MyGreenBuildings’ prototype “green rebuild.”
Tired of tear-down homes replaced by McMansions, the two-story, boxy structures that tower over more modest, older homes? Steve Ellis and Grant Castilow are. The two feel it’s “clearly cool to build smaller and smarter than go for size.”
“Everyone is building McMansions, but we feel that our generation really needs to be more fascinated by the concept of conservation,” says Ellis, 43, co-founder of Sarasota-based MyGreenBuildings, LLC (www.mygreenbuildings.com).
Preserving the existing architecture and look of neighborhoods throughout Sarasota County is what Ellis and Castilow are all about. The two joined forces to start a company focused on rebuilding existing homes according to “green” standards and practices. That means using sustainable, renewable materials and energy efficient design.
The company is now building a new home on Lido Key in “Sarasota School Style,” or, mid-century modern architecture. Construction of the 2,000-square-foot home will incorporate various sustainable methods and techniques, Ellis says.
Other projects include gutting and rebuilding a home on Siesta Key that’s plagued with mold, and turning a 1,000-square-foot, postwar home into a 2,000-square-foot energy efficient home. The latter was ranked as the second highest-rated sustainable home in Florida by the Florida Green Building Coalition.
“It’s about working with the existing infrastructure,” says Ellis, “instead of tearing it all down.”