The Mystery Plant from the Duplex

Can Anyone Tell Me What Type of Plant This Is?

I appreciate trees, bushes, and flowers a little more with each passing year.  And, as much as I enjoy watching things grow taller and fuller, I'm also aware of the value these plants bring to my properties.  Whether I'm building a spec home on a vacant lot or renovating one of my Pig's Ears, I make a serious effort to leave trees stand when possible and I'm mindful of salvaging the living things in the ground much the same as I do with valuables inside the home or around the property.  

While I was renovating the Bungalow/Duplex, Lisa (one of my favorite realtors) stopped by to review my progress.  Lisa is clearly the E.F. Hutton of all of my projects because when she talks, I listen.  Over the years she has unleashed a solid list of valuable suggestions, so when she told me to save a plant in the front yard at The Duplex, without a second thought I made plans to dig it up and relocated it to our yard. 

I replanted it at the base of a magnolia tree we have and it blooms every summer about this time.  However, I don't know what it's called.  Neighbors have asked me, but all I can give for an answer is a shrug to go with my crooked smile.  

So if you know, tell me in the comment section below or send an e-mail.  (Link found with profile).    

The Duplex Before - The mystery plant is at the base of the corner fence post.

The Duplex During.  The fence and plant are gone.

The Duplex After

See also:

The Detached Garage at the Bungalow

Subdividing The Bungalow and The Duplex

Step 4 - Pull Out the Valuables 

From Cocky Ghostbuster to Tired Forrest Gump

Before the Financial Crisis and this real estate cool down, it had become routine for me to be feeling pretty triumphant as I left a closing after selling one of my resurrected properties...like Bill Murray and the Ghostbusting team shown below.

 

However, The Bungalow with it's Detached Garage and The Duplex have been different.  I bought it all as one property at the start of 2008.  Two Pig's Ears, one gigantic sow, and the worst property on the street by far.  You know what they say, "Go big or go home."  Well, I did just that.  In the worst economy since The Great Depression, I subdivided the land...so I owned the two worst properties on the street.  (see Subdividing the Bungalow and The Duplex).

While trying to be a husband, father, and step-father, I juggled; stacks of water, electric, insurance, and tax bills, credit card and credit line payments, and the schedules/needs of contractors, tradespeople, inspectors, and vendors.  And on top of those usual challenges, I also had to deal with drug dealers infiltrating part of the property, someone trying to steal a pricey air conditioner for copper, the loss of a new friend in the neighborhood who was cheering me on until he went to be with The Lord, the eviction of a pair of Waffle House waitresses who weren't paying rent, and an irritating medical issue that's too personal to share (but pretty funny for everyone else when I do).  Then to add to my neurosis, I was borderline OCD about keeping twelve different doors closed and locked when I wasn't there.  (See It's An Adventure.)  So I signed my name over and over again today and then let out a sigh while my daughter sat next to me at the conference table with her coloring book and crayons. 

I came, I saw, I finished my mission.  I don't feel like the Ghostbusters.  I feel more like  a worn-out Forrest Gump and I'm glad I have a Jenny of my own to give me a comforting hug and tell me she's proud of me even though I have nothing to show for it but my pictures, lessons learned, and some stories.

I didn't make any money on this pair, but I got back what I put in.  Some may see this as a loss.  Others may look at it as a tie.  I worked pretty hard to get there and I'm glad I made it.  I think I'll see getting back to where I started as a victory and begin looking forward to the next chapter.         

Step 16 - Evaluating the Base, Bones, & Roof

If I'm breaking down what I do and how I do it, the thirteenth step would address the trio of foundation, supporting structure, and the roof. (In no fixed order).  The foundation forms the base of any structure and it's construction is usually the first major component of a new building.  After this groundwork is in place, the structural framing usually goes up next, and then the roof is added up top.  However, there are exceptions to this.  For example, with many pole buildings, the framing is first, the roofing is second, and the concrete/foundation is after (and may even get placed following the installation of the siding, doors, windows and plumbing rough-in).  Think of extreme home renovating as another exception to the norm and remember that you don't necessarily have to tackle it in the order of: foundation first, framing second, and roof third.

