Las Casitas

By Audrey, October 13, 2015

The beautiful, platinum-rated  project, aptly named Las Casitas, consists of three bay cabins located on Galveston Island, Texas. In September 2008, Hurricane Ike barreled through the site and destroyed the existing buildings. This environmentally-conscious design sprouted from the rubble and was certified in September 2013. Las Casitas are currently the only LEED certified new construction project located on the island.

In designing and building this project, every decision revolved around how to survive future storms, minimize the wasting of materials, and use building methods that could be undone or repaired in the future. The cottages are also surrounded by marsh, so minimizing the footprint of the buildings was also paramount in the design.

On the exterior of each building is system for harvesting rainwater. A gutter on the roof line collects the water and feeds it to a pipe that flows underground and then back up to a 750 gallon tank. This system was created to accommodate the  tank’s existing location. By creating an innovative solution to the problem instead of moving the the tank.

The windows and doors on the cottages are hurricane resistant protecting the interior from nasty weather. The houses’ beautiful counter tops are made from recycled and compressed paper with non-petroleum based resins while all of the furniture is made from reclaimed wood, organic fabrics, and soy-based cushions.

My favorite part of the cottages are the salvaged doors that have been installed in all three. I love them partly because they add character to the interior of the homes and partly because they are so creatively and resourcefully integrated into the design. These doors were reclaimed from homes that had been destroyed in the hurricane and split in two in order to make smaller double doors out of a single, ginormous, four-panel door. Care was taken to collect all of the lead paint chips that flaked off while the door was being cleaned  and then a clear environmentally friendly sealer was poured over them. I think they are absolutely beautiful.

What do you think about building environmentally friendly homes that aim to resist the environment. I think it’s a bit ironic.