Eagle Times Staff
BELLOWS FALLS, VT. — Two months after welcoming residents to the newly constructed Bellows Falls Garage Apartments, the project partners are celebrating another achievement — the installation of a 30kW solar photovoltaic array on the building’s rooftop.
Developed by Windham & Windsor Housing Trust in collaboration with General Contractor DEW Construction, the new Bellows Falls Garage was designed for optimum energy efficiency and exceeds the Efficiency Vermont High Performance Building standard.
Situated on the banks of the Connecticut River, the building offers 27 affordable housing units in downtown Bellows Falls.
The structure contains five studio apartments, eighteen one-bedroom apartments and four two-bedroom apartments. The main street level floor comprises a mailroom, a for-rent retail space, and a resident reading room on the third floor at the northern entrance to downtown Bellows Falls.
The newly installed solar energy system will generate about 35,000 kWh per year, which represents about 20 percent of the total energy use of the building.
Peter Paggi, the trust’s director of housing development, said the panels are just part of a comprehensive system of energy efficiency measures employed within the building.
“Bellows Falls Garage reached an air sealing level that exceeds the Passive House Institute U.S. standard, and essentially means that there is virtually no uncontrolled air leakage of tempered air. This is one of the most crucial, if not the most crucial, aspect of green building design,” Paggi said.
Paggi said heat and ventilation are provided by a rooftop energy recovery ventilator with propane supplemental heat. This allows the energy from previously tempered air to stay in the building rather than be exhausted out while still providing a consistent supply of fresh air for residents. During the summer, the system also provides humidity control.
The Bellows Falls Garage is the twelfth property in the trust’s portfolio with solar energy features and reinforces the organization’s long-term commitment to sustainable and equitable affordable housing for Southeastern Vermont.
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