CONTAINMENT / SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS

Thinking Outside Of The Box

SAN ANTONIO | TEXAS

WORDS BY JONAS LARSSON | PHOTO BY POTEET ARCHITECTS Jim Poteet is one of San Antonio’s premier architects, a free thinker and a down right lovely guy. His architectural firm specializes in restorations, adapting and transforming older buildings with a reserved but tasteful redesign.

Environmentalism is at the forefront for Jim, so when he got a contract from a private customer to build a guest house on their property, the idea of the container house was born—to reuse a container and to insulate it from the heat of South Texas by incorporating a roof made from plants which hang off the edges of the roof in such a way that they increase air circulation and create a cooling effect. Ingenious. Water for this living roof is sourced from the wastewater from the shower and sink, creating a closed system. Smart. There’s a compost toilet, everything to diminish the environmental impact. The terrace is made from recycled plastic bottles, and the screens for the porch lights are made from old farming implements like plows, a traditional solution down here in Texas. We like it.