'Green' Great Hill Community Cottages Underway In Guilford

GUILFORD, CT — In October it was virtual, now it’s real.

Green Planet Company has its first house underway, out of 10 total, in the up-and-coming Great Hill Community Cottages neighborhood.

While construction on this house is still underway at 374 State St. in Guilford, the company said it’s “very excited to share our progress thus far.”

As Patch reported last fall, once completed, the 10 affordable and sustainably-designed cottage homes being developed by the non-profit Green Planet Company will produce as much energy as they consume saving hundreds of dollars in annual utility expenses to the homeowners who inhabit them, according to Green Planet's Christopher Widmer.

The new development community on a 12-acre lot located a half mile from the town center at 376 State St., will feature 1,400 – 1,700 square foot cottages designed to meet the federal Department of Energy’s 'Net Zero Energy Ready' program standards which require that the homes have high thermal insulation values in an air-tight envelope with high efficiency lighting, appliances and mechanical systems including fresh air ventilation.

“At Green Planet Company, we are committed to affordable and sustainably designed housing, and we take this mission into account when designing our homes,” a news release from the company reads.

“I’m proud to live in a community that embraces social and economic diversity,”Widmer said. “This project provides sustainable homeownership to working families who want to live in Guilford but can’t afford to.”

First Selectman Matt Hoey posted to Facebook about the project coming to fruition.

"We are thrilled to see this project moving forward," he wrote. "Thank you to Chris Widmer and his team for the commitment to sustainable and affordable housing within our community."

The cottages will comply with DOE Zero Energy Ready standards, “high-performance homes built so energy efficient, that all or most annual energy consumption can be offset with renewable energy.”

The cottage and site design utilize the "scenic wooded setting with as light a footprint as possible including night sky-friendly lighting, a gravel drive and timber bridge stream crossing."

The existing pond there will be restored to provide a healthy habitat for birds and aquatic life and a common garden and screened pavilion built from site harvested timber is also planned.
Green and sustainable design features include a gravel driveway system with stormwater storage and lower heat island effect, site design with limited site disturbance – clustered dwellings with shared common elements, shallow frost protected foundation system, walking paths to State Street and access to public transportation, cottages 100 feet away from wetlands, night sky friendly exterior lighting design, stormwater management measures, preservation of existing trees in site planning, timber harvesting of trees from site and pond restoration and bridged stream crossing.

The cottages will have "small, efficient design," and prefabricated building elements including SIP walls and roof, floor framing.

Cottages will range from $180,000 to $260,000

The cottage homes will be marketed and sold to families at 80 to 100 percent of the area median income. Sales prices of the cottage units will range from $180,000 to $260,000 depending on income and family size with the total of mortgage principal and interest, taxes, insurance and HOA fees not to exceed 30 percent of the household income.

Funding for the $4 million dollar project is coming primarily from Capital for Change’s PATH program through the state department of housing. Wilder said both have also provided pre-development and acquisition loans. Additional funding sources will include NAA tax credits, STEAP funds, town infrastructure funds and the Federal Home Loan Bank HOW program.
Green Planet Company is collaborating with the Homeownership Center of Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven to provide ownership structure, marketing and homebuyer training.

This project was made possible through the generous funding of several contributors, including Capital for Change, State of Connecticut Department of Housing, Southern Connecticut Gas, Eversource, Avangrid Inc. and the town of Guilford.