Construction
Our 34 town-homes are in two long rows facing each other across a pedestrian street. The Common House is located midway between the north and south ends. Community streets are covered by a green-house style glass roof enabling us to walk, talk, and play outdoors without getting wet (a significant factor in our west coast rainforest climate!) We've found that the single entrance and glass-enclosed streets have greatly enhanced the usability of our common spaces and encouraged community participation.
Our 5,000 sq. ft. common house includes industrial kitchen, dining room, fireside lounge, a kids playroom with loft and outdoor play structure, an arts & crafts room, workshop, laundry room, community office and board room, multi-purpose (exercise) room, media room, guest room, and three washrooms.
Our whole community is wheelchair accessible through a series of ramps and most of our parking space is underground.
COMMUNITY DESIGN
Like most Cohousing developments, the main goal for WindSong residents was to create, through design, a socially supportive community environment. McCamant & Durrett Architects assisted with programming and schematic design making most use of the Cohousing principles and achieving this with a careful balance of public and private spaces.
The dwellings are privately owned and were designed by the residents in consultation with the architects. Each unit is equipped with its own kitchen, laundry and private entry in addition to those provided in the common areas. Residents are free to choose when or if they wish to participate in group activities. Care was taken to include ample soundproofing between units.
ENERGY
WindSong CoHousing has incorporated several energy saving elements in its design, winning the "environment and energy" award at the Urban Development Institute bi-annual awards held in Vancouver, Canada.
A greater energy efficiency is achieved by clustering homes and by covering the pedestrian street with glass.
The glass covered pedestrian street provides passive solar heating.
In early 2005 members of the community started reviewing the existing infrastructure and planning for implementation of new energy-saving initiatives.
BUILDING ECOLOGY
WindSong CoHousing Development can be characterized by its unique wing-shaped design. North and south wings consist of a double row of individually owned townhouses separated by a glass covered pedestrian street. The wings meet in the middle at the shared common house. The design incorporates several responses to a more sustainable use of materials and energy.
WindSong is comprised of 34 dwelling units clustered on less than 1.8 acres. Some units are stacked.
Dwellings are smaller than average in unit size. A typical three bedroom is about 1000 SF, a one bedroom & den is about 650 SF, a four bedroom is about 1600 SF.
LAND USE / LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY
WindSong CoHousing Community has paid attention to responsible land use, by setting the protection of the site's ecosystems as a primary goal.
4 acres of the 5.8 acres they hold have been preserved in its natural state. A small natural watercourse runs through the preserve, providing habitat for many species, including birds, beavers and fish. The remaining 1.8 developed acres of the site have been planted with native plant species to reduce watering requirements.
Included on the developed land is a large garden including private and community organic vegetable gardens, fruit trees, and play spaces for children.
Parking is clustered below grade freeing up land for other community purposes.
Roads are minimized in the project by keeping most parking underground and some near the access street for visitors.
A local transit stop is located adjacent to the project.
A park & ride and bus loop to the sky train station (the local rapid transit system) is a 10 minute walk from the project
WASTE AND RECYCLING
Residents share equipment such as; garden and workshop tools, office equipment, craft supplies and toys in the playroom, furniture in the common spaces, and audio/video equipment in the common house.
Food served in the common house is bulk purchased.
Composting bins are set up in the north and south gardens.
Recycling bins are located near the main garbage collection area to recycle paper, glass, cans, and some plastic. Beverage containers and batteries are collected inside for drop-off at the nearby depot.
Building materials are shared and wood is reused where possible.
Using workshop facilities, community items are not thrown away if they can be repaired or recycled.
AWARDS
Shortly after construction, WindSong received two awards. The first was the coveted Georgie Award for "Best Environmental Achievement" and was awarded by the Canadian Home Building Association. The second was from the Urban Development Institute for "excellence in urban development." The awards recognize WindSong's achievement in protecting our local environment and conserving energy.
