At the tail end of last week, Shirey Contracting broke ground on the Zero Energy Idea House located at Bass Cove near Bellevue, Washington.  The house is intended to be kind of an inspirational structure that can help homeowners move toward energy independence.  As a zero energy house*, the goal is to generate all the necessary energy from on-site power and efficiency measures.  Specifically, the Idea House will have rooftop solar, solar hot water, and a vertical-axis small wind turbine, judging by the rendering.  In addition, the 1700 sf home will have a large, 1200 sf green roof and a host of other green features, such as:

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This is part of the Jetson Green birthday giveaway, so make sure to leave a comment by midnight Friday, July 25, 2008, if you want to be considered for the contest.*

We’ve blogged about e² previously because the video series is so absolutely compelling.  You can catch previews of the show at the e² series website, view episodes at Hulu, and buy episodes at iTunes.  With the Brad Pitt-narrated, design season three in production and available for viewing from September 1, 2008, we can expect more incredible information in this delicious video format.  While you’re waiting for the next installment, why not catch up on what’s already been produced?  The critically acclaimed series envisions a better quality of life on earth and explores attainable solutions in a variety of fields: design, energy, transport, water, food, and urban development.  This three pack promotional DVD giveaway is made possible through the generosity of Kontentreal. 

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The task of building an entire city from scratch isn’t novel in Dubai — it seems there’s a new city announcement every half year or so.  Xeritown is one of the latest that I’ve learned about and it’s planned for Dubailand.  The idea behind the 60-acre city is that it will be designed to accommodate the elements of the desert rather than overcome them.  The form of the city follows a north-south axis to take advantage of the cool breeze coming in from the sea.  The buildings, rather than artificial and water intense landscaping, provide shading and structure. 

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Recently I was able to speak with Matthew Linden of ConsciousBuild, a San Luis Obispo-based company that’s trying to make an eco-friendly contribution to the luxury home and lifestyle market.  ConsciousBuild is ramping up a website to be launched in July that aims to provide podcasts, videos, and access to information on green building practices, techniques, and materials.  Their first project, ConsciousBuildOne, or CBOne, was designed in the vernacular of Contemporary American Farmhouse and flies in the face of the notion that a green building needs to take any one particular form or shape.  Serving as both a residence and office, Linden hopes CBOne will be used as an educational model for the latest in eco products, techniques, and technologies.  Here’s what’s planned for the building:

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“At this point it is my experience green buildings are receiving the same financing they would get for any high quality building with a good tenant … what I think will change is that lenders will start assessing a premium on financing for any building that is not designed to green standards.”

Comparing green buildings to the advent of air conditioning, the quote continues:  “At first buildings that came equipped with air conditioning were seen as luxury developments.  But within a short period of time any building that didn’t have it was considered functionally obsolete.”

– Jim Amorin, president-elect of the Appraisal Institute [via]