Ann Wilde

If you’ve ever planted a garden, or even one pumpkin seed, you know the excitement of seeing those first sprouts emerge. So imagine thousands of plants and flowers surfacing, expertly orchestrated to grow and bloom spring through fall to bring function and beauty to the Green & Main site. The Green & Main Pilot Project landscaping was installed this past October, so you can count on a burst of fresh greenery and flowers to greet spring.

Beginning the Installation Process

Just in the nick of time, the Green & Main site was ready for the grass and flower plugs to be installed. Under the design guidance of Zach Heitzman of Green Bean Landscapes in Ankeny, the task of strategically positioning the plants to support the site’s environmental and aesthetic goals began.

Blue Lobelia

I talked to Zach on a chilly December day as he worked in his Ankeny office designing Green Bean’s landscaping projects for next spring.

“Really, the basic concept of the Green & Main’s landscaping had been sketched out for a long, long time by the Green & Main team” stated Zach. “My role was to incorporate landscaping into the site that would accommodate their stormwater management goals, including building a bioswale, meeting the LEED and SITES (the Sustainable Sites Initiative) requirements, and offering an aesthetically pleasing experience as well. It was all about creating the details around the vision.”

“Of course, the final design also had to be documented for the City of Des Moines’ approval to ensure it complied with their guidelines regarding ground elevation, easements and pavements,” concluded Zach.

Butterfly Milkweed

Contaminated Soil Amended to Make Ready for Our Plants

Before a single seed was planted, the soil at the site needed to be amended.

“Since the ground had been used for many, many purposes over a hundred or so years,” Zach noted, “we assumed that it would be contaminated with impurities. So the first step was to amend the soil. As required by SITES, we documented the before-and-after health of the soil. Prior to amending it, we took samples of the existing soil and sent it to the USDA where they evaluate the nutrients, the permeability and the organic matter. Then we sent a sample of the amended soil. We also sent samples to Iowa State to test the organic matter. Before-and-after test results have yet to come back.”

The method used by Zach for amending the soil was one that was recommended by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. This method included using a mini excavator to tear up 24 inches of the site’s topsoil to make it less compacted. Prior to this, two inches of compost were placed on top of the ground in order to be incorporated into the existing soil. The affect is a significant increase of organic matter and nutrients in the soil. Also, by making the soil more permeable and nutrient-rich, we now have soil that absorbs stormwater much more aggressively.

The compost used on the Green & Main site was acquired from Des Moines Metro Waste Authority and consists of leaves, sticks, and grass clippings that were collected from Des Moines residents and businesses.

Prairie Aster

How SITES and LEED Requirements Affect the Landscaping Design

SITES and LEEDs requirements apply to the Green & Main landscaping design primarily in the areas of increased energy efficiency, water conservation and stormwater management.

Energy efficiency.

Zach designed the strategic placement of shade trees in the landscaping in order to decrease the heat inside the building. According to the EPA, trees and vegetation lower surface and air temperatures by providing shade as well as through evapotranspiration, the process of transporting water into the atmosphere. Shaded surfaces, for example, may be 20–45°F cooler than the peak temperatures of unshaded materials, which then decreases demand for air conditioning.

Water conservation.

Using plants that are more adaptive to our climate will thrive without a lot of extra fertilizing and watering. Once these types of plants are well established, they are pretty self-sufficient.

Stormwater management.

The type of vegetation incorporated in the Green & Main landscaping was selected specifically for its ability to absorb more water via root systems and soil. Vegetation reduces runoff and improves water quality by absorbing and filtering rainwater.

Prairie Blazingstar

A small bioswale was also built by Zach Heitzman to affect stormwater management goals. “This was one of my more challenging projects at the Green & Main site,” added Zach. “Essentially I had to create the bioswale by hand. It was too hard to bring in machinery to dig and form the bioswale, so I came in with a rake, shovel and wheelbarrow. More challenging was keeping the construction crew away from it! Of course, there were a lot of people on site and once we graded and shaped the bioswale, we couldn’t have people walking over it.”

“Overall, I’d say that the vegetation on the site is more functional than aesthetic,” concludes Zach. “[But] it will definitely be beautiful, from spring through the fall.”

Kelly Hayes of Allendan Seed…and Her Forbs

Allendan Seed of Winterset is one of the largest producers of native prairie grass and wildflower seeds in the United States. Allendan Seed produces over 250 species of native grass and wildflowers. Dan and Sonia Allen began farming conventional row crops in 1976. Today they are still a family operation. Their four children migrated home to farm upon graduating from Iowa State University.

Prairie Dropseed

Daughter Kelly Allen Hayes is Allandan’s production manager. She oversees the greenhouses and fields, planting about two million seeds a year, overseeing all production from plugs to harvest on the company’s 40 acres.

“Forbs” are technically defined as herbaceous flowering plants, wildflowers being a type of forb. Kelly Hayes can assure us thousands of these little beauties will poke up through the ground at the Green & Main site come next spring.

“Once I had become familiar with the Green & Main site itself and the objectives of the initiative, I chose over 30 species of plants, grasses and forbs to incorporate into the landscaping,” said Kelly. “I focused on species with root systems that would be beneficial to the ecosystem, aiding with stormwater absorption and water conservation. But I also added some visually appealing colors, heights and textures to the site that will appear from spring to fall.”

Some of the species planted by Kelly are prairie violets, prairie smoke, prairie blazingstar, prairie dropseed, little bluestem, blue lobelia, rattlesnake master, New England aster and silky aster. Butterfly milkweed was placed all along the bioswale. The plants and flowers range from four-inches to seven-feet tall. “I also incorporated some mountain mint into the landscape,” continued Kelly. “Mountain mint really aids in erosion control because it forms runners, essentially a type of living carpet after a few years of growth.”

