Paper

Linking Sustainability and Housing Affordability to Neighborhood Design Compatibility

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Abstract

While economic and social policy models have failed to move the public demand to build more affordable housing in Austin, Texas, urgent environmental, sustainability and climate change realities may finally demonstrate how it is in everyone’s self-interest to build more affordable urban Zero Net Energy (ZNE) housing now. Residents of Austin’s older urban neighborhoods have been reluctant to accept zoning changes that would allow large numbers of urban middle density housing units, fearing the higher densities would not be compatible with the character of their existing single-family detached (SFD) scaled neighborhoods. SOLEIL Homes presents a ZNE middle density housing model combining affordability and sustainability to add a new standard for neighborhood compatibility. The SOLEIL model allows existing neighborhood residents to visualize a modest middle density increase (31.1 units per acre), ZNE energy efficiency, and affordability to maintain diversity and compatibility with the character of Austin’s SFD scaled urban neighborhoods. The SOLEIL factory-built modular housing model lowers construction costs by 20% and the middle density allows more housing units to share – and thus lower – raw land costs, addressing the primary cause of rising home prices. Through its green building design, evaporative cooling rain gardens and enhanced energy conservation features, SOLEIL achieves a low Energy Use Intensity (EUI) ZNE Ready rate of 7.9 kBtu/ft2- year, and with the addition of a 5.14 KW per unit Community Solar PV system, the SOLEIL units achieve a Zero Net Energy home classification. A rainwater harvesting design reduces water use to less than 30 gallons per capita day. SOLEIL units achieve neighborhood design compatibility and energy efficiency at a sales price affordable to residents with an income of less than 80% of Austin's annual median family income (MFI). By extending ZNE sustainable housing to include the affordable and moderate housing markets, enough urban units could be built by the end of this decade to meet Austin's affordable housing demand and help forge a pathway to reduce the city’s carbon footprint CO2e/year by 50% by 2030.

Keywords: Climate Change Mitigation, Housing Affordability, Middle Density, ZNE

How to Cite:

Garrison, M. L., (2023) “Linking Sustainability and Housing Affordability to Neighborhood Design Compatibility”, Building Technology Educators’ Society 2023(1), 1–9. doi: https://doi.org/10.7275/btes.1924