Green Living

The Swede Hill House comes to us from Newport, Rhode Island-based design-builders Aquidneck Properties. Designed by architects Estes/Twombly, also of Newport, the 3000-square-foot home will be located on four protected acres of Block Island, which is just off the coast of Rhode Island and east of Montauk Point. The house is situated, as you might have guessed, on a hill that faces both south and west, providing spectacular ocean views back towards Montauk. The Swede Hill House is registered under the LEED for Homes program and will pursue a Silver level of certification from USGBC.

The Hoekenga House in West Cape May, New Jersey was designed by Cecil Baker + Partners Architects of Philadelphia and is pursuing a LEED Gold certification from USGBC. The 3100-square-foot home features a variety of green design features ranging from a geothermal heating and cooling system to a green roof that includes local flora and roof shingles manufactured from 85 percent recycled-content material. Gretchen Hoekenga, a college professor from Florida and former landscape architect, is developing the project and hopes to sell it at unspecified asking price to an older couple; although the home offers modern green amenities, as you can see Cecil Baker's design does strive to blend in with local Cape May architecture. Hoekenga is aiming for a 35 percent reduction in energy use over a comparable conventional house.

Even in the dicey economy, construction financing for the Nzinga Townhomes in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn is moving forward and developer Yolande Nicholson hopes to break ground on the modular green project early in 2009. Designed by Garrison Architects , each 2900-square-foot condominium townhouse includes 2000 square feet of living space for owners with an additional 900 square feet of separate rentable apartment space.

Units are outfitted with Energy Star appliances, optional solar power, efficient heating and cooling systems, and compact fluorescents. In addition to offering heating and cooling benefits, an exterior living green wall (which you can make out in the rough rendering) is irrigated by a building-integrated graywater system. It’s presently unclear whether the project is pursuing any third-party certification for its green efforts. The project’s modular design should trim the construction schedule in half.

One important question growing out of the ongoing credit crisis is how it will impact green construction projects in emerging neighborhoods. Obviously this inquiry isn't limited just to New York City, but a good example is the Knickerbocker Condominiums in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn.

Developed by Hudson Companies, Inc. the 49-unit project contemplates the adaptive reuse of existing housing stock into modern loft apartments. The developer plans to seek a LEED rating for the project, and green features include LEED-standard recycled-content construction materials, a bicycle storage room, efficient building systems, and a public green roof. Over 40 percent of units at the Knickerbocker feature some sort of private outdoor space. The project is also participating in NYSERDA's Multifamily Performance Program, which offers incentives to developers who build energy efficient options into their design programs.