Living? Building

The DJC ran an article recently that caught my interest and was then sent to me by a friend. A sculptor has operated for years out of a converted vintage gas station, an icon in the neighborhood of Madrona. He is now in design review on developing that lot into 7 live/work town-homes as a "living building". Each unit will have a green roof ideally used for food. Rainwater will be used for irrigation and solar pumps for a cistern below the courtyard. A living fence will show graywater being treated on site.

My issue is with things like no solar for individual units and that parking spaces are "hoped" to be unused to allow access to the work spaces for pedestrians. I am excited about the project and want to see more, but I wonder whether it really is a "living building" and how replacing a historic icon fits into that equation. Do you call "green-washing" on a really good project that you don't know the full story or do you sit quiet?