Bits
Passive Haus
Wikipedia defines the term passive house (Passivhaus in German) as refering "... to a rigorous, voluntary standard for energy efficiency in a building, reducing its ecological footprint. It results in ultra-low energy buildings that require little energy for space heating or cooling."
This article looks at how the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency by including Passive Haus benchmarks in Low Income Housing Tax Credit application not only generated energy efficient housing but more of it. Developers saw incorporating the Passive Haus standard as a way to gain a little edge in the awarding of contracts for building affordable housing. Now the housing is not only affordable on the front end ... it's affordable on the back end by saving owners money in energy outlays. According to the article in Planetizen: "The resulting energy cost savings to the tenants could help break the cycles of poverty that cause people to need affordable housing in the first place."
superkul.ca
+ HOUSE
From the website: Designed for a client with environmental (chemical) sensitivities, +HOUSE is a manifestation of a sustainable and healthy approach to building that does not sacrifice design.
+ HOUSE is embedded with a wealth of complex, health sensitive materials and methods. Built of inert cementitious blocks that inhibit the growth of fungi and molds, the walls are finished with a natural clay plaster that requires no paint finish. A soy-based sealer was used for the concrete floors and counters, and untreated silk and hemp fabric was used for the curtains.
The client was equally interested in environmentally responsible design. Achieving a healthy house for both client and environment meant extensive research into a wide range of products and locally produced materials suited to the climate. A green roof, heat-mirror triple glazing, solar shading, passive ventilation and daylighting, and a geothermal system are just some of the features of this LEED Gold-targeted project.
Slalom House
It's bird!
It's a plane!
It's a ski run!
Not built yet but it's oh so wonderfully weird every municipality should have one -- or more --complexes that combine housing and ... skiing!
Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) started this craze with its plans to build a trash incinerator with a chair lift to allow people to ski down one side of the building.
But why limit skiing to industrial buildings when you can ski right outside your front door? It will be located in the Kazakh capital city of Astana. If you like weird, if you like bizarre then you will like Astana and you will understand why skiing and housing go together.
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