Assignment 9: Wright

The De Lido Apartments in Dunwoody are located on Chamblee Dunwoody Road where it intersects N. Shallowford Road less than a mile north of the Perimeter. They are an older suburban garden complex of two-story buildings. There are about 15-20 buildings in the community; the second photo above is an example of the buildings throughout the complex. The property is now in the middle of an office and commercial area, but beyond those adjacent properties, there are numerous residential neighborhoods.

I believe the apartments were probably built around the same time as the nearby neighborhoods--the early 1970s. They are made entirely of brick and apparently have large floor plans. There are interior hallway entrances to the units, but they have exterior fire escapes. The buildings are laid out so that, in most cases, buildings will back up to each other with an alley for parking in between. The buildings appear to be a Georgian or colonial style which are complementary to the nearby homes. They also have an entranceway appended to the fronts of the buildings with a large palladian window and glass door that are not complementary or consistent in style. (See Picture No. 4 above for a close-up of the entry with plants growing in individually-placed planters.) Still, they have an overall historicist appearance. The offices diagonally across the intersection are also of a historicist style while the two office structures across the streets in the intersection on the remaining corners are modern styles.

The community is not gated, and the buildings along the main roads are shielded primarily by pines, but also some hardwood trees. They sit approximately the same distance from the streets as neighboring houses. The parking areas are within the confines of the buildings, so that the community maintains more of a residential feel than the commercial properties nearby, all of which have parking up to the streetfronts.

The name in Italian means "beach," and in England, it is a term for pools or poolside areas. The Italian-sounding name was probably original, and it would likely have been a marketing tool to showcase the property as a deluxe community at the time. Obviously, there is no beach at the property, and the pool as shown in the third photo is of average size and appearance. It is in the middle of the property and is the only amenity at the complex. Since the pool is not open yet for the season, there was no one out there, but it was a well-maintained area as was the rest of the property.

The original tenants were probably families of middle class status who were not able to afford to purchase nearby houses. I have friends who lived in the apartments for a short time in the early to mid-1990s. They found it to be aging but in good condition at the time. A recent online review of the property in 2009 described the buildings as being very dated and apparently of original vintage. That poster also commented that the neighbors were friendly and that the units were larger than newer apartments. Based on the cars I observed in the parking lot, I believe that the typical tenants are lower class or lower middle class couples and seniors because the property is quite affordable. The number of immigrant tenants has certainly increased over the years, but it is still probably a black and white community for the most part. While older, De Lido is probably still a good value for the rental price given its location, neighbors, and size of the structures.