RODALE NEWS, BROOKLYN, NY—Green, affordable housing never looked so good to so many. This past Saturday morning, 41 soon-to-be homeowners received the keys to their new homes—affordable, safe, and the greenest housing in the neighborhood. Habitat for Humanity officially cut the ribbon on its newest, largest, and greenest housing development ever: the Atlantic Avenue condominium complex in the Ocean City-Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn, one of the poorest neighborhoods in New York City.
Amazingly, the project started with a $13 purchase of the land, described by many at the dedication ceremony as “an eyesore” and “garbage-strewn blight,” two years ago by Habitat-NYC, the New York City chapter of Habitat for Humanity. The green, affordable housing is now being sold to the new homeowners for as little as $77,000 per unit, with a mere 1 percent down payment required.
THE DETAILS: The new green, affordable housing complex includes three buildings with a total of 41 one-, two-, and three-bedroom condominiums. Habitat expects that it will be certified as “Gold,” the second-highest rating a building can receive under the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy Efficiency and Design (LEED) program. (Buildings must be completed before they can apply for the rating; prior to its completion, the nonprofit was aiming for a Silver certification.)
In addition to Energy Star–rated appliances and lighting fixtures, the complex contains low-emission windows—coated with a microscopic film that prevents heat loss—and all the construction materials are nontoxic. Rather than conventional paints, caulks, and cabinetry, which can emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like formaldehyde, Habitat used low-VOC alternatives so the homeowners aren’t plagued with the health and respiratory problems that can be triggered by those VOCs. And, instead of cramming all three buildings together to fit in a parking garage on the site, the group installed a courtyard of permeable paving materials and landscaped with native plants, to both encourage residents to take advantage of public transportation and to provide a much-needed green space in a neighborhood where it’s sorely lacking.
LEED certification requires that a certain percentage of building materials be recycled. So, the new complex’s walls include insulation made of recycled blue jeans; the countertops in each kitchen are a concrete composite made from recycled glass, recycled paper, and fly ash, a by-product of burning coal that contains mostly glass and silica. The shelving in some of the homes’ closets was milled from last year’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree.
Finally, all the wood used in the flooring and the cabinetry is certified as well managed by the Forest Stewardship Council. And, in an effort to give back to the community even more, Habitat hired a nonprofit called Brooklyn Workforce Innovations—a group that trains New York City’s jobless and working poor in fields that offer good wages and opportunities for advancement—to build the cabinets. Participants in the workforce were able to use the experience to hone their woodworking skills, and the new apartments provided on-the-job installation training.
WHAT IT MEANS: Green building methods are being utilized more and more by Habitat, illustrating their effectiveness and hopefully encouraging their use by other builders. Habitat-NYC executive director Joshua Lockwood says the complex is a culmination of efforts within the organization to incorporate green technologies into each of the homes it builds. “We’re getting progressively more green with each building,” he says, “and we’re always seeking out new ways to make homes more energy-efficient and more green.” This new complex will be so energy-efficient, said Luke Falk, a representative from the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority, at the dedication ceremony, that it will use nearly 50 percent less energy than the buildings next door. He bestowed the new complex with an Energy Star for Multifamily Housing certification, one of only seven worldwide. Habitat estimates that the homeowners will pay 30 percent less on their utility bills than other homeowners in comparable-size buildings. Falk called the development “a model project, the standard by which all affordable housing will be measured.”
Habitat for Humanity gets most of its appliances and construction materials as donations, so the cost of greater energy efficiency and healthier materials often isn’t a factor. But when those materials need to be purchased, any added cost is offset by lower energy costs and fewer health problems, says Gina Buffone, senior construction-project manager at Habitat-NYC. “In terms of energy efficiency, it saves costs elsewhere,” she says. Asthma rates are higher in this city than anywhere else in the country, she adds, noting that low-VOC paints, caulks, sealants, and flooring are worth any added cost. Habitat-NYC recently decided to install only hardwood flooring in all its homes, even though carpeting is generally cheaper, due to the high levels of VOCs emitted by the glues, adhesives, and stain-repelling treatments used on most carpets. “We want what’s best for our families,” she says. "Every person deserves a healthy home,” she adds, regardless of income.