 On Saturday July 13, 2019, Bassett Creek Site Search Group co-presented with designer, process thinker and residential sustainability expert Janneke Schaap at the Southdale Library. As a former Technical Specialist for GreenStar, Janneke evaluated incoming projects for compliance with the premier local green building standard, cultivating deep working knowledge of how Minnesota energy codes and prescriptive green building standards intersect. Her education in Architecture & Sustainability Studies at the University of Minnesota included overlay research of LEED for Homes, GreenStar & Passive House certification programs. Most recently she worked for a local architecture studio that uses Passive House (PHI) as baseline for every project. She carried this forward to Precipitate Architecture, where she brings eleven years of applied residential sustainability expertise with a focus on resource efficiency, designing for energy reduction and using green building and passive house certification standards as tools to elevate design. Janneke shared details of their Hook and Ladder project which brings affordable apartments to NE Minneapolis. Precipitate conducted detailed economic analysis to show the benefits of Passive House Standard on one of the two affordable Apartment buildings to compare and contrast. She reviewed a number of ways to improve occupant comfort and lower energy bills such as: optimizing building shape/size/orientation to sun; continuous insulation; air-tight construction; high performance windows; and continuous ventilation with energy recovery to supplement with renewable energy. Janneke also discussed net-positive energy- or buildings that produce more energy through on-site renewable sources than they use- which in turn "exports" excess energy and reduces greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate climate change. This creates resiliency in case of power outages, reduces operating expenses, and increases property value. It’s the ability of a system (building, community, person) to bounce back and thrive in the face of a changing and uncertain future. Janneke emphasized that Precipitate is dedicated to ongoing research and development to stay cutting edge and exceed customer’s expectations. There was lively Q&A throughout, then Bob Lynn, and Kath Johnson presented their Urban Site Search Plan for summer 2019. It’s a limited time offer for those eager to find a site and build a custom-designed neighborhood. All that’s needed is a nominal deposit which will be refunded- no questions asked- if we don’t reach 20 committed folks by 9/30/19. We have FIVE committed as of August 14. So if you REALLY want to see the very first standard-setting energy efficient cohousing community in the Twin Cities- JOIN! And for upcoming events, please check MeetUp at https://www.meetup.com/Twin-Cities-Urban-Site-Search-Cohousing-Meetup/ Submitted by Kath Johnson CategoriesComments are closed.
|
Archive
June 2022
Categories |
RSS Feed