Cascade Built

June 30, 2008

A LEED platinum project, right in his own backyard

By KATIE ZEMTSEFF
Journal Staff Reporter

Photo courtesy of Cascade Built [enlarge]

Developer Sloan Ritchie used most of his yard, and bought part of his neighbor’s, to create an infill lot that made the project financially feasible. The 2,000-square-foot, three-story house sits on a 2,000-square-foot lot.

Sloan Ritchie is not your typical developer. To start with, the project he’s working on right now — a house targeting LEED platinum — is in the backyard of his Madison Valley home.

The project, called Alley House, is a 2,000-square-foot, three-story house on a 2,000-square-foot infill lot. If it wins certification, it will be one of the first LEED platinum homes in the state.

Ritchie, 37, formed a construction company called Cascade Built three years ago. He said part of his philosophy is to continuously improve the sustainability of his projects. His first project, Jackson Place Townhomes, was one of the first LEED silver townhouse projects in the country. After that, he wanted to do a platinum house, but was concerned about financing because there aren’t many platinum houses on the market.

The answer to his problem was in the backyard. He used most of his yard, and bought part of his neighbor’s, to create an infill lot that made the project financially feasible and helped boost the project’s sustainability because the site is pedestrian friendly and close to services and transit.

But building a house on such a small lot was a very difficult process because of city codes, Ritchie said. The team had to change its design from a two-story house that used more lot space to a three-story house with more open space and parking to meet codes.

Ritchie said he probably could have kept the original design if he had gone through the design review process, but the extra three-month time period was prohibitive.

A representative of the Cascadia Region Green Building Council said LEED platinum houses are still pretty rare. But Ritchie said LEED isn’t the pinnacle of sustainability. Within five years, he hopes to develop a net-zero energy and net-zero water house. Net-zero energy means it will not use any more energy than it generates over a period of time. Net-zero water means all water will be treated on site.

Development is a new career for Ritchie. Three years ago, he was a wireless engineer who loved working with his hands and did construction on the side. After working on some large remodeling jobs, Ritchie said he realized that to be truly sustainable, projects needed to use green techniques from the very start.

He said he was also discouraged by new construction in Seattle, saying the quality is low and it is not integrated into neighborhoods.

“A lot of it is garbage,” he said. “It’s all gonna get torn down.” Doing sustainable projects, he decided, “was my calling.”

Ritchie got a masters in business administration from the University of Washington and that gave him the confidence to start Cascade Built, which he calls “a bootstrapping operation.” Ritchie depended on equity, credit cards and good relationships to get the company going.

The Alley House mixes green features and luxury finishes. It has a footprint of 1,600 square feet, which was achieved by taking out hallways.

The house is made with structural insulated panels or SIPs. The polystyrene panels combine framing, insulation and exterior sheathing in one system. It uses radiant heat and a solar panel preheats water.

The project has Energy Star lighting and appliances, and a green roof. It is also prewired for photovoltaic panels. Luxury features include Italian tile, Caesarstone countertops, custom doors and a private bamboo garden.

“I don’t think you have to live in a yurt to be light on the planet,” Ritchie said. “(You can) live a little bit greener and you don’t have to forego modern conveniences.”

The house will be priced around $800,000, which Ritchie said is comparable with other houses in the area that aren’t green. It should be on the market by Aug. 1.

The project team includes Elizabeth Grace of UrbanMix, architect; O’Brien and Co., LEED consultant; GS Custom Homes, general contractor; and Richard Pulkrabek, landscape architect.

Ritchie has chronicled his process of building Alley House in a blog to share information with other people that might be considering similar systems or projects. It is online at www.cascadebuilt.com/about-us/index.htm.

Katie Zemtseff can be reached by katiez@djc.com or at (206) 622-8272.