Who We Are

Jesse Gries and Karla Helland (photo Tonia Prestupa)

About Jesse Gries 

Jesse Gries is the principal designer and lead fabricator of Green Star Builders.  He has decades of hands-on experience originating and producing a spectrum of works. This background has given him the underlying skills to be innovative,  creative and yet always practical. He has an informed and demanding eye for  grace and craftsmanship. Jesse has a degree in Environmental Science, focusing on the building industry from Hampshire College has been a NM licensed GB98 contractor since 2004.

About Karla Helland

Karla Helland is Green Star’s manager.  Approachable, organized and meticulous, Karla’s role in Green Star projects moves in different ways, sometimes — but not always — extending into design and interior finishes coordination. She enjoys working with Green Star clientele to pull together the details that make the framework of the home suit their unique aesthetic, artwork and furnishings. 

“Working with Karla helped us to define the feeling we wanted our home to express. She understood our tastes and created a palette that reflected our aesthetics and was sensitive to our budget. Working in concert with Jesse, she helped refine the floor plan and bring details from flooring and wall colors to lighting and cabinet hardware into a harmonious whole that we continue to love living in.” Anne Shute

Green Build Philosophy

We believe green building is integral to graceful and comfortable living spaces. Energy efficient means of achieving thermal comfort, careful development of the site, and considered resource management are a few of the strategies we implement.

We feel that beauty and happiness should be incorporated into green design and construction. We build super-insulated structures, but we incorporate more glazing than a typical green designed home. Connecting to nature and embracing the outside environment brings joy and is why most of us choose to make our homes here in Santa Fe.

Green Star Services

We create innovative and fresh homes that beautifully support modern life. They feel good because the care and craftsmanship are apparent everywhere the eye rests. We deeply believe that the home you live in should make you happy in small ways — every day.

We are a small company and we like it that way, because we get to stay hands-on. We believe creativity is sparked by the limits that come with every project ( budget, size, neighborhood associations, site or time) and we love to collaborate.