LEED For HOMES: LL Location & Linkages

this is the second post on our LEED goals and it concerns location and linkages.  the intent of this particular group of goals is to reduce the impact of land development practices.  this means simply developing in areas where infrastructure is already existing, and developing on lands that are not environmentally sensitive.

the first requirement concerns the 100-year flood plane.  our site is next to the animas river so consequentially the 100-year flood plane is a real concern for us.  as you may remember i thought i was getting a giant basement for storage, and a wine cellar here.  however, do to the FEMA 100-year flood plane levels we are no longer having a full basement.  rather we are having a crawl space which sits one foot above the flood plane.

durango GIS map with FEMA flood plane levels

the second requirement is that we are not building on any endangered wildlife habitat.  i don't believe we are and considering the city hasn't given us any grief about cute little animals i think we are safe on this one.  we do have some resident deer that like to hang out near the property.

this land wasn't public parkland prior to our ownership- check and we don't have any unique soils of any geologic significance- check.   we are within 100 feet of water and LEED recommend that no development occur within 100 feet of any water source- so i guess we aren't getting those points.

we will get points for developing on a piece of property in which 25% of the adjacent perimeter is previously developed.  the house to the south has been around for over 50 years so point for us!

the fourth point concerns the projects location within an existing community.  it is advisable to develop on a property which already has close by city services such as water, sewer and power.  our site is within 200 feet of all of these services so we are well within these limits.

LEED also commends projects that are within close distances to services such as a grocery store, banks, restaurants, and schools as well as transit services.  our site can qualify for the maximum points as we are within 1/2 mile from at least 14 basic community services.  we are also within 1/4 mile of two city transit routes which services most of durango.  three points for us!

the durango public library and bike path along the river- just minutes from our house!

and finally my favorite, open space.  LEED commends development that has close access to open space.  durango has done a pretty good job of creating open space for its residents. we are within 1/2 mile of several public spaces that are over 3/4 acre in size including access to a superb bike path through town and some very cute little parks.  we also have a river put in just up the street from our lot which is a nice spot for rafters and kayakers- another point for us.

overall out of a maximum of 10 points we should easily get 6 points, not to shabby considering we are building next to a water source. but you know what- i will sacrifice a couple of points for the river view and the awesome spot we have!

our river the animas

LEED for HOMES: ID

LEED for Homes

i don't really want to go into a long tirade on why the USGBC (us green building council) and LEED (leadership in energy and environmental design) is a little whack because that would take at least a few hours.  but if you are not familiar with what LEED is then know this, its an organization that provides guidelines for builders, architects, urban planners, and home owners on how to build better buildings, kind of like how europeans have been building for years, but again another time....


anyway, i was thinking about all of the awesome plans that björn and i have for building this house, and all of the (i think) innovative ideas we have employed along the way.  it got me curious about just how "green" (i hate this term) our project is going to be.  so i am going to track our progress going through the LEED checklist to see how well we are doing.


this week = Innovation & Design Process.  this section is all about planning, the requirements include having a preliminary meeting with your "project team" to discuss the project, set goals and determine a rating level that you want to strive for.  in our case the project team includes: björn and myself, derek from solar works in durango and our engineer dave wilson from wilson structural engineering.  we haven't had a meeting per se but we could right?!


this credit also includes points for having an integrated project team, which we do (1 point) and having a professionally credential team member, which I am (1 point)


we will also gain credit for completing a durability plan- which simply means following some guidelines that the USGBC sets forth that are kind of like- duh!  things like don't place carpet within 3 feet of an entry way to mitigate indoor moisture and drain water away from the exterior of the house for example.

the Innovation & Design section also allows for up to 4 points to be earned called Innovation points.  these are things that an individual has completed on a project that are over and above all of the LEED guidelines, the USGBC gives you the opportunity to submit a narrative and any supporting documents that will give you these Innovation points!


of the 11 points available we could certainly get 6, plus another 3 if we have a third party verify we are following a management plan for those items on that silly durability plan.  but that means more money to pay to the USGBC, imagine that..don't get me started!


so im going to call it 6 points, we are well on our way to LEED gold at least!  

going for gold