This architectural showpiece is a high-concept concrete manse featuring well-designed details from FAIA Architect David Sellers, such as a curving staircase, exposed concrete structural elements, double height ceilings and open views. PLEASE READ description carefully and ask questions prior to booking. There are 3 beds, 3 baths, open floor plan kitchen, living and dining area and small grassy yard with a view, tucked away in the forest on Prickly Mountain Rd, Warren in the Mad River Valley The space Dubbed the House of the Future by its architect FAIA David Sellers, this grand concrete manse is located on famed Prickly Mountain, overlooking Blueberry Lake and the Mad River Valley. Prickly Mountain is a design-build community in Warren, VT founded by architect David Sellers. This home, his most recent project, features a dramatic double-height living space plus a large atrium with a green plant wall. A 9-foot by 18-foot glass wall slides open to a central living area that acts like a greenhouse. Built to be sustainable, the house runs primarily on solar power and geothermal energy. Completely one of a kind, nearly every detail in the house is custom built. There are whimsical touches of humor throughout the home, such as an imprint of a computer keyboard randomly embedded in a concrete ceiling, a “take-out” window off the kitchen modeled after a creemee stand; a wall made of stacked, unfinished pieces of wood. Built by local craftsman, the staircase was fashioned from laminated plywood, molding it into an elegant curved shape. The arched ceilings are the structural frame that the concrete was molded over. The rail on the balcony was made using lumber cut from the ceiling beams. On top of one pillar sits a giant glass lampshade from the New York Plaza Hotel, fashioned like a flame. Closet doors, wall plates and switch covers are made from the slate of old school blackboards. Closets are moveable plywood structures with pointy roofs. The 1,800-square-foot house is configured with three bedrooms and three bathrooms, each located on a different level of the home. The house features the following: Three bedrooms and three full bathrooms: -- Primary bedroom with queen size bed, private balcony and attached bathroom. Note that there is no door between the primary bedroom and bathroom, so there is limited privacy. This bedroom is up a half-flight of stairs from the main living space on the mezzanine level of the house. The back wall to the bedroom can be rolled open in summer time, and the bed rolled outside for those who would like to experience sleeping under the stars. The primary bathroom features a large sculpted concrete soaking tub and a sculptural bathroom vanity. -- Second Bedroom/Den: Located on the first floor, this bedroom is found at the end of a hallway with arched ceilings. This room has large windows on two sides. A handle in a wall pulls out, revealing a hideaway queen-sized bed. It also has a comfortable reading chair, ottoman, and reading lamp. A bathroom with a shower is located of the hallway just outside this bedroom. --Third bedroom. Located on the top floor with open overlooks to the main living space, the third bedroom has a queen size bed plus an additional sleeping area with two twin mattresses. The third bathroom is located just outside this bedroom, and has a rain shower. --Office: On the top floor of the house is a desk/work station including many electrical outlets and some with USB inputs. --Living Room: The large living room has two large sofas, a coffee table made from live edge wood as well as a grand wood-burning fireplace. Please ask us if you would like to use the fire place, and never leave a fire unattended. The damper is somewhat tricky to use. Firewood is not supplied. -- Spacious kitchen including electric range with oven, refrigerator, Bosch dishwasher and microwave --Washer and Dryer --Wireless Internet --Radiant heated floors --Spacious private driveway and covered carport. --Large mud room entrance with plenty of space to hang jackets, and store outdoor gear and radient floor to melt the ice from your boots. Guest access Guests will have full access to the house. There is a basement and a storage area across from the house where the owners store some items. We do allow pets, but we charge a high fee for them. This is because we do have a lot of handmade and vintage furniture and artwork and we want to avoid them being permanently damaged. Other things to note There are many interesting views and windows throughout the house, so if privacy from other houseguests is a top concern, please take this into consideration. The primary bedroom and upstairs bedroom do not have solid walls so there is no sound privacy in those two bedrooms. There are also frosted glass enclosures on the bathrooms with some clear glass so depending on where occupants of the house are there is limited privacy from other occupants--we have frosted more of the glass recently so this privacy concern has been minimized. This can make for a fun experience but if privacy from members of your group is a top concern, this home is not for you. There is near total privacy from neighbors as the home is in a secluded location and surrounded by trees. This is a country location, so you may encounter critters in the house including country mice, chipmunks, spiders, ants during your stay. Please let us know right away if you do encounter any mice so we can take appropriate action, but we do believe in a humane response. It is best to avoid leaving food out in the open. Also, while this house has amazing outdoor/indoor flow, please note that if the rolling walls or doors are left open mosquitos will enter the home. Please be sure to close these by early evening to minimize the presence of mosquitos and other critters entering. Please also remember this is a rural area, and so you may see bears, raccoons and other animals outdoors. For this reason we ask that you call James our caretaker if you have any excess trash and do not leave food or trash outdoors. In the winter, especially during periods of heavy snow, it may not be possible for the driveway or walkway to be plowed promptly as the local plow companies all get overwhelmed. There are snow shovels available for your use. Of course, we will do our best to get the plow service