So far no solid takers for the Flexible House, lots of interest but who has proof they can actually get it moved even if we sell it for a dollar?, I held my second open house on Sunday January 8th, 2005. Feel free to come by any daytime at 3827 Cascadia Ave S. in the Mt. Baker neighborhood. The ball is rolling for the modernist revival in 2006!, I was written up, along with pictures I took, in last Friday's Wall Street Journal (December 23rd, 2005) in a large cover section, almost full page article entitled "Thoroughly Midcentury Modern, New midcentury architects are in the real estate spotlight" It's a well written article about trends nationwide in part about giving more credit to some of the lesser known midcentury master architects, architects besides Frank Lloyd Wright and Richard Neutra, some of the lesser known but great ones and their works are now increasing in value faster than the general real estate market. Two of my recent buyers are also quoted in the article. A major TV station has also contacted me recently, as has another major newspaper working on an article.
Also on that same day (Dec. 23rd, '05), my website and I made the front page of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer paper with a huge article and photo about the flexible house (mentioned below): The current owner has now appointed me to handle all showings and open houses and my assistance in conducting the auction/bid opening to see if we can find someone with the wherewithall and expertise and funds to handle dis-assembling/moving these two structures to a new location. I am meeting an architect and another house moving consultant this Saturday New Years Eve, if you want to stop by (I'll be there from 1pm until 2:15pm or so Sat Dec 31st, 05. The address is: 3827 Cascadia Ave. S, which is above Lake WA, south of I-90/Genessee St., and just north of Andover St. I'm doing this as a modernist architecture preservation enthusiast, for good karma and good publicity not any huge profit for sure, but if we can save a bit of history, provide an incredible deal for the new buyer, that would be great! I did talk to a technical building specialist at the City of Seattle building dept and he quoted me an addendum to the building code that states that as long as the new FOUNDATION the house is moved to, as long as that new foundation meets current code, and zoning/occupancy rules are maintained and the house is not altered too substantially, he told me that the house itself does NOT have to meet current building codes (I was concerned about current energy codes in regards to some of the glass and metal walls). So that is REAL good news, that in Seattle, only the foundation will have to face the tedious and expensive scrutiny of meeting current codes! (of course as my disclaimer, you are advised to consult with your own architect/builder for confirmation of my research information) The flexible house is up on metal legs holding up the steel substructure, all of which currently rest above a simple concrete slab, lots of access like a modern computer/media office should be, and very light weight, considering that the concrete slab foundation obviously would not be moved, duh.
Drive by, feel free to look in the windows, and/or call me at 206-841-0003 for more info on this fab pre-fab piece of Seattle modernist history, which is very well preserved and I believe possible to disassemble and move to your lot, here's some slow-loading recently taken photos:
<goofy
double sided double bathroom sinks^
<(guest
house kitchen, not the main kitchen)
Talk about "pre-FAB" ! Here's one of the pioneering modernist homes, started in 1959, components of prefab metal connectors/trusses/unistruts, done by an architect who worked with Paul Thiry. I just want to let you all know about this house which will be demolished if a buyer cannot be found for the buildings, The two houses, the main house and it's little "mini-me" house, will need to be moved off the lot. It is located in the Mt. Baker neighborhood, contact me for directions/address, there will be an open house from around 11:30am to 2pm this Sunday December 18th, 2005:
The Seattle Times June 20, 1965 : The 'Flexible House' -- A New Concept:
By Margery R. Phillips
"A new concept in living" is an apt description of the
new home of Robert A. Adams, architect-owner, and his wife. It
was chosen last year as the May Home of the Month in a series of
outstanding Pacific Northwest homes co-sponsored by the Seattle
Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and The Times.
The
owners call it the "Flexible House" since it was
designed to adapt to the family through all its phases, from
early marriage years through the child-rearing phase and on to
retirement. total space requirements do not vary, but the use of
the space can be versatile as the ever-changing living pattern
varies.
The ingenious planning of Japanese homes greatly influenced the
Adamses in their multiple use of every square inch of space both
inside and out.
The house, the carport and the detached workshop divided their
property in Mount Baker into five separate gardens -- a
white-gravel entry garden, a bark-carpeted play garden, a bamboo
garden near the dining area, a viewing garden near the living
area and a service garden adjoining the carport. All of the
beautiful existing trees were maintained to shade the house and
outdoor activity areas.
Inside, all the partitions and storage units are movable -- plus
the 4-by-4 foot ceiling and floor panels. And the detached
workshop can serve as office space for the owner and his wife,
who is a home economist; a family recreation room, a senior
citizen's hobby space, or a guest suite.
