Ray Kappe LivingHome C6 The First Lower Cost, Zero Energy, Zero Carbon Leed Platinum® Home
Steve Glenn, Founder & CEO, livinghomes
Steve Glenn lives in Santa Monica California and is one of Los Angeles’ more ambitious sustainable lifestyle leaders. He walks his talk and his robust world is always brimming with ideas and inspiration. His secret is probably his discipline and ability to think out of the box and surround himself with like- minded pioneers who keep getting better ideas by collaborating and listening to each other. His homes are designed by some of the best architects in the country such as Ray Kappe and Kieran Timberlake.
Steve Talking About The C6, In Collaboration with Make It Right
This is their first affordable LivingHome. It was designed by LivingHomes staff in collaboration with Make It Right, a nonprofit founded by Brad Pitt and architect William McDonough to build 150 affordable, sustainable homes in New Orleans' Lower Ninth Ward, the neighborhood hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of each C6 will help support the efforts of Make It Right.
3 bedrooms, 2 baths, an open floorplan, and lots of storage, light and warmth.
Comfy. Conscious. Complete: $179,000, including hot/cold running water, closets and a lifetime of happiness.*
Los Angeles is a city that has many innovators yet it still has a lousy reputation for being out for the greater good vs. just looking good. Steve Glenn’s low impact residential house-print puts much of that mythology to shame. Even Northern California eco elite types come to learn and share ideas at the House of Steve Glenn for his many Fred Talks (think TED meets Friends), and Sustainable Business Council "Think Tanks" and special events. His home is like a living salon where an ongoing conversation with leaders from all aspects of sustainable business and innovation have their moment in the sun to talk, collaborate and recreate.
Q/A
Define A LivingHome
We work with leading architects to create lines of homes that feature modern form and functionality and an unprecedented level of healthy/sustainability materials and energy systems. Ray Kappe, FAIA - one of my favorite all time architects -- designed our first line of LivingHomes; and the first we built was the first residence in the nation to receive LEED® platinum, the highest level of certification from the United States Green Building Council. We're using high volume, factory production to increase the quality of our homes as we reduce their cost, schedule, and construction waste, compared to those that are similarly constructed on site. We're selling our homes to owners and home builders with land, and through communities we and other groups are developing.
What is the message beyond the beautiful design and quick assembly. You have elevated the prefabricated home to an incubator of style, efficiency and a showcase for the country's top architects and thought leaders.
Our mission is to create homes and communities that inspire people, foster family and community interaction, and make modern life easier, healthier and more comfortable -- all in ways that compliment and enhance the municipalities and environments in which we work. We hope our products will set a standard for the positive impact they have on soil, water, energy and health - and we're using the Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED®) certification system so we, and you, can measure how we're doing.
Why are you based in Los Angeles?
I like it here. I also have family here and find it a great place to be an innovator. LA is one of the best markets in the country for modern architecture which is a passion of mine. There are other places in the country that I like and this just happens to work well for me. We are working in places like Torronto, Palm Springs, Los Altos, with other locations in the works. I am based here but we have projects in many places.
Where did your architectural inspiration come from?
LivingHomes is inspired by the school of modernism initiated by the Bauhaus and widely practiced by great architects like Walter Gropius, Richard Neutra, A. Quincy Jones, and Ray Kappe, our first architect. These architects' designs integrated form and function, presenting materials authentically, devoid of adornment or dress. Their homes expanded space through open floor plans, and invited the outdoors in through floor to ceiling windows that bathed interiors with natural light.
*There are numerous links and references on the LivingHomes website that go deeply into this question.
Is there a typical Livinghomes Buyer?
Usually cultural creatives taking the first leap into the unknown. The company is growing incrementally and as a result, so is our buyer. It is a very exciting time.
How have LivingHomes evolved and what’s next? I see you have a range of services and different kinds of homes and price points. Your homes now range from very high-end to affordable. I am looking forward to a Livinghome planned community!
Check out our website and learn about the multiple housing options and projects www.livinghomes
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