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JOHN BROWN is the editor of theslowhome.com and the founder of the Slow Home Movement. He is a registered architect, real estate broker and Professor of Architecture at the University of Calgary.
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A Firm With A Mission
Capital Flats
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E Flats
Rag Flats
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o 1997 Pat and Tim started Onion Flats and design/built Market Flats, Capital Flats and Rag Flats with Johnny joining us in 2002. Onion Flats, during this time, gets a lot of press and is a combination development/design/build company. We do one project at a time, build most everything ourselves and have lots of ex-students of mine working with us in the construction field. We do only our own development work. We have no clients. We simply want to do "our own work". We explore the relativity of drawing as a tool for articulating ideas and take on the mantra of "thinking with ones hands".
o 2005 Howard and Tim start Plumbob, strictly an architecture firm in order to explore the possibility of doing client work, expanding our knowledge base and doing multiple projects simultaneously. I have been friends with Howard for 30 years, since grade school. He is a licensed architect, unlike me, and has a Master's degree and a lot of experience in Construction Management. The idea was to expand the possibilities of Onion Flats, taking it from a "fly-by-the-seat-of-your-intuitive-pants" operation to a more disciplined yet equally intuitive practice.
o 2005 At the same time Pat, Tim, Johnny and Howard start JIG Inc, strictly a construction/management company. The idea of creating a distinct construction entity to support a distinct architecture entity that serves multiple development entities (Onion Flats being one of them) fuels this decision and limits the liability inherent in each one. Onion Flats at this point is quickly becoming strictly our development entity.
o 2005 to Present: While we have experimented with Plumbob being strictly and "architectural service" company, providing architectural services ONLY to a few clients, we quickly become disillusioned by the well documented and known break-down between owners, architects and builders and come back home to the commitment to never separate our architectural services from our construction services; ie, we won't just "design" a building for a client. We might contemplate designing and building a building for a client but we prefer to "joint venture" with owners/developers, so that we control the project from the financial to the architectural to the construction side of any project. Pat, Tim, Johnny and Howard are presently working on agreements that will make all four individuals equal partners in all three companies.
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We believe that our homes and neighborhoods should be healthy, vibrant places that uplift the spirit and gracefully fit our needs. We call for an end to poor construction, bad design, misleading marketing, unfair lending practices and environmental neglect in the housing industry. We acknowledge our collective responsibility to create CLOSE, SIMPLE, LIGHT places to live that leave a positive legacy for future generations.
provides design focused information that homeowners can use to improve the quality of how and where they live. It takes its name from the slow food movement which arose as a reaction to the processed food industry. The sprawl of cookie cutter housing that surrounds us is like fast food - standardized, homogenous, and wasteful. It contributes to a too fast life that is bad for us, our cities, and the environment. In the same way that slow food raises awareness of the food we eat and how these choices affect our lives, Slow Home empowers you to take more control of your home and improve the quality of how you live while reducing your environmental impact and futureproofing the long term investment value of your home.
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