Prairie Smoke

Personal Touches to the Landscaping

The designer’s creativity plays a part in any landscaping project, and Zach Heitzman’s creative contribution to the site can be found in every foot of the landscaping. However, in talking with him, he says his most significant personal contribution to the design is in the limestone incorporated into the landscaping.

“One of my favorite parts of operating my own business is that I can create my own designs in some of the detailed elements,” explained Zach. “The limestone pieces that I worked with were acquired from an Anamosa quarry – all limestone in Iowa comes from the Anamosa area – and they are a rich cream color that really complements the site. The pieces of limestone are raw and broken, so I created natural-looking outcroppings among the plants and placed some of the stone in an informal path that suggests native limestone outcroppings.

Prairie Violet

“I’m proud of that stonework on the site,” continued Zach. “But I’m mostly proud of how we all worked together to make the final landscaping a success. We got it done to specifications within a very tight timeframe. Everyone really contributed their talents to the project and that collaboration resulted in success”

Asked what he would do differently if he had more space to work with, Zach responded that he’d love to have the additional space to incorporate more educational opportunities. “I would really like for people to be able to walk through guided pathways with signage explaining the plant species and how they specifically benefit the environment.  I would use the very same technologies that I used on the Green & Main site; I’d just make it a more dramatic experience for visitors.”

A big “thank you” to both Zach and Kelly for the colorful flowers and vegetation coming up next spring. I, for one, am looking forward to it.

–Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities.

Ann Wilde

The construction crew at the Green & Main site enjoyed an extended summer, with temperatures in early October ranging into the 80’s with clear skies. This was an unexpected and much appreciated delay to our typical Iowa autumn. Soon it will be time to batten down the hatches and get ready for sub-zero temperatures when the crew will focus on the interior of the building.

Here’s what they’ve been up to…

Green Roof

Green & Main’s vegetative or green roof was installed on the spectacularly warm day of October 4, provided and delivered by Rooftop Sedums of Davenport, Iowa and installed by Silent Rivers’ staff.

Installation of the rubber membrane.

In preparation for the arrival of over 300 trays of sedum for the green roof, Academy Roofing first installed a membrane to serve as a protective layer between the actual roofing materials and the trays of live plant material, primarily sedum in this case. This membrane, known as a sacrificial membrane, is made of EPDM rubber, a type of synthetic rubber. EPDM roofing does not pollute run-off rainwater, and is an inert material, which has limited environmental impact during its manufacturing process in comparison to other membranes. Additionally, black EPDM is more cost effective as compared to a more reflective white, or TPO, membrane when used with a vegetative roof.

Tim Kepner of Silent Rivers installing the sedum.

Geothermal Energy System

Installing a geothermal energy system is a multi-step process that has taken shape at the Green & Main Pilot Project site over a period of months.

Several critical phases of a geothermal project need to be identified at the onset to assist in the successful installation and operation of the geothermal system. Some of the major phases are:

Loops of tubing.

• Drilling the actual wells, as well as the preparation needed to the soil/grounds to accommodate the loops of tubing which act as supply and recovery lines for the closed system.

• Excavation of the site around the well field, including the removal of the perimeters of a building foundation discovered buried underground, a 500-gallon steam tank and two cisterns.
  

  Looping for the geothermal well system.

• Connecting the well field of lateral supply and return lines to the building, requiring multiple assessments and adjustments. Research and implementation occurred regarding the addition of crushed glass and sand as backfill material, as well as sub-surface meters that will track temperature changes not only in the soil and fill, but also to measure the therms in the supply and return lines. Much of this research was initiated by the SWAP (Solid Waste Alternatives Program) grant in collaboration with the geothermal well installers and engineers, Barker Lemar.
  

  Drilling the well field.

• Backfill, preparation of the site and attention to effectively controlling soil by packing and rolling was essential in order to be ready for installation of the permeable pavers.

• Connecting the well field loops to the mechanical system is yet to occur. This will be accomplished later in the winter.

Geothermal System Gets Buried at Green & Main

For some months, two ends of the geothermal “tubes” have been visibly sticking above ground level at the Green & Main construction site. These were actually part of hundreds of feet of high-density polyethylene pipe, known as “loop”. This continuous system will circulate water through the loop and into the geothermal units, thus providing the geothermal energy system to the building through its underground foundation wall.

Green & Main’s geothermal energy system includes 11 vertical wells that were drilled 300-feet below the surface. After the wells were drilled, the initial tubes were installed to reach above the ground. Then, by exposing the ground about seven feet around the tubes and below the finished grade, the tubes were connected to form the system.

Bottles found while unearthing soil for the geothermal system.

On a historical note, dozens of glass bottles and containers were found during the excavation of the well field site. The bottles have been saved for future showing as evidence of lives past.

Roof on the Building Addition

The addition to the lower and main level of the Green & Main Pilot Project extends out at the back side of the building, pointing to the east. The roof of this addition will someday be the walk-out patio of the upper-level apartment. Once this roof has been completed, it will include additional vegetative roof plants and a decking system, providing an outdoor sanctuary for future second floor residents.

Sedum on the addition’s roof.

Both the roofing system on the main building and the addition will be an aesthetic bridge, creating a connection between the building and the surrounding site through the installation of unique water collection systems that accentuate this relationship.

Landscaping and Stormwater Management on the Grounds

Soil Amendments

The current soil of the Green & Main Pilot Project obviously has been altered in the century or so since it was untouched prairie grasses. To nurture the native plants in Green & Main’s landscaping, the soil was amended, incorporating more organic material into the existing soil. This will help restore the soil back to a more pre-settlement condition and it will help to absorb more water, thus making it more conducive to healthy landscaping. Similarly, combined with the native plants, the site will improve its capacity for ecological regeneration while serving as a pilot project for the Sustainable SITES Initiative.

