BOB BEITCHER says he and his wife, Carol, want their newly built home in Santa Monica to be a showcase of sustainable practices “without being granola-y, if you know what I mean.”
Their house off San Vicente Boulevard has been carefully designed by architect Warren Wagner to optimize solar energy and the use of recycled and renewable materials. Yet the modernist dwelling seems more about the panache of architectural possibilities than the virtuousness of green design.
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Tearing down is becoming so passé.
Once a trend, it has become almost required in American building that old houses be demolished to make way for homes that are bigger and grander.
But The New American Home at this year’s International Builders Show makes a big statement of its own, that just about any house can be saved — if the owners are willing to pay to move and renovate it.
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The wonderful charm of Victorian homes makes them desirable. But if homeowners choose a restoration approach, lifestyle adjustments can be significant. The size and shape of the spaces work well with period furniture. I have seen reproduction kitchens where great efforts have been made to conceal modern appliances.
However, many people prefer to keep the general architectural character and make thoughtful modifications and additions to adapt to today’s family activities. It must be a careful transition from old to new. (more…)
“EMERGING VERTICALITY” IS A CATCH PHRASE used to describe the recent cropping up of the first two floors at the construction site of 4545, Conrad Properties’ newest, exciting 10-story luxury condominium building on Lindell Boulevard, between Euclid and Taylor in the Central West End. Sales began in April of this year, and already seven of the 34 residences have been sold, including one of the three available penthouses. Move-in to this eagerly-anticipated condominium development is slated for spring of 2007, according to Steven Lange, sales broker. For now, interested homebuyers can visit the well-appointed, highly informative storefront sales office at No. 5 Maryland Plaza, just a block north of the building site. (more…)
Outdoors is going upscale across United States
America is moving out.
We’re creating outdoor spaces with all the comforts of indoors, right down to the area rugs and chandeliers. Thank modern materials for that — and quite possibly, the high cost of housing.
“Americans are looking outdoors and saying, ‘Hey, I have a lot more room than I thought I had,’ ” said P. Allen Smith, a garden designer who has both a TV show and a book titled “P. Allen Smith’s Garden Home.”
Creating a garden room, those homeowners reason, is a lot less expensive than adding on, or pulling up stakes. And with expansive choices and opportunities for customization, “you can get the same level of design detail for the exterior” as you could for the interior, he said. (more…)
