photography by Scott Womack |
9011 Groveland Dr.
Little Forest Hills never had such a green spring. Thanks to Alan Hoffmann, local eco-savvy builder, this neighborhood just became home to Dallas’ first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified house. The contemporary, mission-style residence is on track for Platinum certification, an honor currently bestowed upon only five or six ultra high-performance green homes in the country. Translated: These cool digs run on practically no energy and are constructed with the greatest possible sensitivity to the environment, per the U.S. Green Building Council’s new rating system.
The home’s primo LEED score is attributed to factors such as negligible summer energy bills (under $250 a month based on a comparable building), a 500-gallon rainwater collection tank, windows and shading maximizing passive solar potential, ICF (insulated concrete forms) walls, a gas-fired combustion furnace that operates at 96 percent efficiency, and thermal break windows.
Hoffmann, who says the environmental attributes and design prompted a quick sale of the 2800-square-foot “spec” home, has several more like it already in the works.