Soil staging and layering.

Planting of the Site

The extensive native landscaping planned for Green & Main was completed by mid-October. The plants were provided by Allendan Seeds, who grew them from seed – as featured on WHO TV-13 – and installed by Greenbean Landscapes. In order to protect the site and avoid compaction of the amended soils, all construction equipment traffic was relegated to the city right of way and the six-foot perimeter around the building. This will allow the plants to establish themselves and ensure the porosity in the soils that will increase water infiltration and root development.

Plantings on site.

Plantings include such species as:  prairie dropseed, big bluestem, blue grama, buffalograss, little bluestem, switchgrass and pale coneflower. Indigenous plants are especially beneficial as their root structures assist with water infiltration and the cooling of ground water.  Developing the landscaping to provide a natural flow of rainwater was essential to our landscaping. As a result, rainwater will be guided through a bio-swale into the site’s rain garden to nourish the native plants.

Permeable Pavers

Paver bed for the parking lot.

Permeable pavers were placed over the geothermal well field at the end of the week of October 10. After the individual wells were connected below grade, the arduous task of filling a ten -foot deep basin with clean clay and layering the compaction to ensure a sound base for the pavers took place. Silent Rivers’ staff, along with Ron Gomis, worked through a long weekend to build the complex framework necessary to allow variables in grade for parking, as well as allowing easy access to the building. Hardscape Solutions of Iowa finalized these efforts by bringing its crew to construct the layers of gravel that will control water drainage from the Borgert Granite Paver system, the permeable parking system used in order to meet our stormwater management objectives.

Installation of pavers.

Rain Harvesting

While waiting for the completion of roofs over the carport and entry walkway, the H20 Rainwater Harvesting System was initiated on the concrete wall constructed between the parking area and the landscaping. The H20 HOG water tanks were installed and quietly await the future installation of the gutter system to highlight the ability to contain and reuse stormwater as a positive strategy for water conservation.

H2OG water tanks installed.

Many Thanks are Offered

During the final days of the installation as these various disciplines and projects merged together, many people visited the site to watch our progress. Key staff from Polk County Soil and Water Conservation and Iowa Department of Agriculture visited the site and helped hone installation details to ensure the project design and implementation were effectively produced, providing a model opportunity for urban non-point stormwater management systems. We are very grateful for their encouragement of the process.

Along with the many businesses and people who contributed labor, goods and services, the site was supported by Heartland RC&D, REAP, HRDP, IDALS, DNR, Metro Waste Authority, Iowa Waste Exchange, NRCS, USDA, City of Des Moines, NRBBOG, Polk County Soil and Water Conservation, Iowa State University CBER, IAMU and Growing Green Communities.

-Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities.

• Direct other downspouts away from pavement and toward grassy, mulched or planted areas. You can attach a perforated plastic “French drain” pipe and bury it in order to cross a stretch of lawn with the drainage. If you don’t have gutters, dig a 3-inch to six-inch deep infiltration trench under the drip line and fill it with gravel to decrease erosion as well as standing water.

• Create a residential rain garden. A rain garden is a shallow depression in the ground that captures run-off from your driveway or roof and allows it to soak into the ground. Overflow from a rain barrel can be directed to rain gardens.

• Use a broom instead of a hose to remove plant debris and soil from your driveway.

• Reduce the size of impervious paved driveways, walkways, parking areas and patios. As repairs are needed to parking areas and walking paths, consider using permeable paving such as interlocking pavers or gravel.

• Instead of piping stormwater to a roadside ditch, install bio-swales to carry stormwater run-off. Many bio-swales are simply wide, shallow, vegetated depressions that are gently sloped and directed toward areas that can easily stand an influx of water; they are really nothing more than a grass-lined ditch.

• Design new construction to allow water to soak in to the ground. Decks should be built with gaps between the boards and bricks, and concrete lattice pavers or stones should be used for paved areas. If you’re building a new building, consider constructing a green roof.

– Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities.

Ann Wilde

One of the most prevalent topics during the construction of the Green & Main Pilot Project has been our plans for stormwater management. What will be most effective in dealing with rain water and snowmelt (sometimes simultaneously) at the site? How will we design the vegetative roof, the landscaping and paving materials in order to manage the amount of stormwater run-off?

Stormwater Run-off. What’s the Big Deal?

In an undeveloped site such as a forest, stormwater is off-set by the processes of infiltration into natural surfaces, as well as from evaporation. Essentially, when land is left in its natural state, the majority of rainfall soaks into the ground, flows slowly underground, is filtered by natural processes, and eventually feeds streams, lakes and underground aquifers.

Buffalo grass is a short grass with a deep root structure. It is low maintenance requiring minimal mowing and is a water-conserving grass perfect for drought control.

According to the EPA, in this type of natural environment, less than 1% of stormwater leaves the site in the form of runoff.

To begin, stormwater run-off is what occurs when rain or snowmelt flows over land, or other impervious surfaces, and is not absorbed into the ground. As the run-off flows over the various surfaces, such as paved streets, parking lots and building rooftops, it accumulates debris, chemicals, sediment or other pollutants that adversely affect the quality of the run-off water if it remains untreated. As much as 20-30% of stormwater can run off a developed site if there are no steps taken to direct or gather it.

Little Bluestem, or beard grass, is a North American prairie grass.

So what’s the big deal? When stormwater run-off is not addressed, it can cause dramatic effects in the functioning and water quality of a planned watershed. As run-off travels overland, it can erode soils, change stream patterns and cause flooding. In addition to those mentioned above, run-off can also pick up additional pollutants such as sediments, toxic metal particles, pesticides and fertilizers, oil and grease, pathogens, excess nutrients and trash. Polluted run-off, if not diverted, has the potential to end up in publicly utilized waterways.

