You wouldn’t know from looking at it that this sustainable multifamily housing project is affordable.
> Project Name: Wolff Waters Place, La Quinta, Calif.
> Builder/General Contractor: Brown Construction
> Developer: Coachella Valley Housing
> Architect: Interactive Design Corp.
> Photographer: Mark Davidson Photography
Ask construction manager Brian Peulicke what he thinks is most remarkable about the 218-unit Wolff Waters Place, and he’ll describe how it blends into the country club community where it’s located. “I think as a whole it is beautiful. You would never think of it as affordable,” he says. The units are one to four bedrooms, and rent for approximately $400–$1,000, serving lower income families.
The project features a large community center, a child care center, a swimming pool and cooling fountains, sports courts, tot lots, and a variety of open spaces, including barbeque and picnic areas. The buildings were constructed with environmentally friendly features throughout, and all obtained LEED certifi cates. In fact, of the 24 buildings, nine received Gold certification and 15 Silver.
According to Peulicke, you have to be careful when selecting green products. “The field is evolving so rapidly, plus you have to analyze how the products will be used,” he says. For example, the team originally wanted dual-flush toilets but when they did some research, realized that people were wasting money by flushing multiple times. Because they couldn’t educate future project managers, they decided new single-flush technology made more sense and went with a 1.2-gallon single-flush toilet.
Peulicke’s advice for green builders, whether they build single family or multifamily, is simply to do things properly. “Spend the time to do the insulation right in every nook and cranny, even if it means retraining yourself and your subs,” he says. But even more important is to plan and to know what you are doing ahead of time and have your budget reflect those choices. “My Dad was in construction, and I can still hear his voice: ‘The only time to save money is in the planning phase. After that, money can only be spent.’”
ENERGY STAR
This project meets the requirements of Energy Star for Homes with third-party testing and includes Energy Star advanced lighting, appliance, and indoor air packages.
www.energystar.gov
FOREST STEWARDSHIP COUNCIL
The project spec’d environmentally preferable products. If tropical wood was chosen to finish any of the units, it had to be approved by the Forest Stewardship Council.
www.fscus.org
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GreenBuilder 12.2010
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