The Steamboat Pilot & Today: Lynne Paschal: Out of whack

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I was disgusted to see the words “sustainability” and “10,000-square-foot home” used in the same article in Sunday’s paper discussing the first home built at Marabou. While you celebrate the building of another home the size of a city block, people with simple solutions to sustainability are being shut out. In Steamboat, one of my friends cannot put a composter in her yard because of covenants, while another’s neighbors complained about her hanging her clothes out to dry. Am I the only one who thinks there is something out of whack here?

Lynne Paschal

Oak Creek

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Community comments

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knowitall (anonymous)
July 13, 2008 at 8:12 a.m.
› Suggest removal

I agree.

Marabou is a perfect example of “Greenwashing” at it's best.

Steve Lewis
July 14, 2008 at 4:30 p.m.
› Suggest removal

Thanks Lynne for making the correct complaint. There is no way a 10,000 sq ft home deserves “green” recognition.

Acknowledging a personal responsibility for one's use of the planet's resources is gaining traction in our society. Making the best sustainable choices will become more and more obvious, but its not an easy challenge to take seriously. Looking in the mirror is a good place to start. “Be the change you wish to see in the world”- Gandhi
-Steve Lewis

constant1 (anonymous)
July 14, 2008 at 5 p.m.
› Suggest removal

oooooooh, hanging laundry out in this town is a bad idea.

Steve Lewis
July 15, 2008 at 3:19 p.m.
› Suggest removal

Constant,
Why?

elk2 (anonymous)
July 15, 2008 at 4:37 p.m.
› Suggest removal

Marabou is NOT green! They have emitted tons and tons of pollution. Using thousands of hours of heavy equipment to build roads “Cabins” swimming pools, movie theatres. It's a green joke. Oh, I forgot to mention the fires they start sometime in May and let burn till some time in June. Choking all wildlife and humans alike. They are not held accountable the way some others might be. It's not envy it's disgust.

Ilike2dv8 (anonymous)
July 15, 2008 at 4:50 p.m.
› Suggest removal

I'm curious… what is an acceptable size home?

stmbtprof (anonymous)
July 15, 2008 at 6:56 p.m.
› Suggest removal

it depends on if you arei n Stmbt or japan, or darfur….and how much you value money and pretense and how much you believe in helping those less fortunate…

424now (anonymous)
July 15, 2008 at 7:10 p.m.
› Suggest removal

Acceptable? How about 2000 square feet with 4 BR 2 BA and a seperate two car garage?

No wait that's my dream house, …

Joe_Mama (anonymous)
July 16, 2008 at 6:49 a.m.
› Suggest removal

Joe could be happy with a yurt and a bottle of fine single malt.

grannyrett (anonymous)
July 16, 2008 at 6:55 a.m.
› Suggest removal

424—I'm thrilled to have a 1280 square foot, 3 bedroom, 2 bath home. It's a mobile home, ground set, and it's mine. What could be better?

nondescript1 (anonymous)
July 16, 2008 at 10:08 a.m.
› Suggest removal

424now-You could easily build your dream home and even have a little more than the 2000 square feet that you want.A 24' by 32' timber frame home with a full basement gives you 2304 square feet of space. Using local beetlekill lodgepole for the timbers and milling and cutting the joinery locally does several things. It utilizes the vast resource of dead and dying trees in our area before they can burn. AND, it takes that much fiber out of the carbon cycle! It also creates good jobs for local people. Let me say that again, good jobs for locals!
If you wrap the timber frame in structural insulated panels and use some solar, some geothermal perhaps,or a pellet stove that uses locally produced fuel pellets, then you've really got something green going.
Some people will say that structural insulated panels are not as green as say a straw bale and I won't disagree about straw bales as a choice. They do have their place. The point is to enclose and protect the structure. All of a sudden you are building to a possible multi-hundred year standard.Thats easily sustainable!
Sorry if this is out of sequence,I had to take care of some things before I could finish it.

nondescript1 (anonymous)
July 16, 2008 at 1:02 p.m.
› Suggest removal

I meant to add that a building like the one I proposed can be built very affordably.The benefit is that more of your money stays in the area also. Don't let a builder or designer or architect tell you that timber framing is too expensive or that you can't afford it. Talk to someone that builds timber frames locally!

bwatterson (anonymous)
July 17, 2008 at 12:53 p.m.
› Suggest removal

lewi:

I think constant1 was trying to make a joke. As in the cliche: “airing out your dirty laundry in public”, i.e. making personal problems public knowledge.