Ever Vail, Vail Goes Green
The other day I mentioned a LEED neighborhood development project in Florida, now comes news of another LEED neighborhood development project, the $1 billion project in Colorado, Ever Vail. The project at the base of Vail Mountain seeks to become the largest LEED-certified project for resort use in the U.S. The resort will include residences, a hotel, office space, retail shops, restaurants and a public park.
Eco-sensitive measures at Ever Vail will include using woods certified by the Forest Stewardship Council and local area beetle-kill Lodgepole pine trees in building construction, using a geothermal system for snowmelt, using micro-turbines in Gore Creek to power the outdoor streetscape lighting and using reclaimed water from snowmelt for use as water in toilets rather than using drinking water. A "closed-loop" gray water system would also be in place for washing all mountain operations vehicles, such as snowcats and snowmobiles at the site of the new mountain operations maintenance yard. The project will also include affordable housing in the form of studio, one- and two-bedroom units that will range in size from approximately 900 to 1,600 square feet.
