Developers considering non-grass alternatives
Posted July 22, 2015 9:15 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – You’re not the only one dealing with a dry, brown lawn.
A local developer says the weather that is affecting much of the province signals the beginning of the end of the traditional grass lawn when it comes to new buildings.
“I think the days of grass and sprinklers and all that is slowly coming to an end,” says Bob Dominick with Weststone Properties.
He says non-grass alternatives are more appealing to builders and buyers of both houses, and condos.
“We’re using a lot more stone and rock now and vegetation that requires very little water. On an ecology basis, it makes a lot more sense”
Dominick is working with a Seattle builder to develop grassless projects.
He says the Emerald City is 10 years ahead of BC, and that our builders will eventually start to notice.
“From thereon in, our company will be using that sort of style of building all the time and I’m sure many other developers will be following that same sort of trend.”
Things like rock gardens and aesthetic ponds that use less water-consuming plants will become standard instead of grass patches on new developments says Dominick.
“(They’ll be) completely vegetation-free. That sort of thing, I haven’t seen before in the Lower Mainland. Landscaping, we’re also looking at using more rocks, water features and reeds, even on the roofs of buildings. In Seattle, they have created things called tranquility roofs that are very attractive water features.”
Developers are even mindful of pets.
“One of the largest problems we have in high-rises is dogs and dog parks and grass for dogs. They’ve solved that by putting, literally roof gardens with artificial turf that are self-cleaning, they clean every hour,” says Dominick, he adds the shift away from grass, shouldn’t hit new home buyers in the wallet.
