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70 TREEHOUSE OF KNOWLEDGE T reeHouse isn't focused as much on the bottom line as it is the big, green picture. The Austin-based home design and improvement store opens its first Dallas location Thursday, June 1, in a high-performance 35,000-square-foot building designed by Lake Flato Architects. Solar panels generate 100 percent of its electricity, while a Tesla Powerwall stores enough energy each day to return a portion to the Dallas grid. The standing-seam metal roof collects rainwater and reflects heat. "It will likely be the most sustainable commercial building in Texas — if not the country," says Jason Ballard, TreeHouse's 33-year-old co-founder and CEO. TreeHouse customers are environmentally conscious, handy homeowners who need help renovating a kitchen or bath, repainting a house, planting a xeriscape garden, or installing solar panels. "Our staff have a lot more education and experience than most," Ballard says. "When you come in, you'll be talking to energy consultants or interiors designers. We have someone with a degree in landscape architecture, and another who's a plant biologist." If Ballard has his way, TreeHouse's specialty niche will soon become the norm. Investors, including The Container Store co-founder Garrett Boone, are helping Ballard roll out additional locations, including a spot in Plano, which is in the permitting process. "Our mission is to make healthy and sustainable homes accessible to everyone," he says. Ballard, who studied conservation biology at Texas A&M, believes the solution to air and water pollution and energy waste lies in the way we construct buildings, especially homes. TreeHouse tackles the problem with green goods that embody both cutting- edge technology and high design. "We ask a lot more from our products," he says. "They must not only be high quality and functioning, but healthy, sustainable, and beautiful." Along with the usual nuts, bolts, and tools found in any hardware store, look for Sun Power solar panels, Tesla Powerwall 2 home batteries, Fireclay tiles made from recycled glass and porcelain, Dunn- Edwards' zero VOC latex paints, Nest thermostats, and Bolefloor live-edge wood flooring. TreeHouse is also the only U.S. retailer for Haiku Home, which produces ultra-efficient LED lighting and ceiling fans. The fans, said to be 700 percent more efficient than others, are installed throughout the store and are expected to lower the temperature three to seven degrees this summer. Need more inspiration? Just look around: "The design of our building helps you imagine what your own home could be," Ballard says. "The light bulbs we use won't need to be changed for another 30 years — just about the time I'm ready to retire." TreeHouse, 8021 Walnut Hill Lange, https://tree.house. BY REBECCA SHERMAN Bolefloor live-edge wood flooring, sold through TreeHouse TreeHouse CEO Jason Ballard A Tesla Powerwall 2 home battery, shown on an exterior house wall, stores energy from solar panels.