Northern California Cohousing

Nevada City, CA Feb. 22, 2008 - The National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) has announced that McCamant & Durrett Architects are the recipients of the Silver 2008 Energy Value Housing Award for their Nevada City Cohousing project. The NAHB searches for the best in the country for the top honors in energy-efficiency, design, and innovation.

Katie McCamant, an architect, author, and developer, lives in the community she helped create. McCamant explains, "I love our beautiful, light filled, energy-efficient home. Our energy bill last year totaled minus $37.00. What is key for me is to create walkable communities where people use less of the earth's resources while living a better quality of life. This really is the good life."

Nevada City Cohousing consists of 34 private homes ranging in size from two-bedroom flats to four-bedroom townhouses (860 to 1,680 sf) on the 10-acre site. Durrett drew inspiration for his design from the rich tradition of Motherlode and Victorian architecture, having grown up in the Sierra foothills. 

The homes are clustered around a "Common House" with facilities for children, cooking, dining, lounging, laundry, and guests. There is also a swimming pool, a community vegetable garden, and a workshop - 4,000 square feet of common facilities. The six acres on the south side of the property will remain undeveloped, and residents of the community enjoy spending time in their "back six."

The NAHB Judges were impressed by the many energy efficient features at Nevada City Cohousing including: active and passive solar heating and cooling systems, large Low E2 dual paned windows that let in a maximum of natural light, additional insulation and radiant barriers creating a "tight energy efficient envelope." The design also incorporated site and building orientation, high quality construction and materials efficiency, responsible resource use, water retention for the extensive use of indigenous landscape planting, as well as healthy home and indoor air quality products.