-corner.

Looking from across Baudin Street, second floor.

 

The Lot Across the Way Gets a Makeover

The lot across the way gets a makeover: it's grass is cut, turning it from a natural meadow into a mowed vacant lot. It also acquires some stakes and a metal trailer. Two days later, a pile driver shows up, bringing with it two timber piles each 35 feet long.

September 21st - cut grass, stakes and a trailer.

September 22nd. Same.

September 22nd. Same.

September 22nd. Better view of trailer.

September 22nd. Close-up of some stakes.

September 23rd. A pile-driver shows up!

With piles!

 

 

More to come...

Electric Service Pole in the Lot across the Way.

In Lot across the Way, I told you of the electric service pole a contractor installed in the vacant lot which has turned into a meadow. Here it is!

You can barely see it here.

But on the Telemachus Street side,

it's as plain as day.

The contractor's name is visible, so give him a call, and ask him to do electrical work on your house! :^) No crank calls, please.

Lot Across the Way.

Nature is an excellent landscaper. The best!

 This is the vacant lot across the street (Baudin) from my house. Presently the lot has been repeatedly allowed to grow into a meadow... but not for long. Someone installed a construction electric service pole for the owner's contractor who will build a house or two upon it, facing the side street (Telemachus).