OK, So it is a Big Deal! Now What Do We Do?

Since the primary cause of stormwater run-off is increased impervious surfaces, a first step solution is the sustainable site design which minimizes impervious surfaces. The second step is to manage the stormwater so that as little of it leaves the site as possible.

When it comes to the pavement – sidewalks, driveways, parking lots – there are essentially two ways to make these impervious surfaces more water absorbent: either by using pervious concrete or incorporating permeable pavers.

Pervious Concrete Pavement

Pervious concrete is a type of concrete that is highly porous, allowing water to pass directly through the concrete into the ground, thereby reducing run-off from a site. It also helps to replenish groundwater and helps reduce pollutants in run-off. According to concrete manufacturers, pervious concrete allows as much as eight gallons of water per minute to pass through each square foot.

Permeable paving describes materials and techniques that allow the movement of water and air around the paving material. All permeable paving materials have wide joints or openings filled with grass or gravel, allowing stormwater to percolate and infiltrate through areas that would traditionally be impervious to the soil below.

Explains Green & Main’s Chaden Halfhill, “The Green & Main building site in Sherman Hill includes permeable pavers incorporated into our north side parking area. This will allow a much larger percentage of the site’s stormwater to be absorbed into the ground.“

“In addition, we are incorporating a rain water retention basin behind the parking area. The water from that basin overflows into a ‘bio-swale’,” continues Halfhill. “A bio-swale is basically a ground indentation that moves water to a garden or landscaped area. The bio-swale also incorporates native plants with root systems that absorb the water.”

Water Efficient Landscaping

Stormwater management and landscape design go hand-in-hand. Again, the goal is to recreate what happens organically in nature. This means creating an environmentally functional landscape that mimics natural watershed functions.

Zach Heitzman of Green Bean Landscape in Ankeny, specializes in creating high quality landscapes with long-term sustainability and functionality. He is the landscape designer for the Green & Main Pilot Project. “For this site in Sherman Hill, we are using grasses and landscape plantings to replicate the native Iowa landscape,” states Heitzman. “The lawn will primarily be made up of buffalo grass which is very water efficient and requires very little work to maintain. It has a deep root structure and holds rain water very well.”

“For more ornamental landscaping, we’ll include little bluestem, switch grass and then pale coneflower, or Echinacea,” continues Heitzman. “Each of these plant species is native to Iowa and will thrive here while supporting the stormwater management objectives on site.”

Landscaping with plants native to an area helps ensure the maximum benefits are gleaned. As they are well-adapted to local environmental conditions, they maintain or improve soil fertility, reduce erosion and often require less fertilizer and pesticides than many other plants need.

The Chicago City Hall green roof helps cool the building and minimize water run-off.

A green, or vegetative, roof is vegetation growing on a contained roof space. During rainstorms, green roofs act as a sponge by absorbing much of the water that would otherwise run off. Researchers estimate that three to five inches of soil, or growing medium, absorbs 75% of rain storms that are ½ inch of accumulation or less. Green roofs also filter pollution from rainwater. This beneficial process increases over time as rooftop plants and root systems grow and mature.

“The green roof is one of our key stormwater management strategies,” states Halfhill. “The Green & Main roof will infiltrate water, saturating it, so less is shed from the roof. We also are using different roof levels, so water is dispelled as it progresses down.”

Green & Main’s green roof will be planted on October 4^th by Rooftop Sedums of Davenport, Iowa. Their experience shows that up to 90% of stormwater can be conserved annually by incorporating a green roof.

Rooftop Sedums’ multicolor sedums.

Teresa Nelson of Rooftop Sedums explains the type of plant species best suited for the Green & Main roof. “When we are looking at an Iowa climate, a green roof solution must be able to withstand harsh weather conditions along with extreme temperature fluctuations,” states Nelson. “In addition, an Iowa roof will have to tolerate the weight of snow and the green roof soil, so a lightweight and shallow soil is also important. For these reasons, we are using varieties of sedum to vegetate the Green & Main roof. Sedum is a mountain ground cover plant, so it is hardy, has a shallow root system, drains well and controls erosion. Mountain plants thrive in these types of environments and they are drought resistant.”

According to Nelson, 90% of green roofs are planted with sedum. “For the Green & Main roof we will be using over 50 sedum varieties so it will be a very vibrant patchwork of different colors and textures,” continued Nelson. “We will also sparingly use a few deciduous plants for accent.” For more about this, read Johanna Hoffman’s article from August 30, 2011, ‘Natural Beauty and Green Technology at Green & Main‘.

Green & Main Setting the Standard

“My hope is that the design of the Green & Mail building is helping people see and experience how stormwater management can move from building to landscaping to the sewer,” adds Halfhill. “I’m proud that you can stand in back of our lot and see how the water moves – how it’s arrested, harvested and infiltrated as it moves from rooftop to ground.”

Editor’s Note: Check out some tips on how you can incorporate stormwater management practices on your own residential property.  This list includes some great ways to harvest the rain for other uses as well.

– Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities.

Ann Wilde

A Midwestern Youth

For those of us who remember growing up in the Midwest decades ago, the concept of cohousing isn’t far off from what we experienced in our typical neighborhoods.

As for me, I grew up in the 60’s and the 70’s with hundreds (it seemed) of other kids running amok around a two-block square, and we needed “special permission” to cross streets into “other” neighborhoods. All the parents knew us and knew our parents and it wasn’t uncommon to be corrected by just about any adult who happened to be around to witness what we were up to.

Our parents would get together in their backyards for drinks and barbeques. We invited neighbors over for dinner and there was always someone around to help move furniture, babysit kids or just to shoot the breeze with. Everyone knew the elderly neighbor and pitched in to shovel a sidewalk or run an errand. Even in the dead of winter, we found reasons and ways to get out of the house and congregate. Although we moved away when I was in grade school, I was raised in part of that micro-community… and I can still remember the inside of every single one of the houses on those two blocks.

