Sisters home on green tour

On Saturday, September 30 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., innovative homes in Sisters, Terrebonne, Bend, and Sunriver will open their doors and welcome the Central Oregon community to come and explore how they are saving energy and creating healthier living environments for their occupants.

This will be the 17th year that the Green Tour will offer the community a chance to meet homeowners, builders, designers, and solar contractors and see first-hand how they are pushing the envelope on green building. The tour features eight homes packed with energy-saving features, plus a tour of the Neff Road solar farm in Bend. Highlights include a straw-bale home in Terrebonne, 1926 energy retrofit and zero energy ADU in Bend, a high-end, high-performance home in Tetherow, and the Delphinium cottage in the ClearPine cottage development.

ClearPine is a new community in Sisters, constructed on the former Lundgren Mill site. The Cottages are at the heart of the larger planned community of ClearPine. The location was previously a lumber mill for 50 years, the largest employer in the region, but was shuttered in the early 1960s. Later, the remnant buildings burned to the ground, but the site was remediated and certified clean by the DEQ in the early 2000s. In 2015, the Sisters City Council approved the master plan for ClearPine, and construction of the community began.

The small cottages, ranging in size from 1,004 to 1,214 square feet were a conscious decision to create "right-sized" homes to meet a need for greater affordability and use less land and building materials. All homes have a master downstairs to address the needs of those looking to age in place. The two-story homes have two masters allowing for flexibility and potential for multiple generations to live together. Small spaces are as flexible as possible for multiple uses.

In this cottage development, each home will be Earth Advantage certified which means that they will be 20 percent more efficient than code. Energy Star appliances are used and heat pumps provide efficient heating and cooling. Since hot water can account for up to 20 percent of a home's energy use, water runs are central and short, decreasing hot-water waste. Water Sense faucets and toilets are used, further decreasing energy and water demands. Low VOC interior paints and sealants and hard-surfaced floors in high-trafficked areas help to improve the indoor air quality of the home, and a heat-recovery ventilator provides fresh air.

In addition to the efficient and healthy building practices, ClearPine is faithful to preserving as much of the character of the site as possible.

Their plan calls for removing mature trees only when necessary.

Where possible, the best trees are spared by placing a property line at the base of the tree, or in a future building setback.

In cooperation with the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council and Deschutes Land Trust, the developer donates all large trees removed during construction for placement in local streams to help create and restore river habitat for native fish species.

Rather than cutting the trees, the tree is pulled from the ground, root ball and branches intact, trucked and placed in-stream.

"We are thrilled to have the Delphinium cottage on the tour this year because it demonstrates sustainable building practices in so many ways" said Lindsey Hardy, with The Energy Challenge. "From the walkable location and developing on a brownfield site to the commitment to allowing occupants to age in place in a home with great indoor air quality and consistently low utility bills.

"This tour is designed to inspire and educate everyone in our community and empower them to take meaningful action at home and at work," said Hardy. "This year we are really focusing on highlighting all the great things that are already happening in our community. We want to show people that there are lots of people already making a difference in our community - that there are positive solutions right at our fingertips - and encourage them to find out about more ways they can save energy."

View a full listing of sites, features and addresses at theenergychallenge.org/tour.