Although I indicated that I would discuss the characteristics of my Icon buildings this entry, I am going to switch gears and talk about an existing project that I just had the great fortune to tour last week. West Village, in Davis California, is the largest NZE Multifamily project in the Nation. It has over 600 units and provides housing to over 2,000 students and faculty members. The Campus also contains retail and commercial space (including two labs). West Village was constructed by Carmel Partners, and has many construction features to make the project more energy efficient. It isn’t just about solar panels (although West Village does produce 8.4 megawatts on an annual basis); the project uses features in the building design to create efficient cooling, high efficiency appliances and on demand hot water systems. West Village was constructed in 2011; if you think about Solar Technology 5 years ago, versus today, the Net Zero achievement of West Village is nothing less than impressive.
If you want more details about West Village, check out their website:
http://www.carmelapartments.com/uc-davis-west-village-davis-ca
