Dan's Papers - October 31, 2008 - Luxury Homes Go Green with Pasbro

For over 30 years, through several generations of family, Pasbro Development has been building commercial and residential properties on the East End. They started during the 1970s, building and operating the well-known Southampton Inn. They also designed and built multi-family developments further west on Long Island, where they also own and operate the Woodbury Country Club.

But in recent years, this creative family has focused on developing the most unique and special single-family luxury homes on the East End.

"Our focus is on site-specific design - we're sensitive to the flow and functionality of the homes, and their aesthetic quality," said Lee Passavia, who runs the business with his two uncles and partners, Robert Passavia and Vinnie Passavia. "Our homes are both structurally efficient and well designed."

Lee Passavia, a graduate of Yale University, where he studied art and architecture, said his company takes great pride in doing detailed and precise design work. "We enjoy creating great design concepts, like millwork and architectural details, paying attention to the flow and the whole site design, including the land and views," he explained. "Our focus on design helps separate us, in addition to our forward-thinking views."

In keeping with the recent green movement, over the last few years Pasbro has introduced energy-efficient homes, to meet the Energy Star standards. They're using higher efficiency HVAC equipment for heating and cooling, and better insulation and sealing in homes, to reduce air infiltration and improve indoor air quality.

"We're doing this voluntarily because we think it's the right thing to do," said Passavia. "With the fluctuation of fuel prices, the weakening economy and the growing awareness of environmental concerns, we want to help reduce our carbon footprint."

In projects moving forward, Pasbro is looking at higher efficiency windows, solar and geothermal technologies for common amenities and pools, and also indoor air quality, for proper ventilation. They are looking into solar panels to help heat water, and also photovoltaic cells for electricity.

"We are continually looking into new products, like cork flooring, that reduce our carbon footprint," he said. "We are also shopping for more locally sourced materials for our homes, from East Hampton to Southampton Towns.

Since Pasbro builds most of their single-family luxury homes between 5,000 to 8,000 square feet, Passavia said they are emphasizing the need to cooperate with the energy efficient, green building ideas. Their homes range in price from about $3 to $8 million. So when they service their customers, they take all their needs into consideration, and they spend time giving them a quality, energy efficient product that has their unique focus on design.

The Passavia family, which consists of many musicians and artists, understand the creative process, and live it in their music and design work.

"My grandfather, Jim, is a singer, my father, Gary, is a guitar player, and my uncles, Robert and Vinnie, are both drummers," said Lee Passavia. "I'm an artist and photographer, and also a drummer, like my relatives. We all value the creative expression, which we also employ in our design work, to make the most distinctive homes we can."

To the Passavia family, building homes isn't just a business, but a work of art in which they take great pride. So if you're looking for a specially designed, well thought-out home that will also save you money in energy efficiency, call Pasbro Development at their main office in Woodbury, at 516-367-7900.