I’ve been watching the Dwell video series which follows a NY couple rebuilding a home in Harlem. Trying to build ‘green’ while keeping a budget … not easy to do in New York. Below is the complete set of videos so far with the final outcome available in a few weeks.

Episode 1: Finding a Building in NYC

Episode 2: Building the Green Dream Team

Episode 3: A Green Brownstone?

Episode 4: Starting to Build

Episode 5: It’s Not Easy Being Green

Episode 6: Doing It Yourself

Episode 7: Too Late to Turn Back

Episode 8: The Devil Is in the Details

Episode 9: The Home Stretch

Looking like it sprung from the pages of Dwell, the Garden Lofts planned for Detroit’s East Grand Boulevard employs striking design aesthetics and green building principles.

The Grand Boulevard Garden Lofts will take a more modern approach than many other Detroit loft developments. They will be modularly constructed, with each panel built in a controlled environment and insulated to double that of typical new residential construction.

Another “green” element is the collection of rain water run-off in a cistern that will be used to flush toilets and provide landscape irrigation. Furthermore, the roofing material is a membrane that is impervious to water and air filtration which will help direct run-off to the cistern located between the two buildings. [Architect Keith] Phillips says that these environmentally-conscious elements will result in a slightly higher initial cost, but they should end up saving the purchasers money in the long run.

We received a status update on the Trace Lofts in Seattle. More than 60 percent of Trace Lofts have been sold, and there are still great options available. In neighboring Trace North we recently released 10 living spaces on the third floor (views included), and will be releasing more in the coming weeks. Details are available at www.tracelofts.com

We are in the process of changing the ‘for sale’ and ‘for rent’ views for each category. (loft, condo, apartment, house) The new view will help show how many listings are in each city.

OLD VIEW

NEW VIEW

Peebles Corp., a developer of hotels and other real estate, said it bought 13 acres of land in Las Vegas to build a $2.5 billion high-rise condominium and hotel project a half mile from the Las Vegas Strip.

The company paid $65 million for the land, an outside spokeswoman, Natalie Bedoya, said. When completed, the project, called “Las Palmas,” will have four 55-story glass towers with a total of 1,000 condos and 800 suites in a hotel designed by architecture firm Arquitectonica, Peebles, based in Coral Gables, Florida, said in a statement.

The 4.5 million square foot development will not have a casino, the company said. It will be on Paradise Road, east of the Wynn Las Vegas Golf Course and include a spa, retail space, a restaurant and a pool in a “sky lobby” 400 feet above ground.

“As Las Vegas continues to mature as a world class luxury destination, so do its travelers,” Donahue Peebles, founder of closely held Peebles Corp., said in the statement. “More than 50 percent of travelers visit Las Vegas for reasons other than gambling.”

The first building in the development will have a “six-star” hotel on the lower floors and 100 condos on the upper floors for “wealthy buyers who want privacy and exclusivity,” Peebles said. The condos will have 10 to 12 foot ceilings, 24-hour concierge service, 18-hour room service, a health club and views of Las Vegas, Peebles said.