Adaptability can happen in home design and engineering, along with in land use and planning. When we think about the current housing situation and the need to find lots at a desirable price to build attainable product going forward, there is a large need for more adaptability. The 2019 BUILDER Concept Home, KB Home ProjeKt: Where Tomorrow Lives, explores the various ways to engineer for adapatiblity today and in the future.
In this short video, Keith McCloskey, executive director of design at KTGY, and Manny Gonzalez, principal at KTGY, describe the features that are built into the design that will make the home functional and purposeful for a variety of different buyer demographics, expanding its flexibility.
Andy Baron, partner, at AndersonBaron and landscape engineer for the concept home, also worked with KB Home and KTGY to incorporate strategic community development and planning aspects that can contribute to this special project and be flexible for future needs. The ProjeKt team ultimately is striving toward making a smaller impact on the land while creating a design that speaks to wellness for today and tomorrow.
One big part of the wellness angle is providing access to healthy food. The Inspirada community, located in Henderson, Nevada, prior to building grocery stores was a prime example of one of many food deserts across the country—places that don’t have access to fresh, healthy, affordable food. The KB Home ProjeKt started with the idea of an agrihood, defined here as a community designed around a working farm that provides a sustainable food source for the local neighbors.
Not only does this idea respond to the wellness aspect to provide healthy food, but it also touches on the community aspect, which may be one of the strongest aspects of wellness that designers can provide their customers.
“Our homes are based on creating social experiences through the agricultural design and agrihood is that idea on steroids,” says Baron. “People can harvest oranges, gather greens for salad for dinner. It’s more about socialization and maybe a little less about agriculture. It’s a key ingredient in creating that neighborhood feel.”
Going forward, how can designers and landscape engineers future proof their design concepts despite all the evolution that housing expects in the coming decades? Based on current numbers, the demand for housing will still be strong, so Baron forecasts the need for more smaller, urban infill projects that offer smaller agrihoods. KTGY and AndersonBaron have several of these types of projects in the pipeline now. Plus, there is a movement for adapted reuse of buildings that aren’t being used for big commercial retail centers.
“The important part is to serve the needs of the public for what is in demand today while not tying our hands for the future,” says Baron. “It will come down to creating flexible entitlements, that shouldn’t be overly prescriptive.”
For the KB Home ProjeKt, KTGY worked toward small square footage that is functional and efficient by stacking plumbing and keeping all fixtures and appliances close to one another. Plus, the concept home is adaptable to different homeowner needs over time or between different owners, something that will certainly become more of a home buyer expectation as builders start to respond to consumer demand for more adjustable floor plans.
The home is part of a yearlong exploration on health and wellness in housing. Stay tuned and follow the content online at www.builderonline.com/kbhomeprojekt.
