Mueller Redevelopment Progress Report
2007 saw the completion of the first buildings and homes at the Mueller Redevelopment. By combining Traditional Neighborhood Development and New Urbanism ideals, the Mueller Redevelopment is seeking to meet the challenge of creating responsible urban development. This new model includes the requirement that all buildings in the development earn a green rating. Given the fast-and-furious pace of Mueller building, it’s a challenge to keep up with the green commitment, but we are off to a good start.
Have You Seen the Green?
The commercial and retail facilities at Mueller may look like any other development; however, there is much more than meets the eye. On average, we are seeing a 36% improvement in energy efficiency. Some of the commercial spaces have improved their efficiency by as much as 64% over a standard building. It’s not always easy to spot energy efficiency and water conservation in action, but look around and you may notice:
There is plenty of behind-the-scenes green building going on as well, including the reuse or recycling of over 75% of the commercial construction waste. This has diverted many thousands of tons of construction waste from our landfills.
The Mueller Energy Center might not look too exciting on the outside, but what it is doing behind those brick walls is very important. The Energy Center houses a combined heat and power facility that provides electricity, hot water, and air conditioning to the Dell Children's Hospital and other buildings. The 6.5 megawatt gas combined-cycle turbine generates electricity. Waste heat from the turbine is captured and used to provide space heating and hot water to the hospital. The remaining waste heat is used to power an absorption chiller that provides air conditioning. At night, the electric chillers chill water which is stored until the hottest part of the day and then used to cool the hospital and other buildings.
Green Homes, Green Lifestyles
On the residential side, keys are being handed over for the first group of homes, giving many families the opportunity to live closer into the city center. Hopefully this will lead to reduced commutes and less traffic. Very soon, Mueller will be a walkable community, with a front porch on every house and garages that are accessed through alley ways behind the houses, rather than from the street. Pedestrian oriented spaces help create a more human-scale neighborhood design and encourage human-powered activity. It's exciting to see that the first of the neighborhood parks is open, and the 6 mile hike and bike trail is beginning to take shape.
All homebuilders at Mueller—David Weekley Homes, Meritage Homes, The Muskin Company, Saldana Homes and Streetman Homes—are required to build 3-Star rated homes. In fact, Streetman Homes is distinguishing itself by aiming for a 5-Star Rating for all its homes. They are sealing attics with polyurethane foam insulation, so all duct work and mechanical equipment located in the attic is protected from the heat gain associated with unconditioned attics.
The homebuilders will be using independent, 3rd party, home-performance testing companies to test their homes for duct leakage (maximum 10% allowed), air balancing and air infiltration. A particularly ambitious part of Mueller homebuilding is the recycling of construction waste. The homebuilders are keeping track of all construction waste and recycling at least one quarter of it.
More to Come
An impressive amount of work has been accomplished at Mueller this year. The community is beginning to take shape and it’s exciting to see the plans coming together. Working on a development this green and this complex is a great learning experience for green building staff and for all the professionals and organizations involved in the project. As a new model for building, Mueller will undoubtedly have a huge impact on the Austin community – and with the collective knowledge we as a community are learning here, the impacts may eventually reach much further than the city limits. Resources
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