The Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was shut down in 1974 due to Department of Defense budget cuts, but today the Hunters Point Redevelopment Team (HPRT) is using the shipyard to rejuvenate the neighborhood. The HPRT plans to turn the 500-acre space, located on the San Francisco Bay, into the Hunters Point Shipyard development, a mixed-use community that will include commercial sections, facilities for the local community of artists, educational space, and approximately 1,600 homes. What’s more, the HPRT drew up an agreement that includes the performance goal of reducing energy use for the entire project by 40% with respect to the Building America Benchmark.
This goal will be reached by employing a combination of energy efficient practices and technologies, and by incorporating renewable energy sources into the homes. The BIRA Building America (BA) team provided technical support and recommended a number of energy-efficient measures to be included in the new homes. These recommendations included a sealed, unvented attic as part of the improved insulation; high-performance windows with low emissivity glazing; hydronic space heating; energy-efficient fluorescent lighting; and a combination of gas-powered and Energy Star appliances. In addition, the BA team suggested a 1.2 kW photovoltaic (PV) system in order to further reduce electricity needs.
The energy-efficient upgrades will result in a 43% reduction in gas usage and an 81% reduction in electricity when compared against 2001 California energy efficiency standards. The increase in performance will reduce the new Hunters Point community’s peak demand for electricity during the summer and winter months.
These improvements will increase the price of the homes, but the additional expenses can be included in an energy-efficient mortgage such as the one offered by ComfortWise. ComfortWise is supported by The Fannie Mae Foundation and offers mortgages with the projected monthly utility savings factored into the monthly payments. In order to keep the homes affordable, Lennar/BVHP, the primary builder/developer, is offering a similar program through Universal American Mortgage Company (UAMC). They also provide homeownership counseling services by the San Francisco Housing Development Corporation (SFHDC).
Development is underway at the Hunters Point Shipyard; construction began early in 2006. Moreover, the HPRT and the city of San Francisco hope that the Hunters Point Shipyard development will be an example to the surrounding community. As Assistant General Manager of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Ed Smelnoff puts it, "The redevelopment of the Shipyard can become a model for other new development projects in the Bay Area." With any luck, this may be the beginning of a new attitude toward building homes in San Francisco.
This information is provided by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Building America program. Building America is a private/public partnership that develops energy solutions for new and existing homes. The Building America program combines the knowledge and resources of industry leaders with the DOE’s technical capabilities. Together, they act as a catalyst for change in the home-building industry.
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