Page 58 - Designing for Zero Carbon-Volume 2_Case Studies of All-Electric Multifamily Residential Buildings

CASE STUDY NO. 3 VERA CRUZ VILLAGE
Vera Cruz Village
Case Study No. 3
Data Summary
Project Type: Affordable Hous-
ing (Renovation)
Location: Richgrove, CA
California Climate Zone: 13
Clientele: Low-Income Farmworkers
Gross Floor Area: 46,734 sq.ft. Project Completed: 5/2022
Modeled EUI (Site):
19.4 kBtu/sq.ft. per yr.
Measured EUI (Site):
39.7 kBtu/sq.ft. per yr. (2022)
On-Site Renewable Energy System Installed:
138 kW (DC) Solar PV
On-Site Storage Battery:
None
Measured On-Site Energy Production:
151,133 kWh per year (2022)
Owner/Client
Self-Help Enterprises, Visalia
Design Team
Architect:
David Baker Architects, SF
Energy Consultant:
Association for Energy Afford-
ability (AEA), Emeryville
Structural Engineer / Water- proofing:
RDH Building Science, Oakland
Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing Engineering:
Integral Group (now Introba),
Oakland
Building Envelope / Water Heating Contractor:
Castone, Clovis
HVAC Contractor:
Munguia, MacFarland
Roofing Contractor:
Four C’s Constr., Fresno
Lighting Retrofit Contractor:
RCJ Constr., Bakersfield
Solar Contractor:
Sunrun, San Francisco
This multifamily housing project was initiated to rehabilitate existing affordable housing1 for a low-income population consisting of farmworkers in the town of Richgrove, near Delano, in Cen- tral California. It was one of several such affordable housing renovation projects undertaken by the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) as part of a grant to study the feasibility of retrofitting existing housing structures utilizing new building technologies while decarbonizing their energy systems and adding solar photovoltaic systems.
Background
The California Energy Commission’s (CEC) Electric Program Investment Charge (EPIC) pro- gram invests in scientific and technological research to accelerate the transformation of the elec- tricity sector to meet the state’s energy and climate goals. REALIZE-CA is such a research grant that is funded2 to evaluate Zero-Net-Carbon (ZNC) industrialized retrofit packages that can be rapidly deployed on existing affordable multifamily buildings. This grant is managed by RMI and the Association for Energy Affordability (AEA), who are supported by a technical team including David Baker Architects (DBA), Integral Group (now Introba) and RDH Building Science. (See the list of project team firms in the Data Summary to the left.)
The REALIZE-CA research study has funded the retrofit of four affordable housing projects in California thus far to achieve lower energy consumption through energy-efficiency measures and, most importantly, all-electric energy use, making these subsidized low-income units zero carbon operationally when the electric grid is completely decarbonized in 2045. Similar projects are being added to the list of targeted all-electric retrofits with the goal of meeting California’s 2050 climate action goals.
In order to study the possible rapid deployment of certain retrofit strategies, the project scope included an innovative idea developed in Europe—the use of manufactured insulated panels that can be installed over the existing roofs and walls, including high-performance windows and doors, with minimal disruption for the occupants. While this particular approach greatly improves the energy efficiency of the retrofitted building, the conversion to all-electric energy systems is an even more significant strategy to reduce carbon emissions in the near term. This conversion requires the removal of the existing natural gas structures and related heating equipment, as well as the installation of the corresponding replacement electrical systems and appliances.
The intent of this initial project at Vera Cruz Village was therefore to establish a methodology for rapid deployment of such retrofit strategies for similar multifamily structures that would minimize the cost and the schedule duration, while permitting the occupants to remain in the units with minimal disruption. The project was essentially a “demonstration site” of standardized techni- cal methods having some level of prefabrication, multisystem integration and more streamlined delivery in the field.
For the Vera Cruz Village project, the project team developed and executed the approach with Self-Help Enterprises (SHE), the owner and operator of the residential community since it was built in 1996. SHE was motivated by the opportunity to lower residents’ monthly utility bills, to make the living environments more comfortable and, for the larger-scale benefit, to contribute to achieving societal decarbonization goals.
1 For a summary discussion of what constitutes affordable housing, see the introductory para- graphs of Case Study No. 1, Ivy Senior Apartments, p.4 of this monograph.
2 While the CEC EPIC program provides the lead funding for the Realize-CA grant, additional funds are provided by the Low-Income Weatherization Program (LIWP), Southern California Regional Energy Network (SoCalREN), and TECH Clean California.
44
Designing for Zero Carbon: Volume 2