A Tampa Bay area developer is the first to sign on with the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s new, comprehensive water conservation program for new home construction, Florida Water Star (FWSG).
FWSG is a voluntary certification program for builders. It encourages water efficiency in household appliances, plumbing fixtures, irrigation systems and landscapes, as well as water quality benefits from best management practices in landscapes.
Carl Krave, president of Pocket Neighborhoods, Inc., is building Glencairn Cottages in Dunedin. The community will include 14 environmentally friendly homes on 1.75 acres of land near downtown Dunedin. Pocket Neighborhoods, Inc. specializes in small communities and is committed to conserving water and reducing the consumption of energy while creating comfortable homes.
Some of the features that make Glencairn a FWSG-certified development include low-flow plumbing fixtures, high-efficiency toilets and ENERGY STAR® appliances. For example, a tankless water heater is installed outside the home on the side of the building where all of the plumbing is located. Tankless water heaters conserve resources because they heat water on demand. Compared to traditional tank water heaters, tankless water heaters produce an endless supply of hot water at up to 40 percent energy savings and reduce the risk of flooding.
In addition, Krave installed low-flow showerheads and went beyond the requirement of installing low-flow toilets by choosing to install dual flush toilets. Dual flush toilets have two settings, one for liquids and one for solids, which conserve even more water than high-efficiency toilets.
The development will also feature a limited irrigation system and low-maintenance, Florida-friendly landscaping. The irrigation system will use reclaimed water and drip irrigation. The development will only have irrigation in the pedestrian-only center common area.
Another great landscaping feature is the traditional shell and rock used for the drive that runs behind the homes. Using this material instead of paving the drive allows rain to seep into the soil, reducing stormwater runoff.
In addition to meeting the FWSG criteria, Krave’s project is also the Tampa Bay area’s first development certified by the Florida Green Building Coalition. Krave says the process of becoming certified by the Florida Green Building Coalition took several years.
“This project has been in the works for about five years,” said Krave.
Krave originally planned to build upscale townhomes on the site but redesigned the project when the market changed in 2006.
“The plan changed from building 16 townhomes to 14 individual environmentally friendly homes. Decreasing the number of units also allowed us to increase the green space by 30 percent,” said Krave. “Including energy and water efficiency in the design just made sense,” said Krave.
And while the Dunedin neighborhood may be the first to go gold, developers in Bartow, Brooksville, Englewood and Lakeland are already working on becoming FWSG certified.
“New green energy efficient homes are popular in Florida,” said Susan Douglas, FWSG certification coordinator. “This program will help builders and landscape and irrigation professionals conserve water resources and meet the needs of these new buyers.”
For more information on how to become a certified FWSG community, please contact Susan Douglas at (352) 796-7211, ext. 4752.