Greenbrier the smart
Plein de nouveaus développements à Huntsville qui se font sur le sens du monde.
I am in Huntsville, Alabama, as I continue my exploration of why this city grabbed me by the soft bits behind my belly button in November 2021 and never let go. Plus I’m hiding from the latest winter storm afflicting Ontario but shh, that’s just a side benefit.
On Sunday I had a delightful afternoon of exploration. Among other places my friend took me to Mooresville (where I saw the oldest continuously-used post office in the country) and the upcoming Greenbrier Preserve development.
Greenbrier doesn’t look like much at the moment, but the plan includes over 1,100 new homes, and not just mansions either. There will be homes for all income levels. Typically in this area new builds start a touch under $300K and top out not too far north of the half-million mark.
Yes, USD. Still. In Westboro you can’t get anything that’s not falling apart for less than a million. In Riverside South, about the same travel time from downtown Ottawa as Greenbrier Preserve is from downtown Huntsville, the tiniest new builds start at $550K or so. About $380 USD at today’s exchange rate. For sure, Huntsville isn’t the capital city of a G7 country but damn.
You can bitch all you want about housing developments going too far outside city centres, and I do that myself quite a bit. But here in Huntsville, growth is, well, booming. When Mayor Tommy Battle began his first term in 2010, population was about 185,000. It’s fast approaching 230,000. This much growth has to be managed intelligently and while nothing is perfect, when I compare how quickly and smoothly new communities spring up here with Ottawa’s procurement nightmares and legendary NIMBYism, my jaw drops to the ground. New communities in Huntsville are mixed, with plenty of things to do around housing.
I’m staying in a suburban Madison condo for the week. Part of my exploration of this town is to experience life in various areas by finding temporary digs off Vrbo instead of staying at hotels. I learn more that way. This week I’m at Ballpark Apartments, right next to Toyota Field (home of the Rocket City Trash Pandas) and while it’s still being developed already there is one lovely bakery and several other food options ranging from chicken fast food to this place, all within walking distance, plus the giant Publix grocery store and Walgreen’s pharmacy 700 metres away.
It’s not enough to provide housing for people. Said housing has to be in a community where living is pleasant for human beings. Driving around Greenbrier Preserve now, most of what you see is empty farm fields but within a year or two, nobody will remember that.
In my mind nothing beats downtown Huntsville and if I moved here that’s where I’d live but there are plenty of fantastic neighbourhoods in this town, each with its own distinctive qualities and charms and an ease of living that would make any Barrhaven dweller green with envy.
Il n’y a pas que Buc-ee’s dans la vie, encore que. Pas très loin de cet établissement unique que vous vous devez absolument de visiter, on trouve d’innombrables développements domiciliaires en construction. Celui que j’ai visité dimanche dernier se nomme Greenbrier Preserve et se trouve un peu au sud-est de l’aéroport the Huntsville, dans ma ville favorite de l’Alabama.
Mon ami qui s’est fait un plaisir de me trimballer d’un bord pis de l’autre de la région dimanche dernier m’y a conduite parce que selon lui c’est un des développements les plus prometteurs. Plus de 1,100 nouvelles habitations, pour à peu près tous les budgets.
Ce que j’apprécie plus que tout dans la philosophie de croissance de la ville et de la région de Huntsville, c’est l’emphase qu’on met partout sur le développement d’infrastructures (incluant trottoirs et pistes cyclables) mais surtout le nombre de restaurants, épiceries et autres commerces de tous les jours à proximité.
J’ai eu le plaisir de rencontrer le maire de Hunstville, Tommy Battle, hier midi. Il était bien surpris de savoir que sa ville faisait maintenant partie du paysage à Ottawa à cause d’une écrivaine un peu flyée qui est tombée follement amoureuse de cette région il y a plus de trois ans.
Je l’ai déjà dit et je le répéterai encore: On aurait de belles leçons d’urbanisme à apprendre de cette petite ville du nord de l’Alabama si on se donnait la peine d’y jeter un coup d’œil.