Zinc House and Cube House speculate that good design can make architectural, urban, and economic sense in an active real estate market otherwise dominated by themed “mountain design homes” and Swiss Chalet imitations. On separate but similar 6,000-square-foot lots in Aspen’s historic downtown, these two houses are emphatically modern projects, designed, built, and developed by GLUCK+. Both invert the conventional residential plan, locate private bedrooms on the ground level and lift the public spaces above the street, providing living areas with advantageous views of the mountains.