"The city saw this is a good opportunity to set the tone, to show local contractors who come in bellyaching about what it costs [to build green] to say, 'Here, we did it,'" says Charles Smith, a vice president at HOK Los Angeles, the project's architect.

The walls of the transit building are insulated with straw bales and covered with lime plaster. While the novelty of the materials created some problems during construction, the building turned out to be "beautiful" and has performed well since opening in April, says Smith.

The article features two photos of the building.

Source: "Will Insulating With Straw Catch Fire?," The Wall Street Journal, August 9, 2006, by Alex Frangos.