Charlotte's Beltway Baronials A Drain on Environment?

Charlotte is just the latest city to succumb to the lure of the sprawling, super-sized house. But the trend of building large has some planners and environmentalists wondering what the long-term effects such houses will have on, not only the environment, but the community.

"To some observers, the expanding size of US homes is a sign that more people are living the good life — or at least are hocking themselves up to their eyeballs trying. Who's to say these homes aren't the American Dream made manifest? More people want larger homes, according to real estate surveys.

But environmentalists and smart-growth proponents say McMansions could have dire implications for Charlotte. The natural resources needed to maintain larger houses and the traffic created by McMansion sprawl should have everyone concerned, from millionaires to paupers, they say.

"It's a real burden to the community," says Tim Frank, a San Francisco Bay-based senior adviser to the Sierra Club's Challenge to Sprawl Campaign."