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Plans for a Habitat for Humanity development in McMinnville include some of the most energy-efficient building techniques the nonprofit has used to date. But the strong sustainability angle isn’t enough to win over a group of local residents opposed to the project.

The wants to build a 35-unit subdivision of highly energy-efficient homes on an undeveloped 3.47-acre lot off of Atlantic Avenue. The project, which required a zoning change to allow for increased density, won narrow approval from McMinnville City Council last summer 鈥� Mayor Rick Olson broke a 3-3 tie with a vote in favor of Habitat’s proposal.

But a group of McMinnville residents who object to the location of the development appealed the approval, sending it into the hands of the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals.

鈥淭his isn’t your typical story of a rich neighborhood not wanting 鈥榯hose kind of people’ coming into the neighborhood,鈥� said lead petitioner Marcie Rosenzweig. 鈥淲e are a mostly blue-collar community of Habitat supporters and ex-volunteers.鈥�

What Rosenzweig and the dozen other petitioners object to is the density of the new development, which they say runs contrary with the existing neighborhood and could strain local infrastructure.

Because the area is somewhat isolated from the rest of the town, Rosenzweig said, there also are concerns that any young children moving into the area wouldn’t have safe access to recreation.

The size and site plan of the subdivision depart from prior Habitat projects in McMinnville, which have typically been common-wall infill projects.

鈥淚f this project was proposed for a Portland community, where schools were in walking or biking distance and there were parks for kids, I think this would be a really elegant solution,鈥� Rosenzweig said. 鈥淏ut not every site fits every project.鈥�

The McMinnville Habitat chapter worked for nearly two years with designer Matt Daby to develop a plan for the site. Even though the project will be built almost entirely by volunteer help, Daby’s design calls for extremely tight construction in order to achieve energy-efficiency standards that go well beyond other Habitat homes.

鈥淔or me this has been quite exciting,鈥� said Daby, who has contributed more than 50 percent of his hours pro bono. 鈥淲e have the opportunity to take Passive House ideas, one of the strictest building standards, and push them to see if we can make affordable houses, built by volunteers, without turning to crazy materials to make it happen.鈥�

, the high-performance building energy standard born in Darmstadt, Germany, emphasizes air-tight design and high insulation levels to create extremely energy-efficient buildings.

McMinnville City Councilor Kevin Jeffries praises the project design work, even though he voted against the project last summer.

鈥淭he design itself I thought was really beautiful, and for energy conservation, I thought they were really progressive,鈥� Jeffries said. 