A couple weeks ago, an civil engineering class from Norwich University gave a presentation of their work in which students created a development plan for Sabin's Pasture. Most had a compact loop of houses and a larger winding system of hiking trails. They took into account a huge amount of factors like, wetlands, solar exposure, bedrock depth, existing paths, and even the "essence" of the place (e.g. enclosed forest - introspective, bare hill top - connectedness to the rest of Vermont, etc.). In general I thought they did a fantastic job. There was one assumption though which I didn't jive with. They assumed that the houses which already exist in Montpelier would be the model for the houses which will be built in the future. I mean, it sounds fair enough, but I suspect we'll have fewer resources to play with.
We will need to be more energy efficient in our designs, and our resources will have to be more local than the vinyl siding-type housing we're accustomed to.
If I could :) (hehehe
he) I'd build a house like this on Sabin's Pasture:
This house was built buy a guy in Wales mainly out of material found on their property or from the rubbish. I know what you're to say: It's a Hobbit Hole. And to that I say, what's wrong with a Hobbit Hole? Here's why it makes sense:
1) Below-ground housing with straw bale insulation is wicked heat efficient.
2) Built from local abundant materials makes it cheaper.
3) No nasty synthetic chemicals to worry about.
The builder-owners were kind enough to supply a sketch of their plans. I love it. I would love to build something like this eventually :)
And in case you're interested here are some other visions of earth-bermed housing:
Bag End 2
Nettleton
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