Wikipedia defines: An alley or alleyway is a narrow lane, path, or passageway, often designed for pedestrians and as a service road. .
Other names include:Â passageway, alleyway, path or pathway. The origin of the word alley is late Middle English, from Old French: alee “walking or passage”, from aler “go”, from Latin: ambulare “to walk”.
In the United States alleys exist in both older commercial and residential areas, for both service providers purposes and automobile access. In residential areas, particularly those that were built before the 1950’s, alleys provide rear access to properties where a garage is located, or where garbage can be collected. A benefit of this was to keep away from the public side of a dwelling. Such alleys are generally graveled, roughly paved, and some were dirt. After the 1950’s alleys were seldom included in plans for new housing developments.
Numerous cities in the United States and Canada, such as Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Washington, D.C. and Montréal, have started reclaiming their alleys by greening the alleys/service lanes, that run behind some houses.
Alley restoration enables easier water runoff. With this renewal, water will be able to seep through semi-permeable concrete or asphalt for healthier environments. The lighter color of the pavement will also reflect more light, making the area next to the alley cooler. The greening of such alleys or laneways can also involve the planting of native plants to further absorb rain water and moderate temperatures.
New life has also come to other alleys within downtown commercial districts of various cities throughout the world with the opening of businesses, such as coffee houses, shops, restaurants and bars.
Another way that alleys and laneways are being revitalized is through laneway housing. A laneway house is a newer form of housing in near business district areas. These homes are typically built into pre-existing lots, usually in the backyard and opening onto the back lane. In some areas an average laneway house is one and a half stories, with one or two bedrooms. Typical regulations require that the laneway home is built on the back half of a traditional lot in the space normally reserved for a garage.
Who knows what innovations will happen in the future. But new opportunities might resolve some housing situations.
As I researched this topic I thought someone would have written a history of the American city block, and the alley. Not so, that I can find.
John Hensrud, RE/MAX Results HomesMSP Team – jhensrud@homesmsp.com – 763-242-2174
