In Portland two brothers, Dustin and Garrett Moon, have been getting some serious attention for their project, The Commons — it could just be the first residence in the nation to meet the standards of the Living Building Challenge.  The Living Building Challenge is about getting to something that’s truly sustainable, which is what I think the Moons are going after here.  If you look at their plans, The Commons will use green tech that you might not see in other so-called green homes. 

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This is Oulu Bar & EcoLounge in Williamsburg, home to Brooklyn’s first living wall installation.  The 2,500 sf building was designed by Evangeline Dennie and it’s currently seeking LEED Gold certification.  You’ll find a few different photos below, including a before shot, for your viewing pleasure.

What do you think?  The green wall makes quite the design statement, doesn’t it?  It’s tough to deny the modern appeal of vertical greenery, I say.   

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Zorlu Ecocity is a Llewelyn Davies Yeang project located in Istanbul, Turkey.  It’s a mixed-use development located at the southern extremity of Buyukdere Street in Istanbul.  The plan is conceptualized as a "city within a city" and conforms to the city’s planning strategy to multiply the number of urban centers throughout the Marma region to relieve pressure on Istanbul’s historic core. 

Zorlu Ecocity will have 588,850 sm (6,338,329 sf) of accommodation, which includes office towers, residential towers, two hotels, apartments, and resort-style elderly units above a three story retail complex.  In total, we’re talking about 14 towers ranging from 8 to 26 stories. 

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Your version of the proverbial American Dream may not include a house, dog, and white picket fence, but I’m sure it’s something like that.  But what happens to your American Dream when future development policies encourage greater density and vertical construction?  Don’t get me wrong.  Greater density is a good thing and it alleviates the harmful effects of sprawl.  But, at the same time, our vision of the American Dream becomes more and more obsolete.  Unless … you see greater density and vertical living as something similar to the above.  Designed by Reinier de Jong, MoCo Loco reports on the concept: "Tuin project is a proposal that places a typical two storey dwelling with a garden within a highrise framework in order to keep those who flee towards suburbia in search of space firmly in the city."  Why not, right?

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Just a quick little post on the new headquarters for Swatch Group Japan in the heart of Tokyo’s Ginza District.  The building was designed by Shigeru Ban and houses seven of Swatch’s luxury brands on each of the first seven floors.  Floors eight through thirteen are used as office space and the top floor as an event area.  You’ll notice the interior green wall, which, as Jean Snow describes it, has "so much greenery that you almost feel as if you’ve stepped into an urban oasis."  I think this represents another example of greenery permeating all aspects of design, both inside and out. 

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