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| Drake's Way in Larkspur, CA, an affordable apartment complex built by EAH housing. |
On May 4th, 2011, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) officially designated Drake's Way
with the prestigious Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) for Homes Silver certification; making Drake's Way the first
affordable housing community in Marin County to be LEED certified.
Since
it first opened, Drake's Way has been a model of sustainability. The
property's central location in Marin County facilitates a car-free
lifestyle by allowing residents to live within walking distance of
retail centers, a grocery store, and office buildings as well as public
transportation and bicycle routes. Located in Larkspur,
CA the property offers sweeping views of Mt. Tamalpais and the San
Francisco Bay. To help preserve the natural beauty of the property's
surroundings, EAH Housing donated nearly half of their parcel to the
city of Larkspur to be used as an undeveloped hiking and wildlife area.
Encircled
by fields of native wildflowers, Drake's Way is landscaped entirely
with drought resistant plants and was built with 80 percent recycled
construction materials. The community room, computer lab, and management
offices at Drake's Way are 100% Solar powered and the entire property
features some of the latest designs in energy efficiency for water
heaters, insulation, ducts, and other building components.
Drake's
Way provides homes for low income working families who would otherwise
not be able to afford housing in Marin County's high-end real estate
market. Like many other EAH Housing properties, Drake's Way allows
people to live close to their jobs, avoid lengthy commutes, and spend
more time with their families, all while creating a net benefit for the
environment.
EAH Housing recently launched the Building Sustainable Communities Initiative
(BSCI), a company wide effort to "green" the entire EAH portfolio. 30
properties have already received green upgrades and the rest of the EAH
portfolio will undergo similar renovations in the coming years.
LEED
is an internationally recognized green building certification system
that judges the overall environmental impact of a property by evaluating
criteria such as energy savings, water efficiency, carbon dioxide
emissions, and stewardship of natural resources. The prestigious LEED
designation is considered to be one of the most stringent rating systems
for green building. LEED criteria are set and evaluated publically by
the approximately 20,000 member organizations that make up the USGBC.
