Case Study
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Highpoint: 3-Star Community Re-Development Project by Seattle Housing Authority
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Built Green Rating: 3 Star
Community Re-Development
Location: Seattle |
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This month’s featured project is the re-development of the Highpoint Community in West Seattle by the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA). SHA is a nonprofit public developer of low income and affordable housing and is funded in part by the HUD Hope VI program.
At Highpoint, SHA focused on progressive, low-impact land development strategies, including the creation of a green community from land development through building construction as one of its core goals. While some construction in phase one is still underway, it’s safe to say that SHA achieved this goal, and in the process may have achieved the highest scoring Built Green community developed to date.
Highpoint is a mixed income community that will ultimately have 1,600 housing units consisting of subsidized low-income, affordable and market rate housing. Phase two of the community will be under construction over the next few years and will also incorporate the same environmental and social objectives that have made Highpoint one of the most dynamic re-development projects in the Northwest.
The many green features include:
Site and Water Protection
- Demonstration street of pervious pavement
- Pervious sidewalks throughout community
- Preservation of existing trees with educational signage
- Re-development of existing brown-field site
- Use of constructed wetlands for stormwater storage and detention
- Advanced stormwater infiltration strategy
- Use of drought tolerant landscaping, will not need watering
- Amendment of soils to a depth of eight to ten inches
- Mulching of landscape beds with two inches of organic compost
- Preservation of existing site topography
- Sediment control strategies during development
Community Amenities
- City of Seattle Public Library on site
- Planned as mixed-income community with low-income, affordable and market rate housing
- Provision of community facilities
- Preservation of usable open spaces and parks within buildable area
- Pedestrian friendly design
- Focus on community education including interpretive signs, design charettes, community meetings, events and classes
- Construction of on-site transportation shelters and easy access to public transportation
Material Use
- Use of recycled content materials for paving
- Use of recycled content and resource efficient site accessories
- Non-toxic or low-toxic outdoor landscaping lumber used
- Public community-wide recycling collection area
- Requirement of all builders in the community to certify at Built Green 3-Star or better
Indoor Air Quality
- Creation of a focused healthy home street which focuses on indoor air quality for asthmatic residents and will be monitored over time
- Requires builders to certify at a 3-Star level or above on the Built Green Checklist
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