Living in Northern California

As an adult, I lived for a few years in northern California. (First a disclaimer: northern California is a beauuuutiful place with many wonderful people and you cannot beat the perfect weather.) For a couple years my husband and I lived in a newer suburban area in San Jose. The houses were built with yards all enclosed by 8-foot wood fences. Each had an attached garage extending from the front of the house, with the front door of the house recessed and hidden just to the side of the garage.

On the day we moved in, during the process of unloading our belongings, a neighbor crossed the street to inform us of the places we could, and could not, park on the street. An interesting way to welcome us to the neighborhood, I thought. But as we discovered over the next two years, this was about as much interaction as most people would have on the street. Cars pulled in garages, people went inside and that was that. I had my first child while living in that neighborhood. No one there acknowledged this event or even seemed to notice, despite that we regularly greeted neighbors while walking our colicky infant up and down the street every night.

These were not bad, unkind people. This is just “the way things are” in a hectic, more cautious and transient world. But both my husband and I began experiencing a deep sense of isolation and total lack of community just as we were starting our family.

In the Midwest once Again

For me, the beginning of my move toward a more caring and community-minded life began with us picking up and moving back to Iowa (sans jobs) where we both grew up. Although Des Moines was still three hours from “home” and family, it was better than thousands of miles. And I had hoped that we would find more of a sense of community in a Midwest culture. And indeed, on the day we moved in, at least five of our new neighbors stopped by with cookies and houseplants and other offerings to welcome us.

However, I am still searching. As great as my neighborhood is (I LOVE you guys — to all my West Des Moines neighbors reading this!), I still believe that there is a way for people to live more efficiently and caringly together. Don’t get me wrong, my husband and I have very independent natures, and we truly need our own space. But yet as I plan “play dates” for my youngest, as I struggle to balance work and managing a large house and yard, and as I berate myself for not taking the time to make and nurture some of my own friendship, I wonder why has it changed so much from that neighborhood I grew up in? And is there a way back to that kind of quality of life – for my kids, for my husband, for me?  I don’t know if cohousing is for us.

I admit I took on Part I of this article without having any idea what cohousing was. However, since then I’ve read two books, spent a number of hours on www.cohousing.org and other cohousing sites, attended a presentation by Charles Durrett and took my girls out to visit Turtle Farm. Right now I’m thinking: there really may be something to this.

– Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities. She likes to make weekly spreadsheets then recycle them.

Charles Durrett Leads Cohousing Discussion

Charles Durrett

During the middle of last month in Des Moines, Iowa, a diverse group of interested individuals, couples and families attend a presentation by Charles Durrett. Durrett, credited with introducing a contemporary European cohousing model for use in North America, spoke in an hour-long discussion entitled “Cohousing, Community and the Value of Custom Neighborhoods.” Durrett outlined many of the basic concepts, philosophies and practicalities of cohousing. The presentation was sponsored by Turtle Farm Cohousing Community, Indigo Dawn, Silent Rivers and RDG Planning & Design.

An award-winning architect and leader in the North American cohousing movement, Durrett and his wife, Kathryn McCamant, now lead McCamant & Durrett Architects. They have designed and consulted in 50 U.S. cohousing communities and are the authors of the book Creating Cohousing: Building Sustainable Communities (3rd edition).

Cohousing : “High-Functioning” Neighborhoods

With about 100 people in attendance, Durrett began his presentation at the Windsor Heights Community Center, augmented by projected images of cohousing developments in the U.S that he had worked on or developed.

“What people have realized is that their lives could be better by working together and giving your neighbors the benefit of the doubt,” said Durrett. “And what evolves out of the development of a cohousing community is a high-functioning neighborhood that is organized, planned and managed by the residents themselves.”

Durrett described the four crucial elements of developing a successful cohousing community as:

• The community should be designed by residents working together to create the neighborhood.
• The community should include extensive common facilities such as a large common house, green areas and gardens.
• The community should be self-managed by the residents.
• The community should be sustainable over time.

A cohousing community in Nevada City, California.

Durrett’s own neighborhood is a cohousing community in Nevada City, California. He developed and designed the community along with the other residents of this 34-unit neighborhood. Of his own experience, Durrett said, “Our cohousing community is what used to happen naturally in neighborhoods – it feels like a little village.”  You can learn more about Nevada City Cohousing here.

Overall, the audience for Durrett’s presentation left with a positive assessment, filling out survey and comment cards for additional information regarding their interest about the possible cohousing community developing at Turtle Farm in Granger, Iowa.

“I’d say that we had about 85% of the audience that night fill out surveys and ask for additional information,” stated Chaden Halfhill, owner of Silent Rivers and Indigo Dawn, co-sponsors of Durrett’s presentation in Des Moines. “There was a diverse group of people in attendance and who expressed interest. The most common questions I heard were about financing for the project and how the development process would evolve. I expect more than adequate interest in the Turtle Farm Cohousing Development that will then keep it moving forward into the planning stages.”

Those who were interested in being part of the Turtle Farm Cohousing Community were invited to view the property at an open house held on Saturday, July 16, two days following the discussion.

Turtle Farm

Angela Tedesco at Turtle Farm.

Located just off Highway 17 in Granger, Iowa, Turtle Farm is currently a 20-acre, privately owned and certified organic fruit and vegetable farm. Owner Angela Tedesco operates this farm as Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). The CSA is a partnership between growers and CSA members who share costs of supporting the farm, including the risks. In turn, members receive local, fresh and wholesome food that’s grown in a sustainable and responsible manner by farmers that they know.

