Mayor To Introduce New Energy-Efficient Home

Lee Husfeldt • Reader Submitted • May 9, 2008

Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet will introduce the first LEED-registered home in the Coachella Valley, at 5 p.m., Tuesday, May 13, in the Deepwell Estates neighborhood of Palm Springs

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System is a third-party certification program and the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

The new home at 1525 Calle De Maria, has registered for LEED certification, said Mike Flannery, a partner with Solterra Development, a Palm Springs custom home builder, which constructed the house. This is the company?s first LEED-registered home, but Flannery said they plan to build more.

The 2,200-square-foot home is an exact replica of the iconic butterfly roof design created by noted architect William Krisel, AIA, in the mid-1950s. But unlike the original Mid-Century modern homes, this one meets the rigorous energy conservation standards set by the LEED program.

The $1,179,000 home was co-developed by Solterra Development, Maxx Livingstone, Josiah Hamilton and William Krisel AIA. Livingston has an exclusive use agreement with Krisel on some of his home designs and Hamilton is a certified eco broker and realtor who specializes in architecturally significant homes in the Coachella Valley.

"The butterfly roof design is perhaps the most popular of the designs that were created by the architecture firm of Palmer & Krisel in the 1950s," Hamilton said. "But the homes built then were not intended to be used year-round and consequently, many who purchase them today find that they can never achieve the highest levels of energy efficiency even if they spend considerable amounts of money to upgrade such things as insulation and mechanical systems."

In order to be considered for the LEED program, new homes must meet a long list of green standards. Among the attributes of the home being introduced next week are the following:

ENERGY STAR windows and appliances
High level of insulation
No VOCs (volatile organic compounds) in paint, carpet or adhesives
High-efficiency in heating and air conditioning
Careful design to help minimize water use by installing minimal sod, and using drought tolerant plants, as well as native species
Diversion of construction waste from landfill
Forestry Stewardship Council Certified woods

Some of the many optional increased measures taken by Solterra include:
Solar photovoltaic panels
Paperless drywall
Dual flush toilets
Recycled flooring
Recycled decorative concrete

Despite all of its energy and sustainability credentials, the new home offers all of the architectural elements that have made the original design so popular, such as large areas of glass, along with the soaring post-and-beam ceilings. The home features four bedrooms and three bathrooms and includes a detached guest casita.

People who live in the Calle De Maria house could expect to reduce their gas and electric bills by at least 50 percent compared to owners of a comparable size house, Flannery said.

The LEED Green Building Rating System encourages and accelerates global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation and implementation of universally understood and accepted tools and performance criteria, according to the U.S. Green Building Council's Web site.

The Palm Springs City Council is committed to establishing itself as a sustainable City.

The introduction of the home will take place at 5 p.m., Tuesday, May 13, at 1525 Calle De Maria. The public is welcome to attend this event or again on Saturday, May 17th from 4 to 7pm. More information is available by calling Josiah Hamilton at 760.449.0049.