On May 1 at the Ashland Spring Town Meeting the Select Board, Sustainability Committee and Energize Ashland are asking Town Meeting to adopt the Specialized Energy Code, which applies to new construction only (not additions or renovations) and aligns with Ashland’s net zero goals.
My name is Glenn Travis, and I am the principal of an architectural design company – GMT Home Designs. I've lived in Ashland since 2003 and my design office is located on Pleasant Street near downtown Ashland. We design both homes and light commercial spaces.
As both a designer and an Ashland resident, I want to advocate that we vote FOR the opt-in code for new construction. I have done a tremendous amount of research on this topic since Jan 2023 to come to this conclusion since this directly affects the industry that I am so passionate about and deeply involved in.
This will make Ashland more sustainable and let us keep our official Green Community status.
Here's what it means - opting in to the "stretch goals" will require all NEW homes and commercial buildings to meet higher standards of energy efficiency.
You'll hear a lot about "HERS ratings." HERS stands for Home Energy Rating System, and it's a scale of 1 to 100 where lower is better. Lower HERS rating means the house is more efficient. The stretch code requires new homes built today to be about 55% more efficient than a house built in 2006 was. The Opt-in HERS rating goes down to 45 and 42 respectively depending on the design path to get there.
An independent study showed that meeting this code adds 1%-3% to the initial cost of building a new home. That's not nothing, right (and could be more), but it's a small percentage for a new house, and you start saving on your energy bills from day one. The long-term gains far out way the upfront costs in my opinion.
The code isn't perfect. We need the state and town to provide more clarity about cost-effective requirements for additions and renovations to older homes (which really is a separate issue). BUT the benefits for all of us here really outweigh the concerns, in my personal and professional opinion. So, I encourage everyone to vote YES.
Learn more about our Green building services
See more on details on our point of view here (starting at 49 minutes 34 seconds into the video). Ashland Mass. Sustainability Committee Forum 4/6/2024 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OayCVp30elY
Read More about the specialized stretch energy code:
The Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Massachusetts (HBRAMA)