The Kenzi: Empowering Affordable & Sustainable Housing

Additional fee, registration required.

The Kenzi provides 50 units of affordable age-restricted living and groundbreaking sustainability for the city of Boston. Located in Roxbury, an environmental justice community greatly damaged by urban renewal, this passive house building creates an equitable, affordable opportunity for local residents to age in place while also leaving a light carbon footprint. 

On this tour, you'll learn how a focus on inclusive community engagement and extensive coordination with authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs) culminated in a passive house development that bucks design stereotypes of affordable housing and features Boston's first battery emergency backup system over four stories.
 

Learning Objectives

1. Discover how the team created Boston's first battery emergency backup system over four stories, and discuss lessons learned that can be applied to future projects.
2. Find out how the team pushed back on design stereotypes of affordable housing with a fresh and engaging design that provides dignity and quality of life not typically found in such projects.
3. Through a behind-the-scenes tour and insights from the team, learn how to apply code language to a future all-electric project for permitting.
4. See why electrification is a social justice issue and how to work with AHJs on all-electric projects in environmental justice communities.

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