A new home being built on the Near Westside — the result of a School of Architecture competition —will showcase the latest in green living technology.

The home is part of the Near Westside Initiative, a Syracuse University partnership that serves as an umbrella nonprofit for a diverse set of programs, said Karen Schroeder of Home HeadQuarters, the company heading the construction.

From the Ground Up, an Architecture-sponsored national competition, chose the winning design, along with two others that will also be built in the near future. The goal of the competition was to generate innovative, practical, energy-efficient designs for replication across Syracuse and across the nation, according to the competition’s website.

All three winning designs — SU architecture alumnus Rick Cook’s ‘Live Work Home’ at 319 Marcellus St.; Philadelphia-based development company Onion Flats’ ‘TED’ at 619 Otisco St.; and New York City-based architecture firm Della Valle Bernheimer’s ‘R-House’ on 621 Otisco St. — are under construction in Syracuse by Home HeadQuarters.

‘Live Work Home’ is due for completion in October, delayed from the original completion date in June.

The home, sold at approximately $80,000, is projected to be certified either LEED Gold or Platinum through the international green building certification system. Pursuing a higher LEED rating costs more because of more exotic materials and more precise workmanship, Schroeder said.

But Home HeadQuarters keeps prices practical with a variety of ‘funding injections,’ including state and local funding, Schroeder said.

‘We’re working to make all these green bells and whistles affordable,’ Schroeder said.

Inside, the 1,400-square-foot home is taking shape. A hardwood floor, made of commercial wood planks laminated with recycled, rock-hard Georgia pine, covers the ground level. The pine was carefully reclaimed from the former home at 319 Marcellus St., which was deconstructed piece-by-piece last July, according to an article in The Post Standard on Sept. 15.

Under the hardwood lies a series of plastic hot-water tubes, known as ‘radiant heating,’ that keep the ground level comfortable in winter. A layer of ultra-efficient foil insulation called ‘radiant barrier’ insulates the tubing from the basement below, directing any thermal radiation back to the ground level, said John Miranda, the presumptive owner of ‘Live Work Home.’

An additional layer of radiant barrier beneath the concrete basement floor prevents thermal energy transfer between the basement and the ground, keeping the basement, which is about as large and deep as the ground level, surprisingly cool in the summer and pleasantly warm in winter months, Miranda said.

Though the home has no air conditioning, the panels on the east side of the home can be rotated to maximize airflow through the windows, Miranda said. When that fails, even the smallest fan can blow cool basement air to the ground level.

Miranda said he plans to use the home to both operate his company, CNY Renewable Energy Associates, and to experience the latest renewable technologies in his everyday life.

Miranda said his mission is to prove efficient inner-city construction is a livable path to a post-petroleum reality. With innovations ranging from a three-zone thermostat to natural light fixtures that can shine just as bright as bulbs, this home is a progressive proof of concept, he said.

Though Home HeadQuarters urged him to take the home as is when the former proposed owner backed out, Miranda added what few customizations he could before the tight construction deadline.

Miranda is planning solar panels and gardens for the rooftop. These and other extras may come at a premium, but Miranda said he sees them as a sound investment in the future.

‘If you’re going to make it a showcase,’ Miranda said, ‘why not make it a showcase?’

geclarke@syr.edu

 

Published on September 1, 2010 at 12:00 pm