The Turtle Farm Cohousing Community

On a hot and humid July morning, Angela Tedesco of Turtle Farm welcomed more than 20 visitors, mostly from Charles Durrett’s presentation on July 14, to her organic farm and the stretch of land that lies behind her crops. They all came to talk about the potential future of Turtle Farm Cohousing Community.

Walking up the gravel road toward the expanse of open land and the wooded area that borders it, Tedesco talked about why the idea of creating a cohousing development on Turtle Farm appealed to her.

“I have owned and farmed this land for 13 years. As my husband and I plan for our own future and retirement, we’ve discussed a number of options. One of those would obviously be to sell the farm and hope that it would continue to be used as an organic farm and CSA,” said Tedesco. “But the idea we were most drawn to was to create a planned neighborhood, sharing the organic farm and a cohousing community. Our vision statement is simple: To preserve Turtle Farm by creating a model of a diverse, sustainable, cohousing community.”

Tedesco and others interested in Turtle Farm Cohousing Community state that they envision a new model for urban agriculture that places cohousing on the non-farmed portions of the land. The community owns the farm in common, so it can continue to exist as a farm to feed the community or to remain as an income-generating resource, serving residents of central Iowa.

Nancy Rambo and Donald Bustell have joined Angela and John Tedesco in forming TFCC, LLC to support the Turtle Farm Cohousing project.  Together they are moving forward to bring Durrett and McCamant to Iowa in October to lead a “Getting It Built” workshop for the next step in the process.

Indigo Dawn and Silent Rivers

A major proponent and leader of developing and building sustainable communities in Iowa is Chaden Halfhill. Along with others at Indigo Dawn and Silent Rivers, Halfhill’s efforts have been instrumental in helping to increase awareness and education on initiatives such as Turtle Farm and cohousing in Iowa.

“Our work in developing, designing and building sustainable sites makes the cohousing initiative a natural fit for both Indigo Dawn and Silent Rivers,” said Halfhill. “Indigo Dawn’s mission is to champion the initiative for preserving and developing sustainable communities everywhere, not just here in the Midwest. The cohousing movement definitely supports the philosophies of sustainability. We hope that Turtle Farm Cohousing Community is just one of many to be developed in Iowa.”

How to Learn More about Turtle Farm Cohousing Community

If you would like to get involved with the Turtle Farm Cohousing project, please contact Michelle Peiffer, Director of Communications Strategy for Indigo Dawn.  She may be reached at Michelle@indigo-dawn.com.

For a personal account of exploring cohousing, please see Ann’s article here.

– Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities. Ann prefers it when people include the ‘e’ in her last name and not in her first.

A cohousing community in Nevada City, California.

“Traditional forms of housing no longer address the needs of many people.  Dramatic demographic and economic changes are taking place in our society and most of us feel the effects of these trends in our own lives. Things that people once took for granted – family, community, a sense of belonging – must now be actively sought out. Many people are mis-housed, ill-housed or unhoused because of the lack of appropriate options.” – Author Charles Durrett from his book Cohousing: A Contemporary Approach to Housing Ourselves.

What, Exactly, Is Cohousing?

A good place to start a discussion about cohousing (or cooperative housing) is with a clear definition of the term “cohousing.” According to The Cohousing Association of the United States (www.cohousing.org), “Cohousing is a type of collaborative housing in which residents actively participate in the design and operation of their own neighborhoods. Cohousing residents are consciously committed to living as a community. The physical design encourages both social contact and individual space. Private homes contain all the features of conventional homes, but residents also have access to extensive common facilities such as open space, courtyards, a playground and a common house.”

Many cohousing developments also include other shared spaces such as gardens and greenhouses. The physical layout of cohousing communities varies, but almost always has private residences closely situated around a center green area with a sidewalk. Vehicles are kept in a specified parking area, typically located on the backside of the development.

In many ways, the social aspect of cohousing is similar to the way Americans lived 100 years ago. Neighbors and extended families lived, worked and played as close-knit community. There were interdependencies among the adults, including shared responsibilities and concerns. Children learned and played in a safe environment, guided and protected by the adults.

This seems to be one of the cornerstones of WHY cohousing exists: to create a real community of friends that once naturally occurred in our society.

Cohousing History and U.S. Adaptation

A cohousing community in Denmark.

All sources agree that the type of cohousing espoused by Durrett traces its roots back to Denmark in the late 1960s when a group of dual income professional families were searching for better childcare and a way to share evening meal preparation. The trend made its way not long after to the U.S.  A tract in Boulder, Colorado was among one of the first to open in 1987, according to the Cohousing Association. California and Washington State followed in tandem, with earliest housing established between 1991 and 1994.

The Cohousing Association currently lists 243 cohousing communities (built or in some phase of development) across 37 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Today, California boosts by far the most cohousing communities at 51.

Cohousing and Sustainability

“The movement back to community is the key to sustainability in Western culture,” states Chris ScottHanson, author of The Cohousing Handbook. Because cohousing typically includes shared spaces and resources, it is a model that directly affects many elements of rebuilding sustainability in the world around us. “This is acting locally,” adds ScottHanson.

Today’s cohousing communities typically have one or both added elements of social responsibility and environmental sustainability.  Sometimes referred to as “ecovillages,” these housing settlements strive for environmental sustainability in the community’s design and cooperation among its residents.

Abundance EcoVillage in Fairfield, Iowa provides a good example of an ecovillage’s purpose with their Vision Statement below (www.abundance-ecovillage.com).

Abundance EcoVillage is a place where village design, energy, shelter, water, gardening, farming, waste recycling, and landscaping are done in a way that is in tune with natural law. In tune with natural law means, at a minimum, that the systems we use to obtain the services listed above do not destroy or damage the larger systems of the earth that maintain a hospitable environment for life on our planet. Wherever possible, these services are provided in a way that not only sustains but enhances the ability of the earth to clean our air and water, maintain the balance of gasses in the atmosphere, and in general provide a beautiful and safe place to live.

