They can tell you how far their homes need to be spaced apart to capture the optimal sun angle to save a third of annual energy costs through window positioning alone. They can tell you at any moment the level of carbon dioxide trapped in their super-efficient, air-tight homes down to the parts per million, and import more fresh air with the click of a button.
The developer of the first batch of net-zero homes, Norbert Klebl, had to sell the remainder of the planned Geos neighborhood along Ralston Creek to settle a divorce. The developer and builder of the next phase of homes say they will honor many of the environmentally-friendly net-zero designs carried out by Klebl and his fellow first-phase residents. But they will also bring in traditional natural gas lines for stoves, hot water heaters and barbecues. The current residents are furious at this perceived breach of their careful community plan, and are appealing to local and state politicians to stop what they see as an assault on their principles and a grand experiment to demonstrate healthier communities.
They note, for example, that cities including Denver plan to block natural gas connections in new home construction in just over two years from now. Why, they ask, should Arvada let the fossil fuel mentality get baked into their neighborhood when climate rules will change before the new homes are even done? Only his small corner of the layout is finished so far. But we need to accelerate it. The struggle for fans of the Geos model has been crossing from the technical world to the legal and political realms.
A dozen state legislators wrote to the next-phase developer, Chad Ellington of Peak Development Group, to ask the company to reconsider adding gas lines to the plans. Ellington, who did not respond to email requests for an update, has told the current residents in emails that builders will stick with net-zero designs but the new homes are not marketable without a gas option. Arvada Democratic Rep. The current Geos residents have tried Arvada City Council, too, with no better luck.
Klebl and Chang say the first phase was built with the blessing and great interest of a more welcoming city leadership, which was then voted out. Environment-friendly features will include highly efficient furnaces and tankless water heaters, blown-in insulation, windows that let in light but not too much summer heat, drought-tolerant landscaping, electric vehicle chargers, and solar panels that can send extra electricity out onto the grid, according to Dream Finders.
