(Images: John M Feit)

One of the great joys of urban exploration is the variety of scales one encounters in the built environment. While that range on Capitol Hill is generally restricted to small to medium building types, even such a limited offering provides some startling juxtapositions. As a bit of an architectural taxonomist, I notice several potential causes for these juxtapositions: those resulting from a change in zoning, those built on very small parcels of land, and  those that are simply the result of finding a good deal on rent.

Possible zoning changes are exhibited in two neighboring buildings on 18th Ave E, north of E John. For the uninitiated, zoning prescribes not only how big and what uses a building may have, but also dictates how far it needs to be set back from the street and neighboring properties. In the examples below, there may either have been no zoning when the apartments were built next to the single family homes; or, the zoning may have changed to allow such a proximate mix in uses. The closeness of the buildings to one another certainly would not be allowed under today’s building and zoning codes, at least not without significant changes to their designs. The tight fit between the buildings provides a finer weft of the built history of our neighborhood because they are nearly contemporaneous, and do not contrast in appearance as buildings whose construction is separated by many decades.

The next example — building on small parcels of land — is quite clever and one which I would enjoy seeing more of: building housing on a mere scrap of land in a size and shape complementary of the task at hand. This building just off 15th Ave E is so well situated to its narrow site and alley frontage it is hard to imagine it anywhere else — something that is hard to say about most recent development. Having only a handful of units it adds a bit more density to the neighborhood in a slight-of-had kind of way – policy makers take notice! It looks good, too.

I am sure we shall see more examples of the final example of today’s taxonomies: space that seeks a good deal on rent by making the smallest of venues work. Little Uncle, whose tasty food is the reason this stalwart of Hill cuisine has thrived despite its cramped quarters, is the type of space we are bound to see more of the Hill. Around five feet deep (if that), there is just enough space to prepare food and have one very small table for diners. Its new sit-down restaurant space on the same E Madison block opened Friday, by the way. CHS wrote earlier about the project here — though they’ve opted to stay with the name Little Uncle instead of making the Big Uncle change planned earlier.

The original Little Uncle’s fully exposed-to-the-street operations have lent this little part of Madison a distinctly big city feel. Although change is afoot at Little Uncle and the nature of this space is evolving, the ability to succeed and grow here can fuel the dreams of future entrepreneurs of limited means looking for a spot to hang a shingle.