The house is concise and precise, flexible and comfortable and
an ingenious re-allocation of enclosed space every five or ten
years.
The storage-wall units, which project from the facade, are faced
with Western red cedar stained dark brown. To provide daylight
for the interior, translucent fiber-glass glazing is used above
and between the units. The detached multipurpose unit is in the
left background.
The living-guest area looks out on a garden. Cabinets, for a music center below the windows, serve as additional seating space.
During the day, the conversation well can be used as a playpen. Partitions that define the entry gallery and the dining area are clip-on panels.
Living and dining spaces are defined by a tokonoma-like unit for flower arrangements. On the floor level, there exists a retractable table.
The master-bedroom-study area looks like this when the bed is
lowered from its storage space.The headboard, bookshelf, wall
mural and lights form a decorative wall.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Nov. 26, 1972:
Family of four packs a lot of living into 1000 square feet of home without feeling crowded
By Jean Hudson LunzerMt. Baker Community Club's third annual tour of homes Saturday, December 9, will run the gamut from grand old mansions to trim contemporaries.
Most unusual of the nine homes to be opened from 10 am until 5 pm is the very small, very contemporary, somewhat oriental home of Mr. and Mrs. Robert A. Adams and their two children, Eve and Seth.
If a place for everything and everything in its place design philosophy strikes you as a static way of life you haven't met the architect-home economist team of Adams and Adams. Through judicious planning and knowing before they started to build precisely what they wanted and how much space would be required for their mode of life they've managed to dovetail a lot of living into 1000 square feet without feeling crowded.
The secret is utilizing every available inch, eliminating the surplus areas which don't "work" and seeing to it that most areas have multiple use or uses which can change as family requirements change.
When Adams designed the house he tagged it simply The Flexible House, and in carrying out this aim he designed all interior partitions as storage walls; he used no doors except on bathroom compartments and positioned these to be accessible individually. (Basins, for example are in a counter open from two sides.)
Another example of "flex" -- when the house was new and the children small, a living are a conversation pit was literally a built-in play pen. They outgrew this, moved into an area of their own and the former play pen became a more formal focal point in the daytime areas of the house.
Even the outside walls of the house function. Storage spaces -- closets and under window cabinet seats -- are tightly -constructed components of the wall system and, in addition to saving space, they help insulate. Proof of their efficiency is the fact the electricity bill (the house is all-electric) runs only about $25 a month.
They saved space in their kitchen by measuring for everything -- making sure, for example, the silver drawer could be reached from the breakfast counter and that the refrigerator door had enough but not too much clearance. Step-savers included dish cupboards which open from two sides. They utilize under floor space for out of season storage and, instead of chests of drawers in the sleeping areas installed plastic tote drawers on racks below the hanging spaces.
"You can see that if we ever sell this house nearly all of the furniture will have to be included," Mrs. Adams explained.
Even the bathtub is a space-saver. Adams designed it in fiberglass with a seat so it can be used as a foot bath, a full tub bath or as a shower, yet it consumes only a few feet of floor space.
Space was conserved in the sleep areas by using a Murphy bed in the adult room and a built-in bunk and a day bed in the children's area.
"They're young enough now they enjoy proximity," Mrs. Adams said. "but when the time comes for privacy, one of them can take over our little guest house."
Almost a miniature of the main house, the guest house is a complete living unit, also with Murphy beds. The two structures are so positioned on the site a second supplementary building could be added, the architect-owner explained, for guests or grandparents. The area in mind is presently used for a detached play deck and treehouse.
As the Adamses explain their unusual house, the shell itself conserves space. Walls, roof and floors have interrelated steel skeletal systems called Unistrut which tie into four steel corner posts. Material and storage panels are literally inserted into this framework to create a complete structure reminiscent of the traditional Japanese home.
"This design really had the neighbors wondering," Mrs. Adams exclaimed. "They were sure we were just building a double garage and that the house would come later. And they were particularly curious when it took us two years to build. But we had only the frame, the slab and the roof done professionally, they did the rest of it ourselves as time permitted."
Now that it's a real house, architecture and home economics classes from many areas have come to examine its unusual features and use it as an example of space planning.
The Adamses carry flexibility and multi-use into the yard. A cover of crushed marble over much of the Japanese style garden allows them to "re-use" daylight and, even on dull days, the white surface bounces light into the house to create a remarkable distribution of illumination.
The home tour is conducted to acquaint Seattle families with one of the city's older, well-established residential neighborhoods and to give the Mt. Baker Community Club continuing funds for refurbishing their building across from Mt. Baker Park. -(end of old article)
