Green Urbanism
Zero Energy Affordable Housing
Overview
A zero energy building or net zero energy building is a term used for a building that greatly reduces its energy demand via efficiency measures and then meets that demand through on-site energy generation, typically solar. Zero energy buildings are gaining considerable interest as a means to cut greenhouse gas emissions and conserve energy.
Global Green has developed a business model to develop zero energy affordable housing that is now being used throughout the state of California. This business model, and a suite of resources Global Green provides to support the model, lowers and stabilizes utility bills for low-income families, while allowing affordable housing developers to reduce operating costs and maintain a healthily portfolio of affordable properties.
Two Solar Communities: Video Case Study
Watch a five-minute video that documents Solara and Los Vecinos, California’s first two zero energy affordable housing communities.
Solar and Affordable Housing: A Primer
Interested in solar and how it works for affordable housing? Watch this 10 minute video to learn all the basics of how systems work and are designed and paid for.
Solar Affordable Housing Assessment Calculator
Ready to incorporate solar into your affordable housing project? Global Green USA has created a Solar Affordable Housing Assessment calculator to assist affordable housing developers and their design and finance teams in assessing various options for incorporating solar photovoltaic systems into their California-based Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) developments.
The assessment marries design and finance considerations by asking questions that should be answerable during schematic design. The calculator produces a variety of financial scenarios that developers can incorporate into their preliminary pro-formas and tax credit applications, as well as photovoltaic sizing options that design teams can use to issue RFPs for solar design/build services.
To use the calculator, click here
Net Zero Energy Buildings
A zero energy building or net zero energy building is a general term applied to a building with a net energy consumption of zero over a typical year. Zero energy buildings are gaining considerable interest as a means to cut greenhouse gas emissions and conserve energy.
An opportunity exists to lower the utility bill cost burden to low-income families by raising awareness and building a viable financial model for Zero Energy New Homes.
The burden energy bills present to low-income families in the United States is often staggeringly heavy. Families significantly below the poverty level have been shown to spend as much as 19% of their income on utility bills, while in some areas of the United States as many as a quarter of evictions of low-income renters were due to inability to pay utility bills.
According to the California Energy Commission (CEC) approximately half of new multifamily affordable housing units constructed each year are energy efficient enough to qualify for Energy Star certification. Further, the CEC estimates only 2% of affordable housing developers integrate renewable energy features into their projects. Low energy efficiency and low use of renewable energy in affordable housing projects stems from a lack of awareness and viable financial models with which to implement these measures.
With funding from the CEC, Global Green and affordable housing developers are building zero-energy affordable housing units with off-the-shelf technology and a robust financial model that will be replicable by other developers nationwide.
Rebate and Incentive Programs
NEW SOLAR HOMES PARTNERSHIP
California Energy Commission rebate program - offers enhanced incentives for solar photovoltaics installed on new affordable housing developments. Includes rebates for solar systems that power units and/or common areas. Available only for customers of PG&E, SCE, SDG&E and Bear Valley Electric.
CALIFORNIA SOLAR INITIATIVE (CSI) UTILITY PROGRAM CONTACTS:
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power
Palo Alto Utilities Department
San Diego Gas & Electric territory (Center for Sustainable Energy California)
FEDERAL TAX CREDITS FOR SOLAR ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING
The IRS offers tax credits to housing developers for the installation of solar photovoltaic and solar hot water systems, along with tax credits for energy efficiency.
Additional Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits are available to projects that receive a tax credit credit allocation from the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee and that install renewable energy systems.
Case Studies
Case Studies: In-depth descriptions of affordable housing projects that have incorporated Green Building practices and solar photovoltaics. Download the free documents:
Publications
Green Urbanism Leaders Summit: Outcomes and Ideas report.
Green Urbanism Leaders Summit. In February 2009, Global Green USA gathered a group urban and environmental thinkers and doers a two-day discussion on the compelling but elusive concept of green urbanism.
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Case Study: Andrew H. Wilson Elementary School
Andrew H. Wilson Elementary School is a model high performance school for the New Orleans Recovery School District’s $1.8 billion school construction program. Andrew H. Wilson is a kindergarden through 8th grande school for approx. 540 students. The campus includes: 26 classrooms, a cafeteria, a gymnasium, an art studio, a music room, a computer lab, a library, and administration facilities. The school features an environmentally friendly site design, and was designed to meet LEED for Schools 2007 standards and is anticipated to achieve LEED for Schools Gold certification by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC).
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