Mutual Housing at Spring Lake

Located in the Spring Lake subdivision in the city of Woodland, Mutual Housing at Spring Lake provides 62 apartments and town homes for agricultural workers and their families who are year round residents. The location is less than a half-mile south of Pioneer High School, directly across the street from Woodland Community College, and within a half-mile north of a public park located on Pioneer and Parkland Avenue. This community opened in February 2015.

Mutual Housing at Spring Lake is the first nationally certified Zero Net Energy rental housing in the nation. The U.S. Department of Energy, through its Zero Energy Ready Homes program, has certified more than 14,000 energy- efficient homes that created millions of dollars in energy savings for homeowners since the program started in 2008. Mutual Housing at Spring Lake is the first opportunity in the nation that renters have to live in 100 percent certified zero net energy homes. Zero Net Energy (ZNE) buildings produce as much energy as they use through integration of energy efficient design and renewable energy generation, such as solar energy produced at Mutual Housing at Spring Lake.

Green Certifications planned for Mutual Housing at Spring Lake include:

Department of Energy Zero Energy Ready Home ENERGY STAR Certified New Homes

LEED Platinum

Enterprise Green Community

Energy Star

These certifications are achieved by meeting strict performance guidelines that cover one or all green building strategies that relate to Energy Efficiency, Indoor Air Quality, Resource Conservation, Water Conservation and Sustainable Community Living, which are set by the U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Star Rated Homes program, U.S. Green Building Council, and Enterprise Green Communities program.

Energy and water efficiency features include innovative electric heat pumps, a 209 kilowatt photovoltaic system, LED lighting, tenant energy usage monitors, extremely well-sealed and insulated buildings, low-flow toilets, water-saving showerheads, and drought tolerant landscaping. The shower heads have automatic cutoffs that reduce water flow to a trickle when water goes from cold to hot until an individual enters the shower instead of wasting water and electricity when no one is yet in the shower.

Mutual Housing at Spring Lake is all-electric. There is no gas operated appliance or system. To help residents reach the zero net-energy goal the community was designed for, each apartment or townhome has a color-coded energy monitor that shows real-time use: green means efficient, yellow typical, and red above normal. By limiting electricity use to typical household ranges for which the system was designed, individuals families should not have to pay for utilities. In addition to increasing housing affordability, this incentive has the potential to build enduring energy conservation habits through encouraging energy consumption awareness.

The Mutual Housing community’s features include central open areas, a children’s play area, basketball hoop, community garden, resident/visitor parking and bike parking. A large community building contains a multi-purpose room (to be used for classes, meetings and social events), a computer learning lab, a services coordinator/community organizing staff office and a leasing office.

As at all Mutual Housing communities, residents benefit from their own resident council and leadership opportunities, as well as a Mutual Housing community organizer and on-site programs for children and adults. Programs and services are to include financial education, home-buyer preparation, college planning workshops, English as a second language classes, free summer lunches for children, legal clinics and workshops, leadership development training and mentoring for youth and adults, and community service days. Other services are available based on community need and interest.