Going Street Commons

...These eco-friendly homes represent the future of green building in Oregon and beyond. Designed by Birdsmouth and built by Green Hammer for Zach Parrish, Going Street Commons fosters a sense of community while allowing residents to live true to their environmental values. The all-electric homes feature open floor plans, modern, Energy Star-certified appliances, abundant natural lighting, and building systems and finishes to help ensure healthy indoor air quality. Unfortunately, the increased occurrence of wildfires in the Pacific Northwest has shown us how important indoor air quality is to our physical and mental health. People living at Going Street Commons will breathe easier thanks to whole-building, energy-efficient, mechanical ventilation systems that provide continuous fresh, filtered, outside air.

As the Pacific Northwest experiences more extreme weather events, in both summer and winter, the residents at Going Street will feel the difference thanks to the passive, super-insulated, and airtight measures. The indoor temperature remains comfortable despite big weather swings, making these homes more resilient when power outages occur.

Human connection has become all the more important over the last year, as the pandemic limited social gatherings and interactions with neighbors. Going Street Commons is an antidote to the isolation many people have been feeling during this time. Residents share common courtyards and gardens, covered bike storage, and a covered carport, all of which encourage neighbors to get to know one another. Residents all know each other by name and benefit from group work parties, optional games, and gatherings, and the expanded small village feel with two cohousing communities just next door.

During the design-build process, we make a multitude of decisions that have impacts on people and the planet, in many cases, for generations to come. We take that responsibility very seriously. At Green Hammer, we believe healthy buildings are a basic human right. Our vision is a future where all buildings support the health of communities and a thriving natural world. We are working toward a future where all buildings can produce more renewable energy than they consume; buildings clean our air, clean our water, and sequester carbon from our atmosphere; and rooftops are both garden landscapes and solar energy generators.

Going Street Commons, along with the growing list of Zero Energy communities we have designed and built, represents this vision.

— Stephen Aiguier, Green Hammer, Founder + President

...Net Zero Energy certification. Earth Advantage® Home is a third-party, high-performance certification program for new single-family homes developed to ensure homeowners that their certified home is energy-efficient, healthy, and meets conservation benchmarks. The homes are so energy efficient, they will be able to generate all the energy they are designed to use should homeowners decide to add solar on their own.

High-Performance Building Design Elements:

• Super-insulated foundation, roof, and wall systems with tightly sealed weather barriers create an airtight thermal enclosure reducing heating and cooling loads by nearly 70%.

• Triple-pane, well-sealed windows keep homes warm in the winter and cool in the summer. They also block out sound while allowing for plenty of natural light and fresh air when you want it.

• Whole building energy-efficient mechanical heat pump ventilation systems with HEPA filtration provide continuous fresh, filtered, outside air. Using state-of-the-art smart controls the systems manage moisture levels and optimize air exchange for indoor air quality.

• LED lighting and ENERGY STAR appliances throughout significantly reduce energy use.

• Water Sense-certified showerheads, faucets, and toilets significantly reduce water and energy use.

• State-of-the-art, energy-efficient, hot water heat pumps cut energy use by more than half as compared to standard electric water heaters.

• The Majority of hard-surface concrete and oak flooring do not harbor dust mites, mold, household dust, and debris, or harmful chemicals that can off-gas into the home over time.

• Paints, finishes, and building materials with low- or no-VOCs.

• FSC certified larch siding provides a durable zero-carbon siding material coming from responsibly and sustainably managed forests.

• A rain-screen wall system increases the longevity of materials by preventing moisture from entering the wall cavity.

• A 5,000-gallon cistern collects rainwater, which is expected to be enough water to irrigate the community’s garden and much of its landscaping needs year-round.