The Green Cottages are the product of a unique collaborative of Cleveland non-profit organizations: the Cuyahoga Community Land Trust, Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization, Cleveland Green Building Coalition, and EcoCity Cleveland.
The capacities of the different organizations allow the Green Cottages project to pursue sustainability in community development in multiple ways.
The Green Cottages sustain:
- the environment, through the latest in green building techniques, transit-oriented design, and significant reductions in energy consumption;
- the neighborhood, through infill development of vacant lots, and by maintaining the healthy mixed-income character of the near West Side;
- individual homeowners, through pre-purchase support and assistance with mortgage qualification that helps buyers avoid the significant risks of today's real estate market; and through access to an affordable, quality home with reduced utility costs;
- the community's investment in affordable homeownership, because the homes will be affordable not just for the initial buyer, but for successive buyers, as well.
The Green Cottages project emerged from the work of the Emerging Green Designers Symposium, a program of the Cleveland Green Building Coalition that allows designers and architects to explore green-building techniques. The 2005-2006 Symposium challenged itself to develop an affordable green home, and the Emerging Green Designers produced the basic designs for the cottages collaboratively. Steven Sticka of Forum Architects was the designer of the 2-bedroom cottage. Jim "J.P." Ptacek of Larsen Architects designed the 3-bedroom cottage. Jim Ptacek has continued to represent the Emerging Green Designers on the Green Cottages design team, producing the final presentation and construction drawings.
The Green Cottages also respond to the EcoVillage neighborhood plan, in which residents of the neighborhood emphasized the need for new environmentally sustainable single-family construction that will remain affordable to typical neighborhood families in the long-term.
The Cleveland EcoVillage is a demonstration of eco-friendly living, emphasizing green-building, transit-oriented design, walkable streets, greenspace amenities, and community involvement. The EcoVillage is a project of Cleveland Green Building Coalition and EcoCity Cleveland. The Green Cottages will build on the success of recent EcoVillage developments, including the West 58th Street EcoVillage Townhomes, the West 65th Street Rapid Station renovation, the West 54th Street Greenbuilt Homes, and the Ecovation Home.
Cleveland Green Building Coalition is a nonprofit organization created to inform civic, business and building industry leaders as well as the general public about the economic, health, and aesthetic benefits of green building.
The Cuyahoga Community Land Trust is a non-profit membership organization that promotes secure and stable homeownership for moderate-income families in greater Cleveland. Homes sold through the Land Trust are permanently affordable; homeowners agree to allow a share of the increase in the value of their homes to remain with the home, to reduce the price of the home for the next moderate-income buyer.
Established in 1973, Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization has an extensive and successful neighborhood development track record. DSCDO provides many services to neighborhood residents including home weatherization for low-income families; home repair loans and technical assistance; funds for graffiti removal, exterior painting, and vacant lot beautification; coordination of block clubs; coordination of education and cultural diversity programs; and economic development programs aimed at revitalizing the neighborhood's commercial districts. Since 1990, DSCDO has been the developer of 11 major real estate projects. These projects have resulted in the creation or redevelopment of 214 residential units and 40,000 square feet of commercial space.
