snout house

n. a single-family residence in which a garage projects from, obscures, or dominates the street-facing side of the building. Subjects: English, Architecture, Slang

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Citations: 1996 Richard N. Colby Oregonian (Portland) (Oct. 8) “Forest Grove Candidates Aim For Livability” p. B04: Residential developments now popping up across the city, Bliss says, often reflect the city’s lack of design control over new homes. He refers to them as “snout houses,” garages out front and living areas to the rear. 1999 Janet Christ Oregonian (Portland) (June 29) “Council Expects Full House For Design Rules Meeting” p. B02: The proposal attacks what critics call “snout houses”—residences with the garages protruding in front of the living area. 2000 Alan Jefferis, David Madsen Architectural Drafting and Design (Aug. 7) 4 ed., : Traditional layout has produced what is referred to as a snout house, meaning a home is dominated by a view of the garage. In a design where the home is dominated by the garage, the main entrance to the home is often secondary to the entrance for cars, and the driveway often dominates the front yard. 2006 Aaron Tarfman voices.BikePortland.org (Oregon) (Feb. 14) “Worst Day of the Year Ride”: “Wow these houses must be designed for giants. They’re huge.” “Yeah, giant doors [two 3ft doors], giant garages [3 car garage ‘snout house’ designs], and giant SUVs.” 2006 David Keeps Los Angeles Times (Apr. 30) “What were they thinking?”: Bored with mere breezeways that connected detached garages to houses, homeowners sought to bridge the distance with direct access to kitchens, laundry centers and dens. Garages doubled, even tripled in size to accommodate second pantries, wood shops and sports lockers. Often these structures jutted toward the street, creating what is euphemistically called a “snout house” and throwing off any respectable sense of symmetry—unless you bought out the neighbors and added on a wing.

Posted 3 May 06 | Permalink | Tell a Friend