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Building Green in a Black and White World--Chapter 2

The following is an exerpt from the book Building Green in a Black and White World.
Section 1; Chapter 2; Part 3; The Effect of Building Green on the Construction Process-- Site Planning

David Ritchey Johnston
January 1, 1900
HousingZone

-------Site Planning--------

Tom Hoyt, president of McStain Enterprises, says, "I keep looking at the green planning side of things from the standpoint of a well-planned neighborhood. In the typical market place today, twice as many consumers buy an existing home than a new home. Why is that? To a large extent it is the character of neighborhoods. You are able to look at an established neighborhood and know whether it is successful or not, whether it is located right or not. In a new community it is much harder to make that determination without experience. So we’ve kept existing neighborhoods as our model."

Stages of Construction Affected by Building Green:

Site Planning

Design

Construction Process

Materials/Specifications

Foundations

Structural/Framing

Sheathing/Exterior Finish

Insulation

Roofing

Doors and Windows

Flooring/Floor Covering

Paints/Coatings/Adhesives

Exterior Finish/Trim

Hoyt says he wants to create the kind of neighborhood diversity that includes a variety of housing types and price ranges so that grandma can live next door or a college kid down the street can watch neighbors’ kids at night.

Development planning that uses new urbanism approaches such as putting the garage in the back and a porch on the front are becoming increasingly popular. To reinstate a sense of traditional community in new neighborhoods, these developers are abandoning cul-de-sacs and are creating friendlier streetscapes, for example, by narrowing the streets and planting trees between the curb and the detached sidewalk.

Green Building is a Thinking Process

Green building is more than a building process; it is a thinking process. When you have the opportunity to develop a site for a new neighborhood, consider things that can enhance the green aspects of the homes. Before the backhoe arrives on site, take the following considerations into account:

How does the house sit on the lot?
Has the site been predetermined by the developer or by setback limits?
How does the house relate to the site?
Can old trees be preserved?
Can interesting features such as large stones, swales, or natural growth be preserved and enhanced?
Are there wildlife habitats that can be protected?
What are the natural water flows through the property?
Can they be enhanced for storm water runoff?
How will the occupants use the lot?
Is outdoor space designed into the project?
Are south and east orientations protected to extend the seasons when they can be used?
From which directions do prevailing breezes come? Window designs can be oriented to take advantage of breezes and enhance comfort.

One Green Building Challenge

On one project, the builder challenged me to take an existing model home that he had built dozens of times and make it "green." This was an opportunity for many reasons, but the most problematic aspect was dealing with site issues.

The house was designed to take advantage of western views, so the west wall had a large expanse of glass. I worked with the builder to find a site that would allow what had been the west elevation to face south. I ran computer calculations on the impact of changing the glass from the west to the south side. The west glass orientation required air conditioning because of afternoon heat gain in the summer. The south orientation would not. The south orientation also reduced the heating load in the winter by increasing the passive solar gain.

The total savings on energy bills from just turning the house ninety degrees were over 30 percent.

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