With their modern Dallas home, Diane and Chuck Cheatham want to show that you can build big and still make ecologically sound design choices. Their house serves as the gateway to Urban Reserve, a neighborhood built with green living in mind. Diane, the chief executive of Urban Edge Developers, developed the 50-home enclave. Her goal was to create a development that brings together modern design, access to nature, respect for the environment and a beautiful location close to downtown Dallas.
The Cheathams’ home was designed by the internationally known firm Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, which counts the Barnes Foundation in Philadephia and the Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, California, among its projects. The three-story structure is built on a sloping piece of land across from a wooded ravine and is supported by a steel-braced frame and a concrete-on-metal deck. “When we started to work with Tod and Billie, we envisioned a house with several buildings on the site,” Diane says. “When we saw the design on three levels, like a modern, stylized treehouse, we knew it was ours.”
The Cheathams’ home was designed by the internationally known firm Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, which counts the Barnes Foundation in Philadephia and the Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla, California, among its projects. The three-story structure is built on a sloping piece of land across from a wooded ravine and is supported by a steel-braced frame and a concrete-on-metal deck. “When we started to work with Tod and Billie, we envisioned a house with several buildings on the site,” Diane says. “When we saw the design on three levels, like a modern, stylized treehouse, we knew it was ours.”
“I love to cook and entertain, so the third floor was designed for these two activities,” says Diane. The kitchen is about 1,000 square feet and includes a central island plus an extra counter and sink area so visitors can assist in prep, cooking and cleanup.