James Dean House- Rosemont, New Jersey

This blog has always tempered its green building commentary with the observation that refurbishing an existing building is the most sustainable of construction practices, particularly here in the New York City metropolitan area where open space is at such a premium. Accordingly, Rosemont, New Jersey (population 49) is home to the James Dean House, a sustainable Victorian farmhouse dating from around 1860 that sits a mile north of the Delaware River in Hunterdon County.

Conservation Development, LLC, a New Jersey-based real estate firm that engages in a variety of sustainable project types (check out some of their other projects that are on the drawing board here, including a proposed "green clustered community" in Hunterdon County, New Jersey), restored the house by integrating historical restoration techniques with modern green design features and sustainable construction practices- no easy feat. It also refurbished six outbuildings- four barns, a well house, and a corn crib- and built an addition on the original house that more than doubled its livable space to nearly 5,000 square feet. The restoration was executed with recycled and low-VOC materials and involved the installation of a high-performance HVAC system. The basement- turned into a wine cellar- is heated radiantly; the addition’s windows are low-E and its floorboard made from reclaimed antique hemlock which matches that in the original house. Western New Jersey is beautiful and so is the handiwork of Conservation Development; if you find yourself in the vicinity of the James Dean House as the summer winds down it should definitely be worth your while to drop in.

• Current Projects (Conservation Development)
• James Dean House (Conservation Development)