The times call for a comprehensive overhaul of our suburban lifestyle and you’re invited to join with fellow innovators, designers, architects, engineers, and enthusiasts to brainstorm efficient, elegant, and ingenious possibilities for well-lived, sustainable futures!
If you are looking to live in a sustainable neighborhood, you too are invited to fill out the survey, and be a part of a focus group or the design group that will work together to put together a sustainable neighborhood that works for those that want to move in! Some of the elements that are hallmarks of a sustainable lifestyle include;
- A Wide Range of Innovative Floor Plans, from Small to Multigenerational, and everything in between
- Cluster Arrangements and Themes (see the graphic below)
- Shared Facilities, Amenities, & Services
- Onsite Integrated Energy, Water, Food, and Solid Waste Strategies (see 2nd graphic below)
- Creative Ownership/ Financing
- Lease to own/ Rental
- Aging in Place, Nursing Home Innovations
I’ve worked up a couple of graphics to illustrate concepts. Here’s a prototype mixed-use, mixed-income, common courtyard layout, similar to Sena Plaza, our much loved oasis in downtown Santa Fe. 
Sustainable neighborhoods are a puzzle of a thousand pieces. We are inventing sustainable living and you are invited to bring your pieces and ideas! Together we can make sustainable neighborhoods real and jumpstart the emerging sustainable economy!
Early March 2013, we had a design session that focused on onsite integrated water, energy, food, and solid waste strategies. Later in the month we had a workshop that focused on floor plans and available sites. Here’s some of the included possibilities.
Our next step is to chose a site that has the most buy in and get a design with costs that generate presale enthusiasm. I’m working on a site that I like and laying out options to hopefully establish some pricing, and attract architects, engineers, and planners to join in and add their talents to the project. My efforts are a starting point for the conversation.
If you see yourself somewhere in all of this, join in! Fill out the Survey, and let’s make it happen!