The National Association of Home Builders recently unveiled its choice for The New American Home 2014, and it was good news for the pool industry, for the Association’s trendsetting pick is literally built on water. Lined, circulating vessels are integral to the design, from the entryway to the backyard.
Beginning at the front of the house, a reflection area greets guests as soon as they enter. Flowing around a pathway, it then leads to a “floating” sitting area. Water also flows around the walkway from the atrium to the main part of the house. The reflection pool touches key areas in the home — master bedroom, hallways and bathrooms.
Visible from the entryway, the backyard infinity pool overlooks the lights of Las Vegas while a fire tray mimics flames coming from the far side of the pool. Behind the house, guests step out at the water’s edge before a with a raised, built-in hot tub with 360 degrees of water cascading into the pool below. A nearby seating area creates a cohesive entertainment spot between the yard and pool.
“From its conception, the house was designed with water features and pools as an integral part of the living space and the interior design,” says Mitch Martinez, General Manager of Anthony & Sylvan Pools, the official pool builder for the New American Home. “The design of all the water features is blended into the architecture to produce a seamless play between all areas of the lower level of the home. The integration of the indoor/outdoor living spaces is realized once the large pocket doors are opened from the living area to the outdoor kitchen and expansive entertainment area.”
What does this groundbreaking design mean for the future of pool building? Martinez believes that “today’s swimming pools are as much (if not more) about an aesthetic enhancement to the architecture of the home as they are a functional/recreational area for the home. Integrating the indoor/outdoor environments is going to become as important to builders, architects and designers as room layouts, material choices and furnishings. Finally, innovative designers are also looking to transform the role of pools from a recreational and entertaining functional role into a critical element in the life space design and the visual and auditory aesthetic of the house.
The New American Home serves as the official showcase house of the International Builders’ Show. It is a real-world laboratory demonstrating concepts, best practices, energy efficiency, green building, building materials designs and construction techniques that can be replicated — in whole or in part — in housing built in any place and in any price range.
