GreenDwellingSeattle

The personality of a home starts with the approach; meaning that our experience begins as we arrive from different surroundings.  As we get closer we start to realize how the outdoor spaces set the tone for the rest of the house.  In turn, once we are inside it will be these same outdoor spaces that play a great role in the experience we have in the interior spaces.  While there are thousand of possibilities for how we will treat these outdoor spaces the success of our choice will be determined by the connections that we are able to make between the built environment (the house) and the nature that surrounds it. 

Case is taking great care to make sure that they are impacting the natural environment as little as possible and as we discussed earlier have added features such as a the green roof balcony and rainwater harvesting as a means of doing so.  The remainder of the landscaping plans for the homes will be to retain many of the native species that already exist, and to fill out the remainder of the spaces with drought tolerant plantings that will look beautiful year round with just enough time spent on maintenance for it to still be enjoyable.  Their approach of accomplishing more with less is intended, amongst other things, to provide a beautiful, peaceful environment that leaves the homeowners free to play and explore the world around them. 

One of the homes at Columbia City Green will also include as an added benefit a prepaid urban farming service.  In this case Seattle MicroFarm has come in and constructed a raised bed for the South home and will handle everything from planting, irrigating, weeding, and harvesting a supply of fresh, organic food for the household.  This raised bed garden will have a drip irrigation system installed as well, significantly reducing the amount of water that will be needed for irrigating the crops.  Urban farming is just about as local as it gets and there are a host of resources for finding out how to start growing your own food right in your own backyard.  Locally Seattle Tilth is an excellent resource.  Search your own area and see what’s happening near you.

As you can see from the photos a large portion of the landscaping is being left to its natural state.  The native species and fruit trees will provide a sense of balance for the crisp, modern lines of the homes and weave them seamlessly into the surrounding neighborhood.  The Northwest is the home of great natural beauty and the impact of clearing the site, altering the terrain, and creating ‘unnatural nature’ is immense and most importantly unnecessary. 

The combination of native and drought tolerant plantings, rainwater harvesting, green roof, urban farming, and a rain garden are all designed to lessen the impact that we have on our natural surroundings.  The hope is to accomplish these things without the sacrifice of beauty, comfort, or livability.  The icing on the cake is that if done correctly this combination will magnify all of these traits while allowing nature to do its thing, and be a contributing factor to a better world in the future. 

Over the course of our postings about Columbia City Green, we have addressed many of the major areas and systems that make up a home.  We have talked about the Foundation, the Framing, the Radiant Heat and Ventilation, the Siding, the Windows, the Green Roofs, the Interior Finishes, and the Rainwater Harvesting.  We have also spoken in depth to the part these homes play in the vitality of our neighborhoods with the hope that people will see the importance of this great work in a more holistic sense.  We want you to see how all of this fits together, that it may become more relevant to you and your life.

If this is the first post you have read in our Seattle Green Building series, take some time to go back through prior posts.  The links in the preceding paragraph will easily get you there.  If you have questions or comments about any of the posts please share them.  Case has been building beautiful, efficient homes in Seattle for a number of years now.  Their previous projects include their Latitia , 34^th Avenue, and South Mead homes, just to name a few.