What Should a Sustainable House Look Like - an Old House?

What should a 'green' house look like?

By Philip Langdon, 11/12/10
Source: USA Today

On 24 acres overlooking the San Juan Islands in Puget Sound, an enclave of Nantucket-style cottages shows just how charming and traditional a green home can be built.

The quaint seaside homes have steeply pitched roofs, deep covered porches, gracious columns, second-floor balconies and, in some cases, a white picket fence. They are far from the minimalist modern aesthetic often associated with eco-friendly living.

'Sustainability doesn't need to look sustainable,' says Donald Powers, founder of the Rhode-Island based firm -- Donald Powers Architects -- that designed the 100-home community in Anacortes, Wash., about 90 miles north of Seattle. 'You can build a traditional home with very progressive features.'

The first cottage -- chosen as 'This Week's Green House' -- earned the basic level of certification (there are four levels) from the private U.S. Green Building Council's LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) program.

Powers says it wasn't that hard to do. His firm's partner, Douglas Kallfelz, who was the project architect, focused on cost-effective measures --what many in the building industry call the "low-hanging fruit" -- such as high-performance windows and mechanical systems, native landscaping as well as Energy Star lighting and appliances.

Each home is landscaped to provide an active wildlife habitat, earning a 'Backyard Wildlife Habitat' distinction from the National Wildlife Federation. The enclave has tree-lined sidewalks and four neighborhood parks with trails that wind to the sea.

Kallfelz, who has been principal in charge on the project for the past two years for Powers, credited the master plan and landscape design to GCH of Seattle, under Jerry Coburn, that firm's principal in charge. Builder was Gilbane Development Company, based, like the Powers firm, in Providence, Rhode Island.

Giving the Man Cave a Makeover

Once Relegated to the Garage, Rooms Get So Nice, Wives Muscle In; Pool Table or Quilting Table?

By GWENDOLYN BOUNDS

Craig Schuelke's Forest Hill, Md., basement is a testament to manliness. There's the Arnold Schwarzenegger pinball machine and about $30,000 of signed Michigan and Maryland sports memorabilia the construction superintendent has enshrined on the walls. An air-hockey table commands one corner, flanked by a pool table, shot-glass collection and dart board.

It's a quintessential "man cave," except for one feature: Mr. Schuelke's wife, Melanie.

"He doesn't know what we're doing when he's not home," says Mrs. Schuelke. "My female friends, we shoot pool, drink beer and throw darts down there."

The man cave has a secret: Women use them, too. Their new interest comes as these spaces have morphed from cold garage outposts into tricked-out comfy spreads, complete with flat screens TVs, fully stocked bars, arcade games and plush (clean!) furniture.

As a result, men are learning to share with the family while combating the inevitable intrusion of scented candles, flowers and kiddie toys. While couples often cozy up together or party in caves with friends, a growing number of women say they retreat there—even holding the occasional quilting party—without the guys.

The struggling housing market is partly behind the evolution of the man cave into a multipurpose space. Rather than trade up or build on, more homeowners are squeezing the most out of their existing living quarters—but splurging on the decor. As a result, today's man caves are desirable and even luxurious pads that the whole family wants to enjoy.

An entire marketplace has emerged in recent years to outfit these spaces. There's Man Cave LLC, modeled after Mary Kay cosmetics, where guys hold barbecue parties dubbed "meatings" to sell steak and cave accoutrements, such as bacon-scented candles and beer pagers to locate lost brew. Online retailers mancavemarket.com and themancaveoutletstore.com hawk essentials, such as beer kegerators, pool tables and Skee-Ball games.

Higher-ticket items make women feel more proprietary over caves, originally intended as spots where guys could be alone or hang with pals, says Mike Yost, who runs cave community site mancavesite.org. "If the guys spend on the big-screen TV and chairs, the wife typically is going to have to sign off on it, too."

Further stoking female cave envy is cable TV's "Man Caves" show on the DIY Network. Episodes feature bling such as a pool table that rises out of the floor. "These are really, really nice spaces, and when the guys want to spend time there, the family wants to spend time there," says Andy Singer, DIY Network's general manager.

That's the case in Robert Butterfield's Sierra Vista, Ariz., home. His retreat is a 400-square-foot homage to Nascar racers Dale Earnhardt and his son. It also sports a 50-inch TV, couch, hundreds of Diecast model cars, even a Christmas tree decked in Earnhardt ornaments—about a $50,000 investment. Mr. Butterfield, 43, calls it "my space," but it's often where his wife Maria and sons also congregate when he's home from his overseas government-contracting job.

Says Mrs. Butterfield, 45: "I enjoy being in there because it's kind of like a little getaway from the rest of the house. When I'm in there, I'm not reminded about dishes or laundry." That's cool with her husband: "Sure, I like time to chill alone, but I started a family because I wanted to be with them."

Still, the gender cohabitation raises a nettlesome question: When does a man cave stop being a man cave and become just a family room? "There's a real blurring of the line between man cave and family room," warns Minnesota decorator Sue Hunter, who runs mancaveinteriors.com. "I think guys are going to start taking charge back in that area."

And certainly purists remain, such as Tommy "Buck Buck" Sattler of Islip, N.Y., who rigged his 325-square-foot getaway with New York Giants football paraphernalia, seven TVs, a red-oak bar top, and urinal in the bathroom.

Mr. Sattler flips on an outdoor blue light to let the neighbors know when his "underground lounge" is open, but jokes that women, including his wife, typically stop by only if "they are dropping off food or bringing cleaning products."

