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| June 2001 |
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Eco-Village to be examined
The proposal says units will be architecturally designed with houses in clusters to free up green space for landscaping, gardens and recreation areas. The Eco-neighbourhood will have a community garden, netball courts and community facilities. Buildings will be energy efficient with solar water heating, rainwater collection and greywater systems. The complex will have a low impact on nature with a permaculture design that will reduce the use of water, waste and energy resources. Houses will be arranged around common courtyards, pathways and informal meeting places. Each cluster of houses will have a mixture of dwelling sizes catering for families of various ages and the elderly. Eco-Villages exist overseas. In Sweden alone there were 15 fully developed Eco-Villages in 1998 with another 12 under construction. The number of residents in them ranges from a dozen to more than 100. New Zealand has an Eco-Village in Auckland and sustainable principles are being applied at a subdivision at Lincoln. Some sustainability principles have been used already in new City Council housing developments at Beckenham and Hornby. The Burwood-Pegasus Community Board has also done a lot of work on an Eco-village and its working party called its Eco-neighbourhood concept, Pingao. Its 42-unit concept project was based on four hectares in Owles Terrace, New Brighton. The Pingao project creates a village atmosphere and aims for social sustainability. The working party has been operating since May last year on its proposal. Now the Council has decided to advance the proposal and was told that if the city was serious about sustainability it had to do something about an Eco-Village. |
