People are proud to say they are from Fall City because they have a sense of pride and identity from living in a rural area. We love the views, the comradery, the feeling of living in a unique place. In terms of our homes, we have a diversity of housing and incomes in a small area, from mobile homes to luxury estates, historic landmarks and new construction. The theme is that there is no theme. A 1% growth rate over the past 50 years means each new project or addition adds a little character to the town and becomes part of the landscape.
Fall City residents are unhappy with the new developments because they represent a style of development associated with suburban sprawl – a repetitive blur of generic tract homes, each indistinguishable from the next. The lots are small, setbacks minimal, and houses maximal. Taylor Development’s approach to plat design leverages clustering to optimize for density, reduce development costs and maximize profits. The business model depends on volume.
Rural character
Fall City has a special land use designation intended to protect it’s rural roots.
We have 11 successful R-4 sub-divisions in Fall City already. Some of them are small ramblers and some are high-end, large homes. Some are on lots as small as 2,500 sq feet and some are on multiple acres (sadly, only a few of those remain after Taylor’s hard to refuse offers). Despite the range of buildings styles, they share a few things in common:
1. Homes have large yards and generous setbacks, since each has their own drain field.
2. No two homes are alike, even when built as part of a subdivision, as they use a variety of placement on the lots.
3. Even when close together, homes have a feeling of privacy and peacefulness found in rural communities.