“Accredited” ecovillages are those that have met criteria set by Gaia Trust Education in Denmark, a charitable entity supporting sustainability projects, especially the ecovillage movement. The major categories Gaia uses in assessment for accreditation are Habitat, Economy, Natural Resources, and Culture and Society.

The 6 Defining Characteristics of Cohousing

There are many, many types of cohousing communities: rural, urban, new developments, retrofitted neighbors and homes, ecovillages and non-ecovillages. However, nearly all cohousing communities ascribe to the Cohousing Association’s “6 Defining Characteristics of Cohousing”. These characteristics provide an excellent overview of, and add clarification to, the multi-dimensional concept and practice of cohousing.  They are:

1. Participatory process. Future residents participate in the design of the community so that it meets their needs. Although some cohousing communities are initiated or driven by a housing developer, a well-designed, pedestrian-oriented community without resident participation in the planning may be “cohousing-inspired,” but it is not a cohousing community.

2. Neighborhood design. The physical layout and orientation of the buildings (the site plan) support a sense of community. The private residences are typically clustered on the site, leaving more shared open space; the dwellings almost always face each other across one or more pedestrian “streets” or courtyards, and cars are parked on the periphery. The intent is for the design to be one important factor in creating a strong sense of community.

3. Common facilities. In cohousing, common facilities are designed for daily use, are an integral part of the community, and are always supplemental to the private residences. The common house typically includes a common kitchen, dining area, sitting area, children’s playroom, and laundry. It perhaps also has a workshop, a library, an exercise room, a teen room, a crafts room, or guest rooms. Except in the case of very compact urban sites, cohousing communities usually have playground equipment, lawns, and flower and vegetable gardens, and occasionally they have a few acres of open space.

4. Resident management. Cohousing communities are managed by their residents, with regular-usually monthly-meetings, where the whole group, supported by a number of committees, develops policy and solves problems. Residents also do most of the work required to maintain the property, each community creating a work-share arrangement unique to itself. More and more cohousing communities are learning what works and what doesn’t from others who have been down the road before.

5. Non-hierarchical structure and decision making. Many groups start with one or two “burning souls” but as new people join the group each person takes on one or more roles consistent with his or her skills, abilities, and interests, and leadership broadens. Most cohousing groups make all of their decisions by consensus, although many groups have a policy for voting if consensus cannot be reached after a number of attempts. It is very rarely, if ever, necessary to resort to voting.

6. No shared community economy. As a group, the community does not engage in any income-generating activity. Occasionally, a cohousing community will employ one of its own members to do a specific (usually time-limited) task, but more typically the task will simply be considered to be that member’s contribution to the shared responsibilities.

It stands to reason that the key to the success of a cohousing community is the commitment of its members to make it work by fully engaging in the lifestyle of the community.  To set the appropriate expectations, Higher Ground Cohousing in Bend, Oregon includes both a page entitled “Are We a Match?” and a Vision Statement that reads, in part:

AT HIGHER GROUND, we intend to learn how to live lightly on our land through day to day choices of resource use, recycling, and sharing of vehicles, appliances, tools, food and space;

We encourage friendships between neighbors and integrate work and play by building and maintaining common facilities for preparing food, sharing meals, gardening, spiritual renewal and relaxing in the natural beauty of our neighborhood;

We intend to build and sustain a vibrant community by organizing social, educational, and physical activities that meet the varying needs of the community’s residents…

Read the entire Vision Statement and more about Higher Ground Cohousing in Bend, Oregon here:

So what does all this mean for Iowans?

There is currently a movement lead by a number of interested Iowans to develop a cohousing community in Central Iowa and in the Iowa City area. In general, Iowans are an independent lot. Our cities have maintained the small town feel associated with farming communities. However, today we are much more urban, individualistic and isolated…just like the rest of the country. The need for more of a community-based living combined with a real desire for affecting sustainability has fueled interest in the concept of cohousing in Iowa.

On July 14 there is a prime opportunity to learn more about the future of cohousing in Iowa. Charles Durrett, an award-winning architect and leader in the North American cohousing movement, will be leading this discussion with his wife Kathryn McCamant, who together introduced the concept of cohousing to the U.S. in 1988 with their book Cohousing: A Contemporary Approach to Housing Ourselves.

Read the press release here for all the details of Charles’ presentation “Cohousing, Community and the Value of Custom Neighborhoods“, on July 14 in Des Moines.

Next month, read the discussion concerning Turtle Farm in Granger, Iowa.

– Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities. She likes sitting in the backyard shade after summer yard work.

The old school in Cambria, Iowa needed a new floor at the same time Green & Main was looking for salvage flooring. Repurposing the old maple floor was a perfect fit for the main floor — and sustainability goals — of our Pilot Project.

The original maple hardwood flooring in the Green & Main Pilot Project building provided solid footing for many, many years, probably since the 1930’s when the building housed Sherman Hill’s H&H Grocery Store.

“We could actually see how the store was used by how the floor was worn,” remarked Chaden Halfhill, developer of the Green & Main initiative. Most noticeable was a small area of the wood worn down to only 1/8” thick by the shopkeeper himself who stood in one part of the floor serving customers for years.

Preserving as much of the original floor as possible was of paramount importance to the Green & Main team. However, wear and tear and some exposure to the elements had taken its toll on the solid maple flooring. So a process of painstakingly cleaning the tongue and groove maple flooring began. The Green & Main construction crew carefully pulled up individual slats of the maple flooring, evaluated each piece to ensure that it could be salvaged, and cleaned and replaced the slat back into the floor.

Preparing the repurposed maple flooring for installation.

However not all the maple slats were in good enough shape to preserve. So, the Green & Main team set out to find matching maple flooring to fill in the areas of the floor that couldn’t be saved.

