West End Word on U City Project

University City partners with Washington U. to build green homes

University City is moving forward with a plan to build new “green” homes on five vacant lots in the Sutter Heights neighborhood, following the city council’s approval of the “U Home U City” plan Oct. 12. Over the past two years, the city has purchased the formerly county-owned properties on Crest and Bartmer avenues in the northeastern portion of the city with the intent of building homes that achieve the highest level of LEED certification from the U.S. Green Buildings Council. “We really believe in the sustainability movement and think this is the wave of the future,” said Assistant City Manager Petree Eastman. “It’s just a very exciting opportunity for folks who want to live in a very sustainable, little-impact-on -the-earth kind of way.” University City will devote $15,000 to marketing the project to potential buyers. Architectural firm Arcturis and Washington University’s Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts will design the homes, with input from the buyers, and green construction firm BOA Construction will build them. The homes will cost between $120,000 and $200,000, Eastman said, but there will be several incentives available to buyers, including eight years of tax abatements and neighborhood-improvement and energy efficiency tax credits. “Vacant houses and vacant lots start to take their toll on entire neighborhoods,” Eastman said. “We hope with the new green houses that a whole new life is injected into these two blocks.” The city plans to continue buying up vacant lots for green homes if the initial project is successful.

Also Sustainable St. Louis picked up the Post article: http://sustainstl.org/green-houses-aimed-at-weedy-lots-in-university-city/