Prefab

NYC's Steven Learner Studio Takes Top Spot in Chain of Eco-Homes Competition

Mon

Oct

New York City is different. This, for many of us, is what we like about it, the "more" of it all, the fact that we have more of everything -- good, bad, indifferent -- than just about any other city in the United States. All the overage can be a bit much sometimes, but even on the worst of days -- subway delays and bummer street vibes, foul weather, kooky co-workers, unpaid bills, fill it in yourself -- many of us can barely stomach the prospect of leaving this honking, vertical, mess of a city. And yet... there's something about the idea of a house of one's own, neither above nor beneath someone else's, that unquestionably works. It's probably a stretch to say that it's that urban yearning for space that helped the New York-based Steven Learner Studio design the very cool Meadowlark House, which claimed first place in the Chain of Eco-Homes Competition. But it's no stretch to describe the home as one that could make even the most ardent New Yorker wonder what life would be like with both a front and back yard.

Daniel Libeskind Leaps Into Prefab Market: Other A-List Architects to Follow?

Thu

Jul

by Stephen Del Percio

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You may have read about Daniel Libeskind's 5500-square-foot prefabricated home when it was unveiled a few weeks ago, but I thought it was important for us to mention the design here at gbNYC briefly before we head into the holiday weekend. Mr. Libeskind is calling the two-story house "unprecedented;" its price tag, for prefab, certainly is: $2.8 to $4.2 million depending on where the house is installed. The house will be manufactured mostly from wood with an aluminum exterior cladding and draw some of its power from a solar installation. The design includes four bedrooms and four bathrooms; a stainless steel staircase connects its two floors. The interiors emphasize a natural flow of space, including the kitchen which is part of what Mr. Libeskind calls the home's "grand room."

Konyk Architecture's Prefab Hydra House Concept

Tue

Jun

by Stephen Del Percio

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Designed by Craig Konyk of Brooklyn-based Konyk Architecture, the Hydra House was completed some time ago for a design competition that sought a concept for a twenty-square-foot parcel of land in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Konyk's striking submission contemplates a single-room structure with bold red neoprene rubber walls that would serve as a retirement home for the senior citizen that frequents Atlantic City's casinos and other attractions. The Hydra House's bed, kitchen, storage, and even shower fold up into the side of one wall like a Murphy bed, creating one continuous interior volume of space for the retiree to enjoy in any number of ways. The house is prefabricated with a single piece of steel tubing; exterior glazing is insulated and low-e. Konyk is still attempting to pique a developer's interest in the Hydra House; the project is featured in Prefab by Bryan Burkhart and Allison Arieff.

hydra(one) (konyk)

Bunny Lane: Container Architecture by Adam Kalkin in Bernardsville, New Jersey

Tue

Mar

by Stephen Del Percio

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You may have read about Adam Kalkin's container architecture previously, but what you might not know is that Mr. Kalkin is a New Jersey resident whose work is inspired by the endless stacks of shipping containers that sit in Port Elizabeth, visible from the I-78 approach to the Holland Tunnel into Manhattan. Recycling the steel containers into functional components of a domestic architectural vernacular is the thrust of Mr. Kalkin's work; he manufactures the container homes himself from a small New Jersey airport hangar. One of Mr. Kalkin's projects- Bunny Lane- is currently for sale in Bernardsville, New Jersey at an asking price of $2.8 million. The project was completed back in 2001 and completely encloses an existing two-story 19th century clapboard house in industrial steel. As you can see in the images below, the contrast between old and new presents an interesting juxtaposition that takes the container concept one large step forward.

Nzinga Townhomes to Bring Green, Modular Construction to Bed-Stuy

Wed

Nov

by Stephen Del Percio

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Even in the dicey economy, construction financing for the Nzinga Townhomes in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn is moving forward and developer Yolande Nicholson hopes to break ground on the modular green project early in 2009. Designed by Garrison Architects , each 2900-square-foot condominium townhouse includes 2000 square feet of living space for owners with an additional 900 square feet of separate rentable apartment space.

Units are outfitted with Energy Star appliances, optional solar power, efficient heating and cooling systems, and compact fluorescents. In addition to offering heating and cooling benefits, an exterior living green wall (which you can make out in the rough rendering) is irrigated by a building-integrated graywater system. It’s presently unclear whether the project is pursuing any third-party certification for its green efforts. The project’s modular design should trim the construction schedule in half.

Evertson Hill: A “Third Generation” Green Home

Fri

Apr

by Stephen Del Percio

0 comments

Petrides Homes is a New York City-based designer and developer of residential projects that, last week, announced the completion of Evertson Hill in Millbrook, New York. The 4400-square-foot home sits on 22 acres in Smithfield Valley, just shy of 90 miles north of Manhattan, and offers 4 bedrooms, 4.5 baths, 4 wood-burning fireplaces, and an attached barn with a 500-square-foot loft and two-car garage. Putting aside the debate over whether such a large house should be deemed sustainable, the project incorporated a number of significant green design features even though it is not pursuing any formal third-party certification.

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