michelle kaufmann designs

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Seeing these photos of the modules successfully being shipped and set to the New Camaldoli Hermitage in Big Sur, CA couldn’t make me more happy (and also extremely thankful). The monks at the Hermitage are honestly some of the most special people I have ever met and the site of their monastery is nothing short of being epic.  I can’t even say how fortunate I feel to be working with them. I have stayed at the Hermitage a number of times. In fact, they have retreat rooms available for rent - with private gardens and sweeping ocean views. I HIGHLY recommend a trip there and staying there.

Their current buildings have lived beyond their years. They were built inexpensively and without proper structure and insulation, so now they have mold and are no longer structurally sound. While they need so many of the buildings to be replaced (including their very unhealthy and unsafe cells), their budget has allowed for the first phase of the overall project to be built: the infirmary. The monks have made the life commitment to this place, and therefore require local healthcare as they age. They have been in great need for an infirmary.
You can see more on the overall project by clicking here.

Their site is in the southern portion of Big Sur in an area called Lucia. They are located up on the hill off of highway 1.  There were numerous delivery assessments completed by a number of different experts to evaluate if the modules could make it through Big Sur’s narrow winding highway and then also up the switchback steep road to the Hermitage. With each assessment it appeared doable, but just barely. And with prayers.

The day of the shipping required miraculous effort from an AMAZING group of people - contractors, truck drivers, set crew, the factory, and a special thanks to Bede Healey (the monk in charge of the project) and to Scott Landry and James Kean (the architects from our end).   It was truly a collaboration, and that is what made it happen successfully. And the prayers surely helped as well.

We designed the infirmary to be long-lasting with no maintenace. So we chose to use Cor-ten steel for the siding. In these photos, the Cor-ten hasn’t rusted yet which is why it just looks like shiny steel. However, with the amount of salt in the air, the beautiful velvet color and organic texture of the Cor-ten will surely be showing up very soon. Stay tuned in future photos.  In order to “talk to” the existing Chapel building (the heart of the Hermitage and a building that will be staying for many, many years to come), we used integral color cement board with an ochre color that relates to the color of the Chapel.

The infirmary is composed of 4 modules that are put together. And one of the many exciting parts of the modular construction is when you can walk inside the same day the modules arrive. This photo below was taken an hour after the one above. It is showing the infirmary kitchen with the windows on the countertop as a way to wash the countertop with light so one doesn’t have to turn on lights during the day.

I am so grateful and in awe of this incredible group of people that helped dream of,design, build, ship, set and complete this building. And it is a great birthday present to the birthday boy, Scott Landry. (happy birthday, Scott!)

To find out more  about the Hermitage click here.
www.contemplation.com
For more information the Retreat rooms and staying at the Hermitage, click here.
They are also taking donations for reconstructing the rest of the Hermitage. To find out more about this, click here.

Stay tuned on the blog for updated photos as the infirmary is “buttoned up” and completed.

Last week was an exciting one. I was in Denver to see the final 8 modules get set for the first green/prefab multifamily project that I have worked on, and actually the first one that I am aware of that has been built.  The project consisted of 16 modules, and the final 8 were set all on Thursday (and completed by 2pm that day). People came to join during lunch to watch the final modules flying through the air and set into place.  And as one of the nuns, Sister Sue Artone-Fricke noted as she saw her bedroom module, “My new inner sanctum is finally here.”

Denver Mayor Hickenlooper came by to watch as well.  From John Hickenlooper’s blog, the Mayor said, “Denver wants to be the kind of place that brings a lot of innovative ideas. What could be more innovative than to build a totally green, prefab, multiple-unit community on the site of a convent?  This is going to be a great development. I think it brings to Denver just the kind of development that we want to be known for.”

I spent some time with Real Estate writer John Rebchook as he watched the construction. You can read some of our conversations on his blog.

Then that evening, we had a fabulous group of people join for a talk on green modular building + living where we announced the officially start of the next phase of the ariaDenver project.

In this site plan you can see the sister’s housing that was just set (Casa Chiara) as the pink buildings in the upper right corner. The next phase will be the townhouse homes along 52nd Avenue (in yellow on the lower right side).  There are various unit types and sizes as a part of the next phase, packed with strategies, materials and systems for healthy living and energy and water efficiency.

I am planning to work directly with the first 5 buyers to help select finishes and finalize design choices with them.

The townhouse units will have options for either having carports, garages, or even garages with carriage house units on top (which can help bring in income if it is rented out, or can be perfect for an in-law suite, nanny suite, or a working studio).

The inside of the carriage house will be an open floorplan, and use fabric walls as a way to allow flexibility for privacy and changing the space at different times of the day or when there is company.

For more info, check out the AriaDenver website or email leslie@urbanventuresllc.com.

It has been an exciting morning so far. First, I woke up to the Denver Post and read the article titled “Denver nuns go green and modular” and included a fabulous quote from Sister Sue Artone-Fricke “Our heritage as Franciscan sisters is that we take responsibility for the Earth and see all creation as our sisters and brothers and treat all with gentle courtesy.” Lovely.

Then Susan Powers, the developer with Urban Ventures LLC went to the site just in time to see a few modules flying through the air. It never ceases to be thrilling seeing the modules get set. I have become a bit of a junky, in fact.  Especially when they make it look so easy, when I know first hand that it is anything but easy.  And this one was really exciting, as it is the first multifamily project I have worked on. So amazing.