Flooring from Cambria, Iowa in Wayne County

Around the same time maple flooring matches needed to be found, Mike Kinter of Des Moines’ Kinter Construction had discovered that a public school in Cambria, Iowa was hoping to replace the gym’s original wood floor. The southern Iowa community in Wayne County was converting the school, which closed in 1991, into a community center. The old gym floor was for sale, and it was hardwood maple. A perfect match!

“I drove down to Cambria and found the flooring in good shape,” said Kinter. “Most hardwood flooring in older school gyms is subjected to many layers of varnish over the years. Given how old the Cambria school gym was, it was amazing to find this flooring with just one or two layers of varnish which takes much less time to remove. So much of it was salvageable, it took me two truckloads to bring it all up to Des Moines.”

Through the grapevine, Mike heard that the Green & Main building was in need of supplemental maple flooring. The width of the maple flooring from Cambria’s old gym was a perfect fit. The needed pieces were identified, cleaned and integrated into the existing flooring. Now a beautiful ‘new’ maple hardwood floor is ready to support the many people who will step foot into the Green & Main building’s education space in the coming decades.

“It turned out that re-using the Cambria gym floor was a good solution for everyone,” concluded Halfhill. “We’re estimating that 70% of the new floor ended up coming from the Cambria maple. And, the purchase price for the old maple gym floor will go to completing construction of the Cambria Community Center.  Any wood flooring that we determined to be too damaged to be used in the Pilot Project will be recycled.”

That’s a win-win-win!

A shot of the Green & Main Pilot Project main floor shortly after the maple flooring from the Cambria school was installed. It’s now ready for finishing and many more years of traffic as the flooring for this building’s education space.

– Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities. She likes traveling to places that have amazing technological gadgets.

This historic photo shows one of the many Des Moines streetcars that ran on the Sherman Hill trolley line until 1951.

The lower level of the Green & Mail Pilot Project will be used as a green education center for the public. So significant renovation is taking place in what was the basement of the building. Since the construction crew will have to underpin the entire building, there was a decision made to remove the basement floor and replace it. As part of this process, the entire floor will be lowered to increase the ceiling height, accommodating the comfort of future visitors. However, the elevation of the sewer in the street was already established, and the Green & Main crew needed to tie into the street sewer at a lower level.

Excavation Surprise

Sinkhole resulting from discovered trolley line.

Time to dig up the street!

Prior to digging, all possible existing utilities had been researched via Iowa One Call. (The Iowa One Call notification system is a free call and a free service to anyone planning an excavation in Iowa.) The street was marked to highlight various known lines and the location of the existing sewer. But, not surprisingly, this historic Sherman Hill street had some history to reveal under its layer of asphalt and then layer of brick.

The crew used a diamond saw to cut into the street from the exit of the building to the sewer main under 19^th Street. Suddenly, sparks started flying. Quickly discovered were two old trolley tracks that ran down 19^th Street, along with four wooden rail ties that had provided the frame for the tracks. While digging with an excavator to remove the tracks and rails from the street, the crew also discovered a four-inch cast iron pipe running parallel to the tracks, five feet under the street’s surface.

Des Moines Utilities and Public Works Lend a Hand

The sink hole discovered was the size of a Smart Car!

The construction crew stopped work immediately and made a few calls. Enter Des Moines Public Works, Water Works and Mid-American Energy. As the city crews cautiously investigated the situation, a small sinkhole was discovered under the old trolley line; then an even larger sinkhole emerged about the size of a Smart Car. However, the initial concern remained:  the proper identification of the pipe.

The pipes did not appear on any existing city utilities map. And so to identify the purpose and contents of the pipe, Public Works asked the Green & Main construction crew to drill into the pipe looking for either water or gas. Neither were found, but the pipe did contain some ground water and traces of a petroleum odor. (The electrical lines to run the trolley were typically coated with a tar-like substance to protect the wires). Once deemed safe to proceed, the crew cut and removed the abandoned pipe.

Excavation of street asphalt and brick layer to connect the new plumbing system to the city sewer.

As a precautionary step, Des Moines Public Works scoped the sewer line and discovered that about 25 feet of the existing main sewer line was cracked and had partially collapsed. The sewer line was cleaned and temporarily fixed and the main sewer line will be replaced sometime this year.

Still to be resolved, though, were the sinkholes. A self-leveling grout-type substance filler called K-Crete was pumped into the sinkhole to fill the void, preventing the street from becoming unstable. Public Works crews completed this and the resurfacing of the patched area.

Green & Main Pilot Project Benefits from New Sewer Main

Although this temporary fix resolved some surprise issues under the street’s surface, Green & Main crews won’t be able to connect to the main sewer line for some time as they await Public Works’ permanent repair of the main line. The good news? Since a new sewer main is necessary, when it is in place Public Works will run it directly up to the curb of the Pilot Project building which provides the depth we need to lower the sewer line.

Not only will this provide the needed elevation drop, accommodating the needs of the building, it allows the construction crew to proceed with the installation of the ground work and installation of a subsurface drain within the building. This installation will then allow the crew to reinstall the concrete floor. Much appreciation goes to Public Works’ Jay Bennett, Sewer Operations Manager, and Ron Silvers, Senior Construction Inspector, who worked extensively with the Green & Main crew to develop an ideal solution that would allow them to continue the groundwork inside the building.

The challenge will be that the building will lack the capacity to drain anything into the sewer until the city repairs the sewer and the street. But it’s worth the wait. Pending the completion of the new sewer line, we will continue to work on preparing the building for interior work and its future occupancy.

Street construction barricade around the sinkhole.

– Ann Wilde is a Des Moines marketing strategist and writer who also has a special interest in preserving and creating sustainable communities. She prefers it when plants bloom with minimal human attention.