Building "Green" in WDM

Green building, like everything else eco-friendly, has become a very popular topic that has generated interest around the country. Green structures are designed and built to adhere to the principles of sustainability and environmental best practices. These efficient buildings conserve resources like energy and water and have fewer negative impacts on the environment and human health.

In an effort to promote green building, the City has conveyed two residential lots it currently owns in Valley Junction to Home Opportunities Made Easy (HOME) Inc, a Des Moines-based nonprofit organization. HOME, Inc. will be the general contractor in building a single-family home on each lot. Both houses will be built using green concepts and eventually sold to low-income households. One home will serve as a demonstration house, which could take up to a year to build in order to stay open for educational purposes, and the other will be built within a normal time-frame.

Partners on this project include the City of West Des Moines, HOME, Inc., and the Center for Sustainable Communities (COSC). In addition to the key partners, the project will utilize representatives from our community at large including city and state government entities, community-based non-profits, funding entities, key corporations, key industry sector advisors, and individual volunteers. Ideally, this project will demonstrate how a green-build home can be constructed affordably and practically.

The project's partners got together in March to discuss the design and plan the educational sessions and on site demonstration workshops that will be held during the construction of the demonstration house.

This project should help us to measure a green building’s impact on the environment by tracking energy consumption, resource consumption, waste production, water use, and accessible community resources available. All options and decisions made during design and construction will be documented, and the performance of the homes will be tracked. Specific costs of materials, products, labor and services utilized will be compared to a standard build in a comparable neighborhood. I'm excited about this project and think it is a great way for the City to partner with expert organizations and take a lead in encouraging the creation of sustainable, energy-efficient homes in all areas of our City and beyond it.

A groundbreaking ceremony at 927 Maple Street will take place Sunday, April 20, at 11:30 am as part of Earth Day. Don't forget to stop by the 3rd Annual Earth Day in the Junction that day from 10 am to 3 pm for numerous activities for adults and kids as well.