LEED and ENERGY STAR for HOMES Certifications

GREEN CERTIFICATION CASE STUDIES 1 of 2

CSG Rates Affordable, Award-Winning New Homes

Boston Multifamily Development Brings Multiple Benefits

Client: Vietnamese American Initiative for Development, Inc. (Viet-AID)
Location: Dorchester, MA

Challenge/Business Need

How does a nonprofit community development corporation help restore a blighted neighborhood while providing safe, healthy, durable, green, and low cost housing?

The Vietnamese American Initiative for Development, Inc. (Viet-AID) sought assistance with their most ambitious project to date: construction of the low-rise “1460 House” using both ENERGY STAR® and LEED-certification standards.

CONSERVATION SERVICE GROUP’s ROLE

CSG consults with architects, developers and builders and inspects and rates green and energy efficient residential construction in New England, including ENERGY STAR and LEED for Homes. Working with sustainability consultants New Ecology, Inc. as part of the project team, CSG staff were involved throughout the design and construction process to ensure that energy specifications were achieved and quality upheld.

Strategy & goals

The 1460 House project comprises 43 rental apartments and five commercial storefronts built with minimal impact on the environment. With Conservation Service Group’s assistance, Viet-AID created this affordable, healthy, and green building for tenants with under 60 percent of Area Median Income. CSG has a long history of successful collaboration with affordable housing developers, thanks in part to closely-aligned organizational missions. Viet-AID:

• Sees building ENERGY STAR housing as integral to their mission of creating a vibrant neighborhood
  
• Is committed to incorporating an ethic of environmental stewardship into community development
  
• Believes that the benefits of energy efficiency, renewable energy, and green building must be available to all

With the 1460 House, Viet-AID’s clear objectives enabled an integrated design process, as CSG helped to incorporate from the start ENERGY STAR measures to deliver maximum benefit.

Impact

This LEED-certifiable building achieved a HERS Index of 41, with:

• Super-insulated (ceiling = R40 8” polyiso) and air-sealed building envelope
  
• High efficiency condensing boilers (93 percent AFUE)
  
• ENERGY STAR lighting and appliances
  
• PV solar rooftop electricity generation

The EPA presented Viet-AID with a ENERGY STAR National Award for achievement with affordable housing due to the success of their 1460 House project.

CSG Contacts

Caitriona Cooke, New Construction Program Manager
Michael Schofield, District Project Manager