Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 12, 1993 TAG: 9303120542
SECTION: LAWN & GARDEN PAGE: LG-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BETSY BIESENBACH STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
WHETHER BY CHANCE OR DESIGN, THESE FENCES SERVE THEIR PURPOSES
There are as many different reasons for having a fence as there are types of fences.When Kenneth and Nancy Motley decided to build a new house two years ago, they didn't have to move far. They simply divided their Sherwood Forest lot in two and put the new house right next to the old.
Although the two houses are close together, the new one was built facing the old garage instead of the main house, which affords a little extra privacy to both homes.
But it wasn't quite private enough, so Motley - who has worked for 40 years as an architect and owns his own firm, Motley and Associates - designed a fence that divides the two properties while allowing his family an unobstructed view of the hillside and valley below.
If not for his experience as an architect, Motley said, the fence would have been difficult to design. It was built on top of an existing stone wall that lines the driveway to the old house. Including the wall, the fence is 6 feet tall in most places, and about 78 feet long. It was built in sections, staggered vertically to accommodate the steep slope, which was calculated from topographical maps.
"It was designed to go with the terrain," Motley said.
The fence is made of wood, painted gray and finished on both sides, so that it looks attractive from either house. At the driveway level is what Motley calls "a friendly gate" for access between the two houses.
The fence is an important part of the house, Motley said. Without it, "we would never have built this close." A fence, he said, "gives definition to the property."
Randy and Eileen Dickey inherited their split-rail fence when they bought their house in South Roanoke last year.
"We don't like it very much," Randy Dickey admitted, but said he think they will like it better after they plant flowers and other greenery nearby. "We just need to clean up around it," he said.
The fence runs along the property line; and at the end post, the rails slope down to ground level, seeming to rise up out of the yard.
The fence is purely decorative, Dickey said, but they plan to keep it anyway.
Betty Shiels also inherited her fence when she bought her house on Welton Avenue; but unlike the Dickeys, "I love it," she said. The board fence was "an added attraction" when she decided to buy the home.
Shiels likes to garden, she said, and the fence "keeps the dogs and children out and lets the birds and squirrels in."
The fence is about 4 1/2 feet tall, and although it is at least a year old, the boards are barely weathered.
Carol Roberts of Northwest Roanoke doesn't have her fence yet, but she can't wait to get it. She and her family moved into their new house on Plymouth Drive soon after the next-door neighbors put a fence on the adjoining property line, and the Roberts liked the looks of it. There was a fence at their old house, Carol Roberts said, and they want one here, too, because they think it will be safer for their child.
The Roberts got an estimate of $450 to $500 for a 4-foot fence from Walker Fence and Handrail Inc., and are saving up to buy it.
When A. Anson Jamison and his wife Theresa built their South Roanoke home five years ago, the wrought-iron fence that surrounds it was intended to be used for a little extra security. But after considering how much trouble it would be to open and close the gates each time they went through, they bought a security system instead.
The gates have stood open ever since, Theresa said, but the couple still is pleased with the way it looks with the cobblestone-like driveway.
Wrought iron is probably the most expensive fencing material homeowners can buy, but Jamison said she didn't remember what the fence cost. It didn't matter anyway.
"It went with the house," she said. "We like the effect."