Last weekend I spent an afternoon at Albert Harum-Alvarez’s home.  He’s running for County Commissioner in District 8 in Miami-Dade County.  His home is known as the Green House in these neck of the woods for it’s truly sustainable building practices.   It’s generated so much buzz that he now hosts weekly open houses for residents to see how anyone of us can make a home sustainable and economical it we just think a little bit more about our surroundings.

The home took one year to build and 7 YEARS TO PERMIT!  The fundamental idea was to ‘plant’ a house and integrate it with the natural surroundings.  However, when you try to do things slightly different, even if different means logical and responsible, it’s an uphill battle from the beginning.  I won’t go into the tragic details of that ordeal, suffice to say there is still a lot of work to be done with our building codes.    I will however highlight some of the more compelling aspects of this beautiful home and show you how everyone can have a sustainable domicile.

The house was build east to west length wise so the south side is pretty open & the east and west sides are shaded.  This way the house is full of light for the bulk of the day – rises southeast, sets southwest.  It’s also built out of concrete with reduced their windstorm insurance dramatically.  Where would we be without our Florida hurricanes???

The following photos are only a fraction of the work and planning that went into building this home.  All in all his energy bills are a fraction of the average condo, let alone house.

7 types of grass were planted on the premises. Yes, that’s right, SEVEN.  The logic was to let them fight it out until the strongest, or perhaps a few of the stronger ones survive in different areas depending on sunlight and moisture.  That way they won’t have to be nursed year round and drain water supplies or require fertilizer.

The pool!  Heated with solar panels and a manageable size that doesn’t require huge amounts of energy to heat.

This is a computer powered toilet.  Why you might ask…low flow water to start and it’s also the shoot to a compost under the house that collects the waste and makes it useful fertilizer!

The pump house where all the water comes from typically hold water around  80-86 degrees because to the heat that is removed from the house.  The well is roughly 85 ft below ground.

Stunning cypress tree (I believe) that towered over everyone and probably has equally as impressive roots.  Provides great shade and absorbs a lot of water through the trunk and branches.  There are maple lychee, and cherry trees in the back yard.

A gargoyle in the ‘basement’ is area under the house…..just because.

Following the ‘cracker’ style of building (really, that’s what it’s called), vents are placed at the top of the rooms to ventilate the hot air out.  Air stacks up at 3 different levels, so even the windows are tall to let the hot air our and cool air in.  Very popular design from Key West and other areas that didn’t have ac back in the day.

East side of the house with a lovely patio and a path into the garden and pool. Delightful!

Wonderful afternoon with some truly remarkable people.  If he is this consciousnesses  about his home imagine what he’d be like as a commissioner!

Please check out his website and help Albert fight the good fight against over development and wasteful building/living practices that drain our very, very limited natural resources.

http://facebook.com/electAlbert
http://electAlbert.com

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