Way OT: 12 Grimmauld Place Appearance?

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 142096

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "potioncat" <willsonkmom at m...>
wrote:
> 
> 12 GP is in the middle of other two other houses (I picture 
> townhouses, but I'm not sure if that is correct.)
> 

bboyminn:

I hope this is on-topic enough that I can get away with it. I'm
wondering how other people pictured 12 Grimmauld Place and Grimmauld
Square in general.

Perhaps I was presuaded by some book cover graphics that showed 12
Grimmauld Place as a mansion, but that is alway how I envisioned it.
However, given the description of the general neighborhood around
Grimmauld Square, it seems unlikely. 

To some extent I picture Grimmauld Square as old 3 to 5 story
apartment buildings separated by a very narrow strip of grass or
perhaps a fense. Partly because that's how apartment building are
where I live; they aren't attached. But housing space in London is
really tight, and it is more likely that Grimmauld Square is made up
of 3 to 5 story Row Houses. Row houses would be buildings of various
sizes that share a common side wall with their neighbors. In other
words, no gap between buildings. This is more likely in London. Also,
despite my outward picture of the Black house as a mansion, I get a
very /narrow/ sense of the interior space. 

Also, if you remember the TV show 'The Nanny' with Fran Drescher. They
live in what looked like a Row House on the outside, and I guess
techically it was, but on the inside it was very much like a mansion.
My point is that row houses don't always equal slums.

My vision is that the Black mansion has been there for a long time,
and that like all landed estates in the city, the surrounding land was
gradually sold off as it's value and the related taxes increased
astronomically. Land farthest from the Black mansion was developed
first, and gradually over the centuries the houses and apartments just
crept closer and closer to the mansion.

Of course, the Black Mansion itself is well hidden even without the
Fidelius Charm, so the encrouching houses would be unaware of its
existance. 

Just curious how other people envisioned the Black house; row house,
mansion, simply a large house, stone, brick, wood, ...?

To help keep this on topic, let's remember that magic folk living in
muggle neighborhoods never really have to interact with muggles. They
can come and go by Floo Powder, Apparation, and late night broomstick.
They could live rich full lives and yet never be seen coming and going
by their neighbors. 

Just curious about your vision of the Black House.

Steve/bboyminn

PS: I have this very fan-ficcy vision of the immensely rich Weasley
Brothers, at some point in the future, redeveloping Grimmauld Square
as a way of protecting 12 Grimmauld Place. As neighborhoods become
rundown, they become ripe for redevelopment. Any land and building
space in the city of London is precious, and rundown neighborhoods are
ripe for redevelopment into upscale housing or shopping areas. So, the
Weasleys decide to do exaclty that, buy up the whole block and convert
all the building into town homes, luxury flats, and penthouses with a
few shops just for flavor. The alternative is for some other
redeveloper to take over the neighborhood which could cause problems.
If they built a shopping complex on the spot, the new entrance to the
Black house could be in the underwear department of Marks and Sparks.