Dan Thiede live-blogs this session at the Minnesota Green Communities third annual statewide GREEN BY DESIGN Conference. View all conference presentations here.
Facilitator: William Weber, UMN Center for Sustainable Building Research
Panelists: Kim Bretheim, LHB | William Freitag, Wilcon Construction | Rick Goodemann, Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership | Matthew Hendricks, Aeon | Rick Klun, Center City Housing Corporation
Overview Three Minnesota Green Communities demonstration projects are now completed and occupied, including New San Marco (Duluth), Ripley Gardens (Minneapolis), and Viking Terrace Apartments (Worthington). Development team members from these first projects will share their experiences and lessons learned from the process, including what should be replicated and what might be improved upon for future projects. This panel discussion offers a unique opportunity to hear first hand from developers across Minnesota and benefit from their experience working with the Green Communities Criteria, through planning, design, construction, and occupation. Recognizing the strength of diverse experiences, the session allows for the opportunity to share information early and broadly as Minnesota begins to transform all housing to a more sustainable model.
The Center for Sustainable Building Research (CSBR) is analyzing the three aforementioned projects.
View the presentation from this session
New San Marco (Duluth)
Rick Klun, Center City Housing Corporation and Kim Bretheim, LHB
It is called “New” San Marco because the old building was condemned as unsafe for human habitation—they tore down the old San Marco and started anew. The building serves 30 units for chronic alcoholics and 40 units for low income individuals.
Development Team:
- Center City Housing Corporation (developer)
- Center for Alcohol and Drug Treatment, Duluth (social services)
- Human Development Center, Duluth (social services)
- LHB (architect)
- Ripley Richardson Real Estate Development Services (real estate)
- Watson-Forsberg Company (contractor)
- Weidt Group (energy modeling)
- Minnesota Housing (funding and consultation)
- Local Initiative Support Corporation (pre-development funder)
- Corporation for Supportive Housing (pre-development funder)
Some Highlights: The site is dense, so stormwater management was not a major consideration, but energy use was. The site is hooked up to district steam for heat, and is not cooled. The performance of the building has far surpassed their models!
Green Aspects: Cost $350,000. Energy performance has been excellent. Did energy modelling with Weidt Group. Used smaller windows, did not include air conditioning, super-insulated, ENERGY STAR appliances, low-VOC building materials and adhesives, green building products, sustainable landscaping.
BEST THING: General contractor was great with waste management—recycled three quarters of the construction waste on site
WORST THING: A neighbor would not move, and they had to buy him out
BEST & WORST THING: Dense site with multiple uses
DIFFERENT NEXT TIME: Work very carefully and clearly with agencies that have overlapping jurisdictions
BEST BANG for the BUCK: Building envelope study and insulation
Ripley Gardens (Minneapolis)
Matthew Hendricks, Aeon
Design Process was iterative—a lot of back and forth with: Neighborhood groups, Historic approval (the site is a historic hospital), Green design process
Sustainable Features: (more on fact sheet)
- Energy modeling: 30% better than code
- Stormwater management: rain gradens
- Preserving open space: 30 units per acre, 1 acre open space, parking in units
- Transportation choices: bus access, bike parking, pedestrian walkways with lighting, shops/parks/schools in walking distance
- Indoor air quality: low-VOC paints & sealants, opening windows
- Adaptive reuse of historic buildings
Green Costs: $118,000 cost increase due to discretionary green features, 0.8% of project budget ($14.5 million). With grant from MN Green Communities, they will only pay $40,000 (2 year payback). In terms of general financing, funders for the project were extensive.
Lessons Learned:
- Historic Rehabs are inherently green, but they add a level of complexity
- Bring folks together and let them hash things out
- Modelling was extremely valuable
- Bike racks a significant feature with low upfront cost
- Rain gardens a cost-effective stormwater mitigation measure.
BEST THING: Great housing project that people are happy to live in
WORST THING: Historic renovations and some soil collection issues
DIFFERENT NEXT TIME: Testing was really helpful afterwards, and we would do it during the project next time
BEST BANG for the BUCK: Building envelope study and insulation
Viking Terrace Apartments (Worthington).
Rick Goodemann, Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership and William Freitag, Wilcon Construction
Overview: Existing HUD Section 236 with 60 units in 3 buildings, located in Worthington, that was constructed in 1974 and needed extensive rehabilitation. Total financing came to $4.6 million.
Green Features:
- Steel roof truss system with enhanced attic insulation
- Geo-thermal heating and cooling (7-9 year payback on $470,000 costs)
- ENERGY STAR appliances
- Water conserving hardware
- Removed asbestos and mold
- Performance evaluation is underway, as well as resident health evaluation.
Struggles:
- Experience!
- Could have used a little more site evaluation
- No testing prior to rehab for benchmarking
- Being prepared for anything
Lessons learned:
- Inspect the building thoroughly before you begin—builders and developers
- Support your company’s eco-evangelist
- A lot of opportunity with Habitat for Humanity, though it takes plenty of coordination
Successes:
- Four permanent supportive housing units for homeless individuals and families—and the units are full
- Created a great community space—the green space they created is being used everday and kids are playing outside more!
BEST THING: The final product was a huge success, and people are proud of the place they live
WORST THING: Drywall finishes
DIFFERENT NEXT TIME: Establish energy baseline, and energy envelope testing
BEST BANG for the BUCK: Building envelope study and insulation
