When was our Community Built?

In writing about 2413 Buena Vista last week and the looking at the year 1942 as a demarcation for the "Historic List," I wanted to get a better feel for what that housing stock looked liked and the mix in Alameda. The only source that I had available over the weekend was the 2000 Census, so the numbers have changed with the addition on new home construction but it will get us pretty close to at least what the stock looked like nine years ago.

The Census does a pretty good job of breaking down the numbers and they separate out owner-occupied verses rental. For a baseline here are the total numbers:

Owner-Occupied: 14,491

Rental: 15,735

Not a real surprising since the first wave of housing came between 1854 and  1939. Over a third of the homes in Alameda were built during this period with 38.5% of the owner occupied and 29.3% of the rental units constructed in this 85-years. The total housing stock was built before World War II was 33.17%. 

If you push the date out to 1969 this construction  accounts for well over two-thirds of the units (68%). So for the next 30 years Alameda saw 9,576 units added to the inventory. A large portion of this development came as Harbor Bay began construction in 1978 and added 2,973 homes over the next 20-plus years.

So I guess my question to ponder is: How good a tool is the HAB list with the inventory we have?

I was really able to think about question as I walked from my home near Broadway to my favorite coffee shop near Webster. As I walked along Central I noted two things: First is you really do not know a neighborhood til you walk it;  And second what is the list suppose to do?

Central Avenue is the real reason why Measure A and The HAB List were created. Older homes, Big Box Apartments, small bungalows, bastardized Victorians into two, three, four or more units. The big lots with older homes that hide apartment buildings stacked behind the grand home. I can really see why dramatic steps were taken by the citizens.

As I walked the 17 blocks from Park to Webster, I realized that it is not the city measures that were implemented but the mix of housing stock that allows for such a diverse and unique community. And in someways it was the craziness of 50s,60s, and 70s created this community that is diverse and unique. I still believe that the HAB list  was done backwards, that a (singular) home should be place on list by the individual merit and not one big swoop, but I will continue to ponder this question.

The Census data is below, and even further down in the post is the weekly inventory report.

TENURE BY YEAR STRUCTURE BUILT
Owner-occupied housing units	14,491	100
Built 1999 to March 2000	52	0.4%
Built 1995 to 1998	538	3.7%
Built 1990 to 1994	422	2.9%
Built 1980 to 1989	2,509	17.3%
Built 1970 to 1979	1,760	12.1%
Built 1960 to 1969	1,817	12.5%
Built 1950 to 1959	943	6.5%
Built 1940 to 1949	876	6.0%
Built 1939 or earlier	5,574	38.5%
Median	1958	(X)
Renter-occupied housing units	15,735	100
Built 1999 to March 2000	22	0.1
Built 1995 to 1998	133	0.8
Built 1990 to 1994	504	3.2
Built 1980 to 1989	1,100	7
Built 1970 to 1979	2,536	16.1
Built 1960 to 1969	3,245	20.6
Built 1950 to 1959	2,117	13.5
Built 1940 to 1949	1,460	9.3
Built 1939 or earlier	4,618	29.3
Median	1958	(X)

Monday Inventory Below:

Alameda Inventory, Pulled February 22 at 9:30 AM

 

22-Feb-09
Total		165
94501		130
94502		34
SFR		91
Condo		45
Multi-Family		28
Short Sale		27
Foreclosure		11
Price Reductions		61
High		$       2,095,000
Low		$          214,900