Then the Mayor of Denver, John Hickenlooper came by (he is a big supporter of green building and communities).

And it isn’t even noon yet.  In a few minutes there will be public viewing of the remaining modules being set (the last 8 of the 16 modules will be set today).  At 6:45pm tonight I will give a talk about the project and the next phase of AriaDenver (and announcing some new designs as well).  If you are in Denver, come by. To rsvp, contact pat@urbanventuresllc.com

Just in case you are wondering, the buildings are not going to be all white as they are now. They will have red metal roofs (with full PV solar on top) that will “nod” to the red roof of the existing convent. The siding will be painted earth colors (the hues taken from their gardens).  The painting will be happening in the next few weeks after they complete the button up work between where the modules connect (you may notice that they leave off some siding at the bottom to allow for connectors to the foundation, as well as where modules are side by side and need to connect.

Here comes Project Manager Kate Hiberg, so I am off to walk inside the latest modules being set. (things move fast around here on set day!)

Notes and photos from Casa Chiara Project Manager Kate Hilberg tonight show the first 6 modules got set, despite the rain, and even despite the first module’s tractor trailer getting stuck in the mud and having to be pulled out by the loader.

Yet the spirits at the site remained high, mostly coming from the wonderful energy from the “peanut gallery” (a.k.a. The Sisters). While proudly wearing hard hats , the Sister’s kept their eyes on the construction throughout the day, while petting the site dog, and bought everyone lunch adding lots of good will, cheer, and excitement as their new homes began to materialize from the clouds and rain.  I am looking forward to the rainbow.

The first set of modules for the Casa Chiara project were shipped last night.  Seeing the modules come down the road is always a thrilling event. For me, there is nothing like it. So, I greatly appreciated this note from Sister Patty, one of the Sisters of St. Francis who will be living here:

“We just watched all four pieces of Unit A roll onto the property on semi trailers—two pieces at a time.  How exciting and how beautiful!!!  They were accompanied by several pickup trucks with blinking yellow lights, and I swear the traffic helicopters were accompanying them, as well!

This is just a wonderful experience, Michelle, and we, the sisters, are so very grateful for how these homes really embody everything we long to be as Franciscans:  ecological minded, economical, respectful of the persons who build them and of those who will live in them as community, and so beautiful and inviting!  What is really fun is to see how many people are touched by this project and take ownership of it, from the workers in the factory, to the onsite workers, to the transport folks, and hopefully to our neighbors!”

Ok, maybe recieving a note like that is even better than seeing the modules come down the road.

Other related posts HERE
and www.ariadenver.com

The first set of modules on the Casa Chiara project (phase 1 of ariaDenver) are being delivered tonight. While some of the typical tasks are being done (such as verifying plumb heights, clearing access for trucks and cranes, preparing staging areas), some atypical site preparations occurred this afternoon.
Since these 8 townhouse homes will house the Sisters of St. Francis Marycrest Convent, this is quite a special site. This afternoon there was the “Blessing of the Sacred Ground” where the Sisters blessed the land and the foundations, and thanked the developers (Sue, Kate and Dick with Urban Ventures LLC), the site contractors, the factory team, and Sister Sue (who helped with project oversight). The Sisters then had the “Blessing of the Workers” and celebrated with prayer and song. (honestly, these are the coolest nuns I have ever met).

Lovely. And would be great if that could be done at all sites and foundations just before the modules arrive!

I will post photos tomorrow of the first modules being set.

Scott Landry, MKD’s Director of Architecture, recently went on a site visit to a newly completed MKD custom designed home in California snow country. While there, he shot these terrific candid photos of the house showing the stunning mixture of the Cor-ten weathering steel (love the low maintenance factor of Cor-ten, and how it quietly nestles into the landscape) and cedar plank siding (also low maintenance and perfectly attuned to the surrounding landscape). When we saw these photos we just couldn’t wait to share them with all of you - enjoy!

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Yesterday we set a  beautiful 3 bedroom, 2 bath Sunset Breezehouse in the Central Valley of Northern California, just a couple hours away from Yosemite National Park.  The house is clad in FSC certified cedar planks as well as cement board panels with integral color.  The surrounding decking will be made from 50 percent recycled and reclaimed plastic, and 50 percent reclaimed wood. Inside, the floors are a combination of Ecotimber Bamboo and tile from both American Slate and Daltile.  Like the cedar siding, the home’s birch cabinetry is also FSC certified.  CFL and LED fixtures make up the lighting inside and out.  A 4kW photovoltaic system will feed the home’s electrical needs.

Keep reading to see more photos from the setting. A special thanks the whole MKD team for a successful house set!

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Last week we set our second Sidebreeze home on an absolutely gorgeous sight in the middle of Northern California wine country.  What began as an overcast morning quickly turned into a beautiful day, over the course of which the house went up without a hitch.  The main home is made up of four main modules and two roof modules set over the Breezespace.  A detached seventh module that will serve as an office was set on top of what will be a site-built garage.  Durable, low-maintenance cedar planks and cement planks flank the exteriors of the modules, which will soon be surrounded with composite decking made from recycled plastic and wood scraps.  Indoors are recycled glass tile, bamboo flooring, no-VOC paint, low flow plumbing fixtures, CFL lamps, and Energy Star appliances.

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