More Best Practices
Meghan “Meg” Hanson and Mike Sylvester are, first and foremost, land stewards. Their 160-acre property sits at the heart of southwestern Montana’s Bitterroot Valley—a region beset with natural beauty and known for its ranching, agriculture, and forestry industries. When Mike found the parcel, it had been subdivided into 11 lots zoned for single-family homes. He removed the lot lines for a large swath of contiguous terrain to support the wildlife corridors and natural springs endemic to the site. A good portion of the land is currently used for hay and cattle-raising; there are sagebrush fields, a ponderosa-pine forest, and old and new apple orchards. (Bitterroot Valley has a long history of apple growing.) In addition, the bitterroot wildflower, which gives the valley its name, peppers the topography. With bow or muzzleloader, Mike hunts elk, deer, antelope, and game birds. He and Meg—alongside her mom, Katie Hanson, from whom they learned the skill—butcher their own meat and forage for wild edibles that include morel mushrooms and huckleberries. Bordered by the Bitterroot Range to the west and the Sapphire Mountains to the east, the acreage is now protected in perpetuity through the local Bitter Root Land Trust, where Meg is a member of the board of directors.
In short, this is the story of a slice of heaven taken into just the right hands.
A (re)considered plan
In addition to being a conservationist, Meg is an architect, so her considerations for the house they planned to build on this extraordinary site ran deep. It needed to be small, efficient, and in harmony with the surroundings. For these reasons, they sited the 1700-sq.-ft. house on a former riding arena located at the edge of the property close to the only road. (Incidentally, it is just five miles from the…
Weekly Newsletter
Get building science and energy efficiency advice, plus special offers, in your inbox.
This article is only available to GBA Prime Members
Sign up for a free trial and get instant access to this article as well as GBA’s complete library of premium articles and construction details.
Start Free TrialAlready a member? Log in
5 Comments
It is obvious that a very talented architect was involved in this project. This project has great lines. It would be interesting to also see some numbers as to their utility costs versus what a similarly situated house not built to these standards would cost to run in that area. I bet the savings are substantial.
A miner quibble: I might have tried to eliminate more up front carbon by using more locally cut wood and less concrete. I raise that point because I am struggling philosophically with the whole issue of how far to go in reducing up front or embedded carbon....
Kiley,
Thanks for writing up this really well thought out house. The prairie vernacular is great. Any chance of a link to Meg's website. I'd like to see more of her designs.
Malcolm, I believe this is the website: https://www.honearchitectsandbuilders.com/. They do beautiful work.
Thanks Michael.
Hi Malcolm,
Thanks so much for your interest. The website Mike provided is that of the builders Meg works with regularly. Here is her own site with more of her work featured: https://naturaldwellings.com.
Log in or become a member to post a comment.
Sign up Log in