Chula Vista complex collects energy-efficiency award
San Diego Union Tribune
March 30, 2010
Chula Vista officials had a request for Ken Sauder when his company proposed building a 42-unit housing complex: Make it green.
“My thought was photovoltaic,” Sauder, CEO of Wakeland Housing and Development Corp., recalled yesterday. “We’re going to do this as a solar project.”
But making electricity from sunlight wasn’t enough for the Los Vecinos affordable-housing complex.
“The thing I learned about building green was yes, the photovoltaic and solar is a great feature, but there’s so much you can do, in terms of material selection, in terms of design.”
Architects, engineers and other workers on the building focused on energy efficiency, reducing the amount of power used so much that the solar panels on the roof and nearby carports provide more than 90 percent of its energy.
Those features earned Wakeland a San Diego Excellence in Energy, or SANDEE, award from the California Center for Sustainable Energy. Nine awards were handed out last week to companies, individuals and government agencies for their efficiency efforts. The recipients were chosen by a panel of experts from nominations by the public.
“Many people forgo energy improvements, yet others … have learned that state-of-the-art energy strategies can cut their utility costs and improve business profits,” said Irene Stillings, executive director of the energy center, a nonprofit that advocates for energy efficiency and distributes rebates and other state incentives.
The estimated energy savings achieved by the nine honorees across San Diego County is equivalent to the annual energy use of about 1,570 average California households, the energy center said. The reductions in greenhouse gas emissions equate to the carbon dioxide emitted annually by 8,387 passenger vehicles.
For Wakeland, things like making sure windows are the right size, and in the right place, to let in sunlight and breezes, but not heat, make a big difference, Sauder said.
Other big steps involved making the roof white, so it reflects heat, installing tankless water heaters and EnergyStar appliances and using materials that last longer, so, for instance, countertops don’t have to be replaced after five or six years.
“It’s a surprise how much of it isn’t necessarily things that are beyond our reach,” he said. “The technology is here. We can use it.”
About two-thirds of the extra $900,000 in improvements for the $17 million complex were paid for through government incentives such as one the state has to encourage photovoltaic installations, Sauder said. Lower operating costs will mean the balance will be paid back in seven or eight years, he said.
The other winners of the SANDEE awards were:
• Tom and Judy Myers of Alpine, who combined solar power systems with energy conservation to the point that their home makes as much power as it produces.
• California State University San Marcos, which implemented a comprehensive energy conservation project, reducing consumption by more than 25 percent and saving nearly $600,000 in annual energy costs.
• ICommute Regional Vanpool Program, which decreases traffic congestion during rush hour by getting some 5,000 vehicles off the road.
• The San Diego Unified School District Prop. S program, which paid for an energy-efficient air conditioning system and improved occupant comfort and indoor air quality.
• Architects hanna gabriel wells, which redesigned and remodeled a 1955 auto repair shop in Ocean Beach into a modern, net zero energy building, reusing 90 percent of the existing building and using daylight and LED lights.
• Stone Brewing Co. of Escondido for its commitment to the environment and sustainability, including a solar-power system that provides 30 percent to 40 percent of its electricity.
• Glen Brandenburg of San Diego State University, founder and director of the Mission Bay Aquatic Center and adviser to the Associated Students Green Love Sustainability Advisory Board, for his efforts encouraging students to adopt sustainable habits, create campus environmental programs and build energy-efficient facilities.
• The city of Chula Vista, for its commitment to a healthy environment through energy-related programs and policies that emphasize energy efficiency and renewable energy.
March 30, 2010
Chula Vista officials had a request for Ken Sauder when his company proposed building a 42-unit housing complex: Make it green.
“My thought was photovoltaic,” Sauder, CEO of Wakeland Housing and Development Corp., recalled yesterday. “We’re going to do this as a solar project.”
But making electricity from sunlight wasn’t enough for the Los Vecinos affordable-housing complex.
“The thing I learned about building green was yes, the photovoltaic and solar is a great feature, but there’s so much you can do, in terms of material selection, in terms of design.”
Architects, engineers and other workers on the building focused on energy efficiency, reducing the amount of power used so much that the solar panels on the roof and nearby carports provide more than 90 percent of its energy.
Those features earned Wakeland a San Diego Excellence in Energy, or SANDEE, award from the California Center for Sustainable Energy. Nine awards were handed out last week to companies, individuals and government agencies for their efficiency efforts. The recipients were chosen by a panel of experts from nominations by the public.
“Many people forgo energy improvements, yet others … have learned that state-of-the-art energy strategies can cut their utility costs and improve business profits,” said Irene Stillings, executive director of the energy center, a nonprofit that advocates for energy efficiency and distributes rebates and other state incentives.
The estimated energy savings achieved by the nine honorees across San Diego County is equivalent to the annual energy use of about 1,570 average California households, the energy center said. The reductions in greenhouse gas emissions equate to the carbon dioxide emitted annually by 8,387 passenger vehicles.
For Wakeland, things like making sure windows are the right size, and in the right place, to let in sunlight and breezes, but not heat, make a big difference, Sauder said.
Other big steps involved making the roof white, so it reflects heat, installing tankless water heaters and EnergyStar appliances and using materials that last longer, so, for instance, countertops don’t have to be replaced after five or six years.
“It’s a surprise how much of it isn’t necessarily things that are beyond our reach,” he said. “The technology is here. We can use it.”
About two-thirds of the extra $900,000 in improvements for the $17 million complex were paid for through government incentives such as one the state has to encourage photovoltaic installations, Sauder said. Lower operating costs will mean the balance will be paid back in seven or eight years, he said.
The other winners of the SANDEE awards were:
• Tom and Judy Myers of Alpine, who combined solar power systems with energy conservation to the point that their home makes as much power as it produces.
• California State University San Marcos, which implemented a comprehensive energy conservation project, reducing consumption by more than 25 percent and saving nearly $600,000 in annual energy costs.
• ICommute Regional Vanpool Program, which decreases traffic congestion during rush hour by getting some 5,000 vehicles off the road.
• The San Diego Unified School District Prop. S program, which paid for an energy-efficient air conditioning system and improved occupant comfort and indoor air quality.
• Architects hanna gabriel wells, which redesigned and remodeled a 1955 auto repair shop in Ocean Beach into a modern, net zero energy building, reusing 90 percent of the existing building and using daylight and LED lights.
• Stone Brewing Co. of Escondido for its commitment to the environment and sustainability, including a solar-power system that provides 30 percent to 40 percent of its electricity.
• Glen Brandenburg of San Diego State University, founder and director of the Mission Bay Aquatic Center and adviser to the Associated Students Green Love Sustainability Advisory Board, for his efforts encouraging students to adopt sustainable habits, create campus environmental programs and build energy-efficient facilities.
• The city of Chula Vista, for its commitment to a healthy environment through energy-related programs and policies that emphasize energy efficiency and renewable energy.