Natural Building Archives | Green Built Alliance

Margaret Chandler: The Value of Biophilic Office Design: ENO’s HQ Gets a Facelift

The Value of Biophilic Office Design: ENO’s HQ Gets a Facelift Margaret Chandler The opportunities for biophilic architecture in an industrial office park are not as limited as they might seem. Eagles Nest Outfitters, an Asheville-based outdoor company also known as ENO, had outgrown their downtown Asheville location and...

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Geoffrey Barton: Designing for Density: Green Affordable Homes at East Haven Apartments

Designing for Density: Green Affordable Homes at East Haven Apartments Geoffrey Barton [caption id="attachment_5065" align="alignright" width="460"] East Haven Apartments contains a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments in two four-story L-shaped buildings that enclose a large courtyard. Photos courtesy of Mountain Housing Opportunities.[/caption] When designing any building, and particularly...

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RJ Taylor: Protecting Our Places: Economic and Environmental Benefits of Conservation Subdivisions

Protecting Our Places: Economic and Environmental Benefits of Conservation Subdivisions By RJ Taylor Western North Carolina is feeling a growth spurt. Many people around the country have become aware of our secret, that Asheville and the surrounding communities are a wonderful place to live and play. The downside result...

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Emilio Ancaya: Blue Sky, Green Roof: Reimagining Asheville’s Rooftops

Blue Sky, Green Roof: Reimagining Asheville’s Rooftops By Emilio Ancaya Nestled on Lexington Avenue in the heart of downtown Asheville is an apartment building that offers a unique and distinguishable feature. Situated on top of the building is a beautiful 8,200-square-foot green roof that can be seen and enjoyed...

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John Senechal: Gray Rock Inn: The Evolution From Historic Boarding House to Affordable Housing

Gray Rock Inn: The Evolution From Historic Boarding House to Affordable Housing John Senechal In 2001, I took on a rehab project that featured energy retrofits, historic restoration, and affordable housing. At the time, the building at 100 Biltmore Ave. was falling apart and needed a lot of TLC. ...

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Whole Living: Completing the Green Experience

Whole Living: Completing the Green Experience Sean D. Sullivan It’s not hard to see why so many people have been bitten by the green bug. Coast to coast, consumers are realizing that green homes can sell faster — and for more money — than non-green homes. And consumers have...

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A Net-Zero Adventure: Setting New Records

A Net-Zero Adventure: Setting New Records Raymond Thompson There are many ways to link in to the green revolution. A person can focus on energy consumption, human rights, individual health, environmental protection or a little bit of everything at once, but it is generally driven by a calling in...

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Darren Henegar: Enough Water for Everyone

Enough Water for Everyone: A Water Supply Case Study in Swannanoa Darren Henegar Here in the U.S., we have long been fortunate to have access to some of the safest drinking water in the world available just by turning on the tap. However, continued population growth and economic development...

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Boone Guyton: Going for Zero and Beyond

Going for Zero and Beyond: The Journey to -8 HERS Boone Guyton We built our last house with the goal of being net-zero energy. The West Asheville lot is a small 0.08-acre infill lot with great southern exposure. That allowed for both solar photovoltaics and passive solar design on...

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Jason Martini: Dome Dreaming

Dome Dreaming: Local Monolithic Dome Serves as New Model of Stewardship and Harmony Jason Martini We are living in such a time where old systems are collapsing and failing, and it’s time to create new models that will support our future generations to survive and thrive. There are so...

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