USGBC Natural Talent Design Competition 2009 - Chicago Chapter

COMPETITON CHALLENGE
The USGBC Chicago Chapter will be partnering with the Habitat for Humanity of McHenry County, a Habitat for Humanity affiliate, to collaborate on a prototypical affordable green home in a suburban location. This home will be designed to a LEED for Homes Certified level or better while keeping in mind the budget requirements. This home will emphasize the need for affordable sustainable communities that keep residents and revenue within the community. This partnership will also showcase the USGBC Chicago’s commitment to social equity, as competition participants and community members will benefit from increased exposure to the benefits of green building practices.

The home will be approximately 1,200SF and accessible to a physically disabled person. This one story home will be a minimum of three bedrooms, one full bath, and include a two car garage. The preliminary budget for the completed home is $150,000.

There is a high probability of the winning project to be realized. After the completion of the competition, Habitat for Humanity of McHenry County will work with the winner, a contractor, and licensed professionals as needed to evaluate the budget and design, and adapt the designed prototype to a specific site location.

As part of the education of the competition participants, the Chicago Chapter Residential Green Building Committee will offer a LEED for Homes seminar for all competition participants in 2009.

PROJECT CONTEXT & LOCATION
The project is to be a prototype that is capable of adapting to many sites in McHenry County. McHenry is primarily a suburban context and is part of the Chicago metropolitan area.
The typical McHenry County lot is approximately 66’ x 132’, and for the design competition all projects should use this lot size. Additionally, McHenry County typically requires a minimum 25’ front and rear setback and a 15’ aggregate setback for the sides, with each side being no smaller than 6’ (6’ & 9’ are typical). Projects should adhere to setback requirements. Please see the attached drawing for a graphic representation of the site dimensions and required setbacks.

Given the unspecified site location and context for the prototype, certain credits are assumed to be achievable or unachievable for the project. Please see the attached guidance for further detail.

Brief (PDF)