out there as soon as possible. The house has a radiant heat system powered by geothermal energy. It does a great job of maintaining an ambient heat level in the mid 60s. We have made improvements to the insulation and heating system so the house now holds a warm temperature well even during periods of extreme cold. There are extra space heaters in the home as well to be used as needed, as well as some extra blankets. If you are the type of person who generally keeps your thermostat low you will feel right at home. If you like your home to be extra warm indoors, ie in the high 70s/80s, this may not be the best rental for you. There is also no air conditioning in the house. Most of the year, this is not needed in Vermont, but during heat waves the house can get hot, as high as in the mid-80s indoors, and may not be comfortable for people who like to be in an air-conditioned/cooler space. If you are looking for a house full of creative energy and quirks this house is for you. If you are looking for a hotel experience where everything is sanitized and perfect, this house is not for you. The home is located on a dirt road, so 4 wheel drive is highly, highly recommended in the winter and mud season. Tow service also can be slow in this rural location. There are no window shades. If you plan to sleep in, an eye mask is recommended. There are ponds on neighboring properties. Please don't leave children or pets unattended especially if they cannot swim, and please note that especially in the late winter and early spring the ice can be thin and we recommend against walking on any frozen ponds. There are a lot of entrances and doors to the home, and not all doors lock. On rare occasion, especially if there are storms with heavy winds, the house may lose power. The utility companies do their best to get it on quickly when this happens but please note this is completely out of our control. We do not have a back-up generator. In the event of a power failure like this please note that all systems including plumbing stop working. Finally please carefully review the list of amenities in the house prior to booking. In particular, please note there is no air conditioning and there is no TV. -------------------------------- The “Homerun House” is owned by the non-profit Madsonian Museum in Waitsfield, Vermont. This house is an exhibit of the museum and intended to demonstrate advanced energy efficiency technologies and designs as integrated into a residential format. RARELY are such unique houses made available to the public to stay in. The Homerun House is available for interested members of the public to stay in, study and immerse themselves in these new technologies. Most such properties, properties with unique architectural features, e.g. the Frank Lloyd Wright houses, are only available to see on a short tour and behind the velvet ropes. Here we are making the house available for short term rentals so the public can fully experience these new technologies and architectural features. Up to 6 people as guests, family and friends can take advantage of this opportunity. Schools, students, classes are given high priority. For example, the YESTERMORROW SCHOOL in Waitsfield had used the house for classes and discussion. Also, the VERMONT AIA board meetings, design sessions, symposium of planning and design have all used, and continue to use the property. A fair and modest fee is taken to support the museum expenses. The house has been featured in “VERMONT SKI MAGAZINE, the DISCOVERY CHANNEL and numerous other newspapers and magazines The features that stand out and are of academic and professional and artistic interest are: 1. THE HOUSE demonstrates a design that requires no exterior maintenance and can last 500 or more years. The exterior is made of High Strength concrete that has been proven to last for centuries, (as in ancient Rome). Slate trim from recycled school blackboards (200 million years old), aluminum, glass and bullet proof Lexan. 2. Heating is from the natural heat of the earth via geothermal tubing under the house and wells. Water is taken at 40-50- degrees and converted to 120-degree heat with the heat pump. 3. Electric photo voltaic panels on the roof provide all the electricity the property needs. The heat from the geothermal is linked with an electric heat pump and piped to the concrete radiant floors. 4. The house is not only net Zero with no fossil fuels used, but is nearly automatic. 5. A large masonry fireplace, is of the proven “count Rumford” radiant heat design where the flame generates radiant heat. 6. A green house, trees up to twenty feet tall, green wall and planter balconies are watered with drip irrigation from rain water stored high above the green wall. The wooden floor is in panels that will allow a large tree root ball to grow and expand to full maturity. 7. The master bedroom with a concrete full emersion tub has a hinging full height wall that hinges out to a porch where the bed on rollers can provide sleeping under the stars. 8. In floor channels for wire, heat, water allow for a change in configuration over the years. E each bedroom area has a bathroom and each could be converted to a separate apartment, as the entire structure could be converted to a large communal shelter in the event of unusual or emergency situations. The HOMERUN house is also an extension of the museum’s collection of significant examples of furniture design and art, including,6 chairs designed by Alvar Alto, Two Charles Eames chairs. 2 sculptures by Ed Owre, past chairman of the UVM Art Department, a rare white leather couch by Pritzker prize winner Robert Venturi, two chairs designed by Mies VanDer Rohe, Chess table and coffee table by Architect D. Sellers, listed as one of the 100 foremost Architects in the world, paintings, prints and sculpture from noted artists. The MADSONIAN regularly changes the exhibits in the HOMERUN house as the Museum changes exhibits. 9. Tilt up demonstration of advanced efficient affordable concrete construction is shown in the attached storage, garage or office space. This is the first application of thin wall high strength concrete using site fabricated precast concrete. Windows, doors and unique finishes are demonstrated that are not possible using typical two panel formwork as is the traditional method.