A sustainably-minded developer commissioned Hays + Ewing Design Studio to design the first of several houses in the town of Tubac, Arizona. The 2,700 SF house builds on the site’s dramatic views and striking desert landscape and aims both to evoke the quality of the site in the house design and to capture the views for the inhabitants.

The design of the folded roof forms was inspired by nearby Mount Wrightson while the main courtyard, with its stone gardens and pools echo the stone washes. Sustainable strategies include reuse of rainwater for non-potable uses and autoclave aerated concrete blocks at the walls – a toxin-free lightweight concrete material that provides outstanding thermal insulation and a “mass enhanced R-value.