The Fire House - Framing/roof came first.

For me the sequencing of these three has varied.  On The Fire House, I focused on the framing, then did the roof, and had no issues with the block or concrete work supporting the home.  The Hurricane House was the same; no foundation issues there either.

On The Cottage, the roof didn't leak and the shingles were in good shape.  So I started with the foundation work on this property before heading inside to move walls and redesign the interior.  On this project I didn't need to add a new roof until I was ready to sell a few years later.

The Bungalow was an example of a project that started with the roof.  When it rained, water came in everywhere.  There were buckets and large plastic containers under the leaks and for the first months of the project these had to be watched and dumped regularly.  On The Detached Garage at the Bungalow (which was a pole building), the slab and the original nine poles were fine, but everything else had to be redone.

The Duplex - The roof was the hot issue due to tenants

On The Duplex, the roof was the hot issue right away as well and was even more significant because I wanted and needed to keep the tenants dry.  (Leaks in the units would lead to unhappy tenants/vacant apartments and I needed that monthly rent to make this project work financially.)  

The Detached Garage at The Fire House was like two different projects that was taken on two distinct ways.  When I bought the property it was half storage and half carport.  The roof had no issues, so I closed in the open areas and then placed concrete after that to make it a two car garage.  However, after the oak tree next to it got struck by lightening and it burned down, I had to rebuild it from what was remaining, which was the concrete slab.

So, understand that every project is different, especially when the home has been condemned or forgotten.  There's no one way to bring it back to life, but you need to be ready to deal with the foundation, the structural framing, and the roof right away. 

The Duplex After - Same view as above

The Fire House After - Same view as above.

The Bungalow - Before.

The Bungalow - After

The Hurricane House - Before

The Hurr. House - After  (Slightly diff. angle)

The Det. Gar. at The Fire House was originally a carport.

The Det. Gar. at TFH after it burned down.

The Rebuilt DG at TFH that started w/ the slab that survived the fire.

Jump to Step 14 - Windows and Exterior Doors

Subdividing the Bungalow and the Duplex

The Bungalow was a Pig's Ear.  It was the worst house on the street.  In as much as I believed the home and the detached garage (see The Detached Garage at the Bungalow) could be reconstructed dramatically, I also felt certain that the overall property had potential to be more as well.  With the Bungalow I acquired a rental house with two apartments (the Duplex) and from the moment I agreed to the deal I had intentions of legally subdividing the land and creating two separate properties.

The Bungalow and the Duplex were in Charleston, SC.  Charleston is one of the country's oldest cities and it has wholeheartedly embraced it's rich history and distinct architecture.  There is nothing historical or architecturally significant about the Bungalow (and it's detached garage) or the Duplex, but since they're located within the city's jurisdiction, I had to follow the same procedures (through the city's Dept. of Planning, Preservation, and Sustainability,  the Subdivision Review Committee, and the Board of Architectural Review) as the classic antebellum homes on the city's peninsula that were built centuries ago when Charleston was one of the wealthiest cities in the nation. 

The city's process was methodical, systematic, and routine and even though I was not resurrecting historic buildings in the carriage tour districts, the folks at the City of Charleston could not have been more supportive of my plans.  They helped me very thoughtfully with all the photo and drawing submissions (and revisions) that were required and patiently answered my steady stream of questions while they walked me through the reviews, appeals, and meetings that are part of a property subdivision in our historic city.  

In the end, the people working on behalf of the city were instrumental in helping me transform one of the worst properties in the neighborhood into two that we were very proud of. 

View from the back of the property before.  The Bungalow (left) and the Duplex (right).

After - The fence that denotes the new property line will one day be covered with ivy.

See related post The Picture Window at the Bungalow