Project focuses on green building, affordable housing

Most new urban developments offer some environmental advantages; Highlands Garden Village in Denver, Colorado, is set apart by its comprehensive approach to resource conservation. Plus, with the project’s affordable housing components and broad range of prices, the developers attempted to meet most goals of the Charter of the New Urbanism with this 27-acre infill redevelopment — while earning a reasonable profit. The latter goal has been met. Sales and leasing of most residential units are finalized just two years after the first homes were completed. In addition, developers Burgwyn, Perry & Rose have seen substantial price escalation in the market rate units. “Absorption has been much faster than anticipated, and it’s because people love community,” says codeveloper Jonathan Rose. He adds that the “suburban quality” homes in the urban location made for an appealing product. Highland Gardens Village is located a mile and a half from downtown on the site of a defunct amusement park. The site is surrounded by the historic Denver grid — allowing the developers to tie in to existing streets, public utilities, and mass transit. The site offered the developers opportunities for reuse — starting with a historic theater and carousel house. Trees and gardens were salvaged — as were 30 tons of concrete. The developers went to substantial lengths to use recycled construction materials, and to make the homes energy efficient. Some of these efforts amount to good building techniques — such as making homes as tight as possible while ensuring good ventilation, purchasing energy efficient appliances and windows, and minimizing the length of heat ducts. But the developers have gone well beyond common practice by using wind source electricity and obtaining alternative energy vehicles for a neighborhood car-sharing program. Some of the green measures cut costs — the reuse of concrete saved a net $80,000 in hauling and material purchase costs, Rose says. Most measures added costs, e.g. purchasing wind source electricity for community, multifamily, and senior housing buildings adds 10 percent to utility bills in developer-owned buildings. Overall, Rose estimates that green building techniques raised construction costs by two or three percent, although he has not conducted a detailed study. On the other side of the ledger, potential home buyers are offered lower utility costs, good indoor air quality, and a better overall product, he believes. “Not only is it the right thing to do and better for the Earth, but there are marketing advantages,” he says. The 290-home project, master planned by Calthorpe Associates, includes 90,000-110,000 square feet of commercial, plus 38,000 square feet of civic/community buildings. Fifty-two single homes, 54 townhouses, and 63 apartments for senior citizens are mostly complete, as is a 33-unit cohousing community situated within the project (the first cohousing in a new urban neighborhood). A 74-unit multifamily building is under construction. The commercial center is scheduled to break ground in a year. Affordability Forty percent of the senior apartment units are “affordable” — defined as within the budget of someone earning 60 percent of the area’s median household income. The units rent from $450/month to $1,065/month. Twenty percent of the other multifamily units are affordable. Furthermore, 20 of the single homes have accessory apartments renting in the $650-750/month range. In exchange for providing the affordability, the developers received housing tax credits, tax exempt bonds with low interest rates, and $1.1 million in city and state block grants. Rose would have liked to offer even more affordable units. “We really believe in a diverse community,” he says. “We think that’s part of what makes cities work.” During the approval process, however, residents of surrounding neighborhoods pushed for limitations on multifamily units. For-sale units were originally projected to sell for $144,632 to $316,500, and ended up in the $153,795 to $429,666 range (see table for details). The affordable units and the broad range of prices contribute to the resiliency of a project in an economic downturn, Rose says. “We are now entering a national recession, and one thing I have learned is that income diversity really helps. A broad range of products gives you more to offer.” Transportation alternatives The village offers residents an opportunity to cut their automobile costs. The location is walkable to existing retail — a situation which will improve with the project’s retail component. Two bus stops are located on the street bordering Highland Gardens — one of which is on the development property. Buses stop every 15-20 minutes in peak hours, and 25-30 months during other times. A shelter is planned with a computer for information on schedules and routes. The bus provides easy access to downtown, a mall, and other parts of the city. Developers leased a small electric sports utility vehicle for residents in the senior apartment units to car-share at a cost of $2/hour. The developer also received a $77,000 grant from EPA to purchase two natural gas powered vehicles to expand the car-sharing program. The program is on hold while the developer seeks insurance for the program.