Jeff has always given back to the community.
At the inception of Icon Development over 10 years ago, We started with working closely with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and employed refugees from the war torn countries of Kosovo & Burundi. Some of these people now own their own companies and homes in the Atlanta area.
Since the founding of Eco Custom Homes, we have been focused on educating the public on sustainable practices. In 2008 we completed the “Eco Playhouse" benefiting Home Aid Atlanta, and for 2009 our project is the design and construction of affordable housing using ISBUs or “shipping containers”, through the Community Design Center of Atlanta.
We are also involved with Sustainatl.org, which is building a community sustainable resource library and will soon be sponsoring community outreach programs for inner-city children in the 4th and 5th grades.
Project Portfolio
ASHO
Alternative Sustainable Housing Options, Summer Studio 2009 is a project created by the Community Design Center of Atlanta (CDCA), which engaged design students in projects for over 30 years.. For this Summer Studio, we explored a hot new phenomenon – container housing. This year’s studio is a collaborative of local professionals and architectural students from MIT, Tuskegee University, Southern California Institute of Architecture to name a few. Our hope is to creatively design and build 4 affordable homes in Atlanta using ISBU’s. We plan on sharing knowledge learned through this collective design and building process with other areas of the country as well. The design phase of this project will be complete in August, with construction slated to begin soon afterward.
The "Eco Playhouse"
Auctioned October 2008 with proceeds benefiting Homeaid Atlanta
The Eco-Playhouse was designed to provide an environment in which a child can explore the wonders of the natural world through direct experience, play, study, and intuition.
The house was made from reclaimed, recycled and sustainably manufactured materials, and fully weatherproof and insulated for year-around enjoyment. Whimsical design elements such as a windowed cupola, loft, rope ladder, and operable shutters encourage imaginative free play. To demonstrate use of natural resources, wooden barrels capture rain from the roof, and a solar panel will power interior and exterior light fixtures. An electronic weather vane provides meteorological data, and the playhouse is furnished with tools for nature study, such as a microscope, books and specimen jars.
