STAKEHOLDER OVERVIEW
With the wide range of solutions we are proposing, there are numerous stakeholders involved with making this process successful. All will play a significant role in making biophilic design a priority across the built environment in the City of Denver and the more community involvement through social, economic, and environmental sectors will ultimately produce a more resilient city.
STAKEHOLDER OVERVIEW
With the wide range of solutions we are proposing, there are numerous stakeholders involved with making this process successful. All will play a significant role in making biophilic design a priority across the built environment in the City of Denver and the more community involvement through social, economic, and environmental sectors will ultimately produce a more resilient city.
STAKEHOLDER OVERVIEW
With the wide range of solutions we are proposing, there are numerous stakeholders involved with making this process successful. All will play a significant role in making biophilic design a priority across the built environment in the City of Denver and the more community involvement through social, economic, and environmental sectors will ultimately produce a more resilient city.
STAKEHOLDER OVERVIEW
With the wide range of solutions we are proposing, there are numerous stakeholders involved with making this process successful. All will play a significant role in making biophilic design a priority across the built environment in the City of Denver and the more community involvement through social, economic, and environmental sectors will ultimately produce a more resilient city.
eCONOMIC
IMPACTS
Environmentally responsible building benefits not only the environment but tenants and homeowners as well. By improving the efficiency with which these buildings operate, we reduce utility bills, making housing more affordable for a greater portion of the population. By improving the durability of these buildings, we extend lives and reduce the costs of keeping viable, safe, and healthy living spaces. And by designing these buildings to safeguard the health of their occupants, we improve the quality of life for those people with least access to quality healthcare, while also improving productivity and creativity in the people that work in offices designed with these principals.
Description of System
Affordable housing will continue to be a growing problem in the U.S., with major cities playing catch-up in an undersaturated market. More than half a million people were homeless in 2019. The National Low-Income Housing Coalition has identified a gap of nearly 7.4 million homes that are needed for affordable housing.
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Green and biophilic building backs the perspective that people with low income could be the most benefited from its use, and the argument makes sense when calculating something as important and simple as the cost of living and rent. Low VOC paint, low-flush toilets, and other energy efficiencies pay dividends over time. Ultimately, QAP requirements (state funding requirements) must be earned to develop most affordable housing projects today.
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Denver is undergoing an unprecedented population and building boom that is attracting residents and businesses from major cities along both coasts. While prices continue to increase, the disparity can already be seen. More than one-third of Denver families are already cost burdened (30% of income goes towards housing). As it stands, the city would need around 15,000 more affordable units. Ultimately, the city is experiencing an affordable housing crisis, with little plan moving forward. This does not necessarily guarantee the use of green technology and often just requires bare-minimum alternatives to green. QAP requirements differ by state, but in general ask very little of sustainability, creating a systemic problem. Some day in the near future, Biophilic Design practice standards will be included in LEED, Green Building, and city/state requirements.
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Modern green building strategies backed by the philosophy and practice of BD, can become a solution. There are many technique’s today that lead to cost savings and extend the life of building, with an actual much lower initial cost than is often interpreted. These include resource prevention, healthy homes, energy-efficient practices, within low-income properties.
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**Waste reduction: in construction/demolition, open dumping/mismanagement, reusing/conserving water. Grey water, low-flow toilets, showers, sinks.
**Energy savings: efficient HVAC systems, increased natural lighting, insulated windows, solar, green roofs.
**Efficient construction: modular building (prefabricated modules, takes less time, prevents weather disruption), up to 50% less time, contained/streamlined construction, all waste is recyclable, buildings can be disassembled and used elsewhere, cuts down embodied energy
**Better Locations: located close to public transportation
**Cost-efficient materials: alternatives to toxic, costly materials, LEED or Green Globes standards, recycled metal/wood, reuse from demo.
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Creating better communities means paying attention to the needs of those who occupy those spaces. Builders are continually working to develop green initiatives that provide both individual and community-wide benefits. More families will find homes in eco-approved housing through sustainable innovations in the construction industry.
Stakeholder Analysis
Green building affects just about every individual in our communities, however some may be impacted much more than others. Following the trend of affordable housing, those who are cost-burdened or homeless are significant stakeholders in terms of their access to a healthy living environment and access to amenities such as clean water.
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In addition, the residents of Denver are taxpayers and therefore play a role in decision making. Ballot issues can center around affordable housing, green building and Biophilic Design. There needs to be educational programs community outreach from knowledgeable professionals to bring this awareness to the public. The consumers and investors are no doubt the drivers of demand for how buildings are built.
There are also economic incentives for developers to develop innovative buildings that are more desirable for tenants. Developing a high-quality building with green and Biophilic features will lead to higher-quality tenants and a more profitable lifespan with less necessary maintenance. As developers and builders learn to quantify the ROI of building with Biophilic Design, it will become more apparent just how key it will be in the regenerative building processes of the future.
Current Approaches
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In booming economies, it seems easier to hire a developer to build new single family and multi family homes. But by revamping an old apartment building to make it more energy efficient with durable materials and sustainable methods of building, it creates a new wave of green affordable housing. The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University’s 2016 State of the Nation’s Housing report states that the number of cost-burdened renters pay more than 30% of their income on housing. The USGBC has set in place guiding principles:
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Ensure accountability throughout the building process and beyond
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Provide education to promote environmental stewardship
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Encourage participation in the planning process
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Focus on affordability and total value
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Leverage green building standards and rewards for developers
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Denver is at a pivotal point, where despite low unemployment rates, high workforce participation, and economic growth, housing costs are growing at such a fast pace. As a result incomes are not keeping up. Housing an Inclusive Denver outlines strategies to help preserve strong diverse housing options affordable to all Denver residents. This plan illustrates core fundamental values and goals, however what it fails to consider is the opportunity we have to preserve and renovate abandoned or high energy consuming spaces by using more sustainable materials and energy efficient substitutes as a way of building.
This is a chart of the average savings of green building. If we can use this and an incentive to drive the housing market cost down it would make residences more affordable.
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