Most guys, however, seem game for co-ed caves—so long as there are ground rules, such as no potpourri or decorative pillows. Ms. Hunter, the man-cave decorator, steers clear of big glass vases and baskets in favor of art, she says, that means something to a man, such as "I want to go kill the buck in that picture."

Then there's the "no touch" rule that's reigned in Mr. Butterfield's Nascar sanctuary since he found his 4-year-old son's fingerprints on the display cases with his model cars. "It's a little bit of an ownership thing," he says. "I'm really detail oriented, and this is the way I want the room."

Other regulations are trickier to enforce. Karen Dixon gladly turned over her Friendswood, Texas, garage to husband Shawn, even though parking outside means unloading groceries in the rain. "I'm not controlling, and it makes him happy," she says. Inside, he's stationed his Harley Davidson motorcycle, a 1967 Cavalier Coca-Cola machine, pay phone painted Harley orange, and heavy-weight punching bag.

The Dixons, both 38, often play cards together in the cave, but she balks at his suggestion that usage is by "invitation" only. "Really? I think that he doesn't own it," says Mrs. Dixon, who believes her husband would be secretly "flattered if I brought my friends in there to have crafts and a book club." Mr. Dixon's concern: "I'd be afraid something would be moved and I'd never find it."

The stickiest time can be during cave construction. Mrs. Dixon advises other women to negotiate time limits. "When Shawn is focused on something, it consumes him. Looking back, what I should have done is said, 'Spend as much time with your family as with the man cave. If you work out there for an hour, then come inside for an hour.' "

Indeed, compromise is critical in any man cave negotiation. Married 36 years, Steve and Pam Flaten, both 56, share space in AutoMotorPlex Minneapolis, a compound of high-end garages ranging from 1,000- to 6,500-square feet for fixing up and storing specialty vehicles.

In the loft living area the Flatens constructed inside their garage, Mrs. Flaten typically quilts while her husband tinkers with his race cars below. Recently she held a quilting party.

Despite the domestic influence, Mr. Flaten has stood his ground on certain points. The racing flames on the toilet seat, those get to stay. The flowers she wanted for an end table, those got moved outside.

Women's interest in the man cave phenomenon is sparking a logical next step: woman caves. The DIY Network is exploring development of a new show around the concept. Retailer HomeGoods just launched a campaign to outfit what it dubs "Mom Caves."

To some, that's redundant. "A chick cave?" sniffs Dan Cunningham, owner of the Monroe, Mich.-based mancavemarket.com, "That's what the rest of the house is."

Living Cities to Invest $80 for Poor in 5 Cities - Including Cleveland

By Haya El Nasser, USA TODAY

Imagine investing in cities but only if public, private and philanthropic groups work together on long-term strategies to help low-income residents.

Living Cities, a philanthropic collaborative of 22 of the world's largest foundations and financial institutions, will do that Thursday when it announces $80 million in grants, loans and investments.

Nineteen urban centers competed for the money, but five won for programs that challenge conventional wisdom: Baltimore, Cleveland, Detroit, Newark and Minneapolis-St. Paul.

"The underlying principle of our initiative is that to do this work, you have to have the public sector, the private sector, local philanthropies and the non-profit community all at the same table talking about solving the problem," says Ben Hecht, CEO of Living Cities. "None of those, on their own, will make a long-term change."

It's a bold initiative that requires disparate groups to work under one umbrella on many missions. Until now, grants focused on one goal, such as affordable housing or jobs or transportation.

Leaders of the effort hope that the funding — about $16 million per city — will generate more funding to keep the programs alive long after the grant money dries up.

"It's not about funding projects but about funding systems," Hecht says. "We hope it's going to be a model for other cities."

The winning cities' projects, to be unveiled at the Museum of African American History in Detroit:

•Baltimore. Coordinate a series of unrelated projects to create jobs and affordable housing and use the construction of a subway line to galvanize the efforts.

•Cleveland. Create a biotech corridor between the city and Youngstown, Ohio, by building laboratory space and continue the work of the Cleveland Foundation, which has been creating work cooperatives that give workers a piece of the business.

Hospitals and schools buy lettuce for patients and students and "they found out they buy lettuce that goes 2,500 miles to get to Cleveland," Hecht says. "If you grow this lettuce locally, they said we'll buy it locally."

•Detroit. The shrinking city has twice as much land as it uses. The aim is to concentrate population to revitalize neighborhoods. The focus is on the Woodward Corridor, home of Wayne State University, Detroit Medical Center and the Detroit Institute of Arts.

"How do you use those assets to connect to neighborhoods where there have been so few opportunities?" says Rip Rapson, president of the Kresge Foundation near Detroit and a Living Cities board member.

The goal is to link institutions and local workers and suppliers and attract people to live along the corridor.

•Newark. The New Jersey city that has battled corruption and crime wants to change its image to that of a healthy and safe place to live.

The Center for Collaborative Change, created two years ago, is working with corporations and medical centers to create housing and increase access to fresh foods in supermarkets and neighborhood corner stores.

•Twin Cities. Civic leaders in Minneapolis and St. Paul want to build a new economy along a transit line that will connect the two by 2014.

They're pushing for transit stops in poor areas it will run through to create jobs "so that they benefit from the line rather than having a transit line cutting through their neighborhoods," says John Couchman, vice president of grants and programs at the Saint Paul Foundation.