LEED Green Building
Demonstration Homes
While Twin Cities Habitat has been incorporating green building techniques in our home production for more than a decade, the organization recently took on LEED certified homebuilding projects to challenge and expand our capabilities in sustainable development.
Aptly dubbed the “Green Demonstration Homes,” the purpose of the projects is to explore and further develop best practices in green building and sustainable development, with the intention of implementing those construction practices across TCHFH’s homebuilding program.
The first project, a single-family home in the City of Crystal, broke ground in the fall of 2008 and was completed in April 2009. Twin Cities Habitat broke ground in May 2009 on the second project, a multi-family townhome development on Case Ave in St. Paul. The most recent project, another single-family home in the City of Hopkins, broke ground in September 2009.
So far the projects have been a terrific learning experience for staff as they grapple with difficult decisions and paradoxes, like the fact that not every building material that is energy efficient or durable is considered "green."
Ultimately, products and building techniques were chosen with the following criteria in mind:
- Identify green/sustainable techniques and building materials that can be easily replicated throughout our construction operation.
- Choose products and techniques that are volunteer-friendly to implement or install.
- Select products that prove affordable and energy efficient in the long-run.
- Ensure that products and systems are easy to maintain for the future homeowner.
Click the photos on the left to access more information on each project.