ROBINSON-SPANGLER CAROLINA ROOM, CHARLOTTE MECKLENBURG LIBRARY; COURTESY
Samuel P. Smith built his French Second Empirestyle home in the late 1800s before William Treloar built his home next door. The Smith home later became a second-hand appliance store, shown here in 1968.
guess at the exact design of that vanished of zoning, introduced in the mid-20th Victorian porch. But look around the century. Typically, residential zoning building’s sides to see romantic bay dictates that single-family dwellings— windows, sheathed in Eastlake-style detached, standalone houses—should woodwork, that poke out be “protected” from multifrom the second floor. And family homes: apartments note the Mansard roof, an and condominiums. The This is the first echo of Smith’s next door. rigidity of Charlotte’s land in a monthly It’s covered in diamonduse rules is one reason series that highlights shaped slates—still in why the Treloar house fell Charlotte’s remarkably good shape 134 into decline and the Smith historic years after construction. house was bulldozed in the buildings. On January 4, 1887, Treloar 1960s. Mixed-use? How placed an advertisement unfashionable! for a “handsome dwelling, Today, urban thinkers eleven well-ventilated rooms with every suggest we reconsider. What if owners, convenience a man could desire. The renters, shops, and offices intermingled ladies are especially invited to examine. in walkable neighborhoods? Taiwo The owner will occupy the Seventh Jaiyeoba, Charlotte’s planning director, Street side of said house in a few days.” A has broached the idea of eliminating series of tenants moved in: a newlywed single-family-only zones, which Mincouple just arrived from Atlanta; a neapolis did in 2018, as part of his businessman from New York; and one office’s rewrite of the city’s zoning code. Jordan Thomas who, The Charlotte “To build an equitable city, we have to Observer noted in an 1895 society diversify our housing supply,” he says, column, “is an ex-cavalry man and will “so residents of all races and incomes can be welcomed in military circles.” stay and age in place.” For five decades, the Smiths, Treloars, The Treloar House shows that it’s an and renters co-existed comfortably. A idea rooted in history. Smith son married a Treloar daughter in 1911 and lived in the Treloar TOM HANCHETT, a local historian in Charlotte since 1981, is the author of Sorting Out the New home into their old age in the 1930s. South City: Race, Class, and Urban Development Homeowners and renters mingled easily in Charlotte, 1875-1975 and former staff over the years, which offers a lesson for historian at the Levine Museum of the New us today. We’ve grown up in the era South. Follow him on Twitter at @historysouth.
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Hot Listings Bungalows are small in square footage but big on charm. —Taylor Bowler
812 MCDONALD AVE. $899,000 DILWORTH Award-winning architect Allen Brooks designed the floor plan of this 1949 Dilworth charmer, which includes a first-floor master suite and two separate living areas that can function as home offices or retreats. Wave to neighbors from a rocking chair on the front porch, or use the back patio for quiet family dinners. 4 BD, 3.5 BA, 2,862 sq. ft., Allen Tate Realtors, allentate.com 1720 CHATHAM AVE. $595,000 PLAZA MIDWOOD This cozy bungalow with the yellow door has a large master suite with vaulted ceilings and an updated bathroom with dual vanities and marble countertops. Entertain guests on a patio surrounded by planting beds or relax by the fire pit. 3 BD, 2 BA, 1,582 sq. ft., Savvy + Co., savvyandcompany.com 308 WESTWOOD AVE. $649,000 WILMORE Gleaming hardwoods run through this 1930s gem, and natural light floods the wide-open main floor. The updated kitchen has a Viking stove, a convection oven, and an expansive kitchen island—and an additional living space off the back opens to a spacious patio. 3 BD, 3 BA, 2,649 sq. ft., Matt Stone Real Estate, mattstoneteam.com 1722 AMHERST PL. $715,000 MYERS PARK It’s been updated with modern finishes, but this bungalow retains its 1920s character. The kitchen has double-wall ovens, a gas range, and a reclaimed wood kitchen island. The backyard has a raised deck for al fresco dining and a built-in fire pit for cooler nights. 4 BD, 3 BA, 2,505 sq. ft., The McDevitt Agency, themcdevittagency.com Homes available as of November 9, 2020. JANUARY 2021 // CHARLOTTE
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