Green Home to be Cornerstone of Long Island Alternative Energy Park

In 2005, the 800-square-foot OPEN House was conceived and constructed by 75 students at Old Westbury, Long Island's New York Institute of Technology. Made from wood, the house debuted at the 2005 Solar Decathlon and took home fifth place as a fully operational showcase for solar and hydrogen fuel cell technology. In 2007, it was re-entered in the Decathlon with a few upgrades, including an array of 35 solar panels and a rooftop pool for heating and cooling, which was designed to simulate the heating and cooling principles of a geothermal system. The prototype included a performance dashboard displaying the home's energy consumption in real-time. Although the prototype cost $400,000.00 to construct, at the time students believed that a similar home could be mass-produced for around half of that amount. The Town of Hempstead recently purchased the OPEN House from NYIT for $75,000.00 as the centerpiece of a new alternative energy office park on Long Beach, which will feature various wind- and solar-powered buildings, as well as a hydrogen fueling station for Hempstead's hydrogen-powered vehicle fleet. The house, which should be fully operational by next February, will be used as an educational resource, as well as the first stop on public tours of the office park, which the municipality will offer in the hope of encouraging sustainable business practices across local business and government.

• Solar Decathlon Saturday: NYIT (Treehugger)
• Green House to Anchor LI "Energy Park" (Newsday)