On November 13th, real estate firm Habitat Metro commenced their latest development, Eco Mesa Apartments. This new construction will be revolutionary in the world of sustainability, as the apartment homes are designed to help residents reduce their carbon footprint as much as possible. The apartments will include innovative features such as solar power, water reclamation systems, an on-site car share, and much more. Tim Sprague, the owner of Habitat Metro, makes it a point to note that their motive is not to create a unique selling point or be trendy, but to take steps towards truly caring for the environment.
For Sprague, the future of our environment’s quality hits close to home: “I have seven grandkids. If we don’t start doing something about building things sustainably, this world is going to be very different for them”.
The complex will feature charging stations for electric vehicles along with the previously mentioned ride-share system. Residents will be offered a selection of hybrid vehicles that they can rent out as needed.
Developers are claiming with assurance that every inch of this project is being taken into consideration in order to make things as efficient as possible.
“We want to make sure that the building doesn’t leak air. If it’s insulated well, and you’re using materials that literally make it not leak, the amount of energy used is reduced in a meaningful way. If you’re adding solar to the source of energy for the building, the whole thing combined just makes a much more sustainable building,” says Sprague. It is clear that each component of the project is being curated to contribute to the overarching goal of sustainability. Thus far, the fluidity of each component working together is proving to be quite impressive.
Habitat Metro has gone as far as considering how construction materials are to be transported in the building process: “We try to source materials that are close by and won’t produce a large carbon footprint. We want to make sure that they are not what we call redline materials, which affect the air quality inside the unit. It goes all the way from plywood to insulation”
One of the most vital components of this project’s success, notes Sprague, is having residents and staff that believe in the mission of Eco Mesa. “It’s also important to make sure that the management of the facility itself is done by folks that will pay attention to how the building is run. We want to make sure that what we planned to build continues on after it’s finished”.
To conclude, Sprague states, “We want to set an example of how you can build something sustainable within economic reason. When we finish, we will share all of what we’re doing with everybody else. And the reason why we will do that goes back to what I said about my grandkids. The future is important. Hopefully, we can contribute in a small way and help educate a little bit. If we can do that, we’re happy.”
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