What Japantown is like to work in
Lot sizes here were set before cars, and that shows up in every practical way. Driveways are short or absent, houses sit close to the sidewalk, and side setbacks are narrow enough that two people cannot pass between buildings. Crews park on the street near Fifth Street and Sixth Street and carry the kit in, so the loading has to be thought about rather than assumed.
The buildings are a genuine mix. A 1918 cottage with a raised foundation, a picture rail and one bathroom can sit beside a 2015 three-story townhome with a roof terrace. The old ones have wood floors that have moved, doors that no longer shut square, and windows painted over at the sash. The new ones have stairs. Both are quick for their size and neither resembles the other.
The building stock here
Small footprints dominate — 800 to 1,400 square feet is common in the older stock, one or two bedrooms, a single bathroom, and a kitchen at the back of the house. Raised foundations mean the floors have some give and creak under a vacuum. Newer infill stacks three levels onto the same footprint with a garage at ground level. The blocks are dense enough that sound carries, so early starts are kept quiet.