Current Projects

Keene Elementary School
Location: Keene, NH
Architect: Frank Marinace Architects
Building Type: Public School
Size: 165,000 ft²; 900 Students
Rating: Pursuing CHPS

Project Features:
  - Wood-chip fueled heating system
  - Daylighting with lighting controls minimizes lighting energy use
  - 40% more energy efficient than CHPS standards
  - Rainwater collection system for landscape irrigation

Mason Elementary School
Location: Mason, NH
Architect: Dan Scully Architect
Building Type: Public School Addition and Energy Efficiency Retrofits
Size: 10,000 square foot addition and 10,000 square foot existing building retrofit
Rating: Pursuing CHPS



White Mountain National Forest Administrative Complex
Location: Campton, New Hampshire
Architect: URS Corporation
Building Type: Office Building and Visitor Center
Size: 37,000 ft²
Rating: Pursuing LEED for New Construction v2.1 – Gold

Certified Projects

Courtyards at Twin Ponds
Location: Nashua, NH
Architect:  GSD Associates, Architects
Building Type: Multi-family (72 units in 18 buildings)
Size: 72,000 square feet
Rating: LEED Sillver certified

The Courtyards at Twin Ponds

Autumn Curilla, Jordan Intern and Jerry Levin, Owner

 Oct., 2010  The Courtyards at Twin Ponds project has been LEED^® certified to the Silver level by the U.S. Green Building Council. The project consists of 72 units of housing in 18 buildings separated by cozy courtyards. The homes are built upon the reused foundations of the previous 1970’s HUD housing that, by today’s standards, was inefficient, uncomfortable and expensive to heat and cool. The old housing was removed and 80% of the demolition waste was recycled. The remaining crawl space foundations were filled in and insulated and the new homes were built atop them.

The project began as a typical construction project until the owner’s interest was piqued when he read an article about high performance buildings written by Paul Leveille of The Jordan Institute. After inviting Paul to take a look at the plans and getting feedback about the advantages of healthy, energy efficient buildings, the owner was convinced that LEED certification would benefit everyone. By partnering with The Jordan Institute, the team learned why green buildings make sense and how to best accomplish it within their budget.

The first building was built with a steel stud structural insulated panel wall system that, upon further investigation, did not meet structural or thermal performance needs and was replaced with a wood framed version. The eventual design included a blown-in blanket system for the walls which were then further wrapped with an inch of extruded polystyrene foam board on the exterior. The first few buildings also used reclaimed expanded polystyrene under the ceiling drywall but this proved too difficult to make airtight so subsequent buildings used a thin layer of spray foam insulation followed by blown cellulose in the attics.

Horizon Energy of Concord performed the energy modeling required for Energy Star certification which is a prerequisite for the LEED for Homes program. The energy model also provided the starting point for discussing possible energy improvements.

After seeing the results of the first blower door test, the construction team, being new to building airtight buildings, decided to purchase their own blower door so they could detect air leakage and fine tune the air-sealing before the final Energy Star testing. Each subsequent building received a better HERS score (Home Energy Rating System) and, therefore, better utility rebates.

 This project utilizes the new variable refrigerant flow heat pumps from Daikin. Each unit has its own outdoor unit and indoor unit. The indoor units are in a small utility closet, along with the tiny LifeBreath heat recovery ventilators (HRVs), and provide all the heating, cooling and domestic hot water for the units. One of the advantages of these mechanicals is that no combustion takes place anywhere to potentially contaminate indoor air quality (IAQ). IAQ is also assured with the careful use of low-emitting materials and finishes including paints, adhesives, carpets etc.

The “twin ponds” teem with wildlife – ducks, fish, used for fishing and ice skating in winter. The ponds are fed with collected roof water from the homes, courtyards and parking area.

The owner poses a great offer to tenants: if their energy bill is below a certain threshold they receive that amount as a rebate. Since some of the first apartments have now been occupied for a year we have been able to review the utility bills and compare the actual energy use to the modeled energy use. 

The average unit has an Energy Use Index (EUI) of 35,820 BTUS/sq. ft. / year, approximately 38% lower than typical multi-family housing for the northeast – a laudable accomplishment for this first time high-performance builder.

Nobis Engineering Merrimack Valley Headquarters
Location: Lowell, MA
Architect: Durkee Brown Viveiros and Werenfels Architects
Building Type: Office Building
Size: 19,000 square feet
Rating: LEED for New Construction - Gold certified

Sullivan Construction, Inc.
Location: Bedford, NH
Renovation and fit-up of a 5,600 ft² building
Rating: LEED-CI Platinum certified

New Hampshire Technical Institute
Health Education and Academic Center
Location: Concord, NH
Owner: State of New Hampshire
Architect: DC Architects
Building Type: Institutional
Size: 34,000 square feet
Rating: LEED for New Construction -  Silver certified

Project Features:
  - Alternative Transportation:  Bicycle commuter facilities and Proximity to Mass Transit
  - Water-saving plumbing fixtures
  - 43% more energy efficient than code
  - Native plantings


G.E. Healthcare DXD Production Facility
Location: Troy, NY
Architect: The H.L. Turner Group Inc.
Building Type: Manufacturing Facility
Size: 230,000 ft²
Rating: LEED New Construction v2.2 - Gold certified




Freidman Court II
Location: Concord, NH
Owner:
Architect:
Building Type:
Size:
Rating: LEED for Homes - Silver

AVA Gallery and Art Center

    
Gary Hall Photography

Location: Lebanon, NH
Architect: Banwell Architects
Building Type: Office Building
Size: 19,000 ft²
Rating: Certified LEED for New Construction v2.2 - Gold
Project Features: 
  - Reused a 19^th century garment factory
  - Over 50% improvement in energy performance over ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2004
  - Costs comparable to a conventional (i.e. non-green) renovation

New Hampshire Audubon McLane Center
Location: Concord, NH
Architect: Sheer McCrystal Palson
Building Type: Office Building and Visitor Center
Size: 12,000 square feet
Rating: Certified LEED for New Construction v2.1 – Gold (46 points)

Project Features
  - 40% reduction in energy use compared to ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-1999
  - A single wood pellet boiler provides 11% of the building’s energy supply
  - 30,000 board feet of Eastern White Pine was harvested on-site and used to construct the building
  - Water use reduction of over 67% through a combination of innovative technologies that also protect water quality – composting toilets, waterless urinals, and a greywater recycling system.

Portsmouth Public Library
Location: Portsmouth, NH
Size: 38,000 ft²
Rating: Certified LEED for New Contstruction - Silver

850 Winter Street at Reservoir Woods
Location: Waltham, MA
Owner: Davis Marcus Partners
Architect: Elkus Manfredi Architects
Building Type: Office Building
Size: 200,000 ft²
Rating: Certified LEED for Core and Shell v2.0 – Gold

Project Features:
  - Extensive open space and walking trails
  - Over 90% demolition and construction waste diverted from landfill
  - Unobstructed views to nature from over 90% of regularly occupied spaces

Nubanusit Co-Housing Unit 13
Location: Peterborough, NH
Architect: O’Neil Pennoyer Architects
Building Type: Single family home
Size: 1,790 ft²
Rating: Certified LEED for Homes - Platinum
Project Features:
 - drought tolerant landscaping
 - insulated fiberglass triple-glazed windows
 - daylighting design

Green Woodlands
Location: Dorchester, NH
Owner: Bob Green
Architect: Stu White, Banwell Architects
Building Type: Single Family
Size: 2,726 ft² 
Rating: Certified LEED for Homes - Platinum

Project Features:
   - off-grid home
   - TARM wood boiler
   - all wood used came from site (exception: windows, sill plates)
   - composting toilets
   
Parker-Batchelder Residence
Location: Portsmouth, NH
Owners: Cheryl Parker and Marc Batchelder
Builder: Little Green Homes
Building Type: Single-Family
Size: 1,456 ft²
Rating: LEED Platinum

Small, efficient, charming….This is an infill project located on a previously developed site in Portsmouth, NH. A timberframe structure with Structural Insulated Panels (SIPS) for walls, this house is heated with a solar hot water system and a wood stove.

While we concentrate on New Hampshire green building projects, we are willing to consider projects throughout New England and beyond.

Residential Projects

Quaglioroli Residence
Location: Meredith, NH
Builder: Cargill Construction
Building Type: Single-Family
Size: 6,700 ft²
Preliminary Rating: Gold

This project is nearing LEED Certification completion and is slated to be a Gold project. It is heated and cooled with a geothermal system, has minimal and native landscaping, along with many local materials used throughout. 

Bennett Residence
Location: Moultonborough, NH
Owner: Philip Bennett
Architect: Philip Bennett
Building Type: Single-Family
Size: 2238 ft²
Preliminary Rating: Platinum

Architect owned and designed, this home is slated to install one of the first air-to-water air source heat pumps made. The entire house will be sided with live edge black locust vertical boards along with custom insulated window shutters to keep the home warm at night and cool in the summer months. 

Brook Village North
Location: Nashua, NH
Owner: First Equity Associates
Architect: GSD Associates
Building Type: Multi-Family
Size: 72 Units
Preliminary Rating: Silver

A multi-family development that is replacing an existing group of outdated HUD units. The new building will be heated with a super efficient air source heat pump system.

Laconia Area Land Trust
Location: Meredith, NH
Owner: Laconia Area Land Trust
Architect: George Hickey
Building Type: Multi-Family
Size: 32 Units
Preliminary Rating: Gold

Affordable housing units with a projected HERS score of 53. This translates into a 47% energy savings over a building built to code.

Swett Residence
Location: Meredith, NH
Architect: CPW Architects
Building Type: Single Family
Size: 3540 ft²
Preliminary Rating: Platinum

Located on the shores of Lake Winnipesauke, this six bedroom home is slated to be rated LEED Platinum. This project has a preliminary HERS Rating of 55 – 45% better than a code built house.