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Intervale Green: Affordable, Sustainable, & Wired in the Bronx

July 02, 2008  |  from greenbuildingsNYC

Intervale Green is a $45 million, 127-unit affordable housing development under construction in the Morrisania section of the Bronx. The project should open up sometime this fall and is accepting applications through August 3 (see link below). Project sponsor Women’s Housing & Economic Development Corporation teamed with energy consultant Steven Winter Associates to reduce the building’s expected energy costs by 35 percent through numerous sustainable design elements, including the installation of EnergyStar appliances and light fixtures.

Other green design features include two different green roofs, low-e windows, and non-toxic paints and sealants- important because the Morrisania neighborhood holds the unfortunate distinction of the highest asthma rate in the Bronx. Intervale Green sits just two blocks from the 2 and 5 trains and will also offer wheatboard kitchen countertops and reycled-content flooring. Rents will range from $782 per month for a one bedroom to $1090 for a three bedroom. Each of the units comes wired with internet access and a free computer. WHEDC president Nancy Biberman told the Daily News that “[t]he digital divide is something that keeps kids with low incomes at a disadvantage. We really want the development to have an impact on everything around it.”

The project does not appear to be seeking a LEED rating, but obtained funding from the Enterprise Foundation (which requires low-income project applications to comply with its Green Communities Criteria). Other funding came from NYSERDA and the Home Depot Foundation. Details about other members of the project team (including the architect and other design consultants) do not appear available.

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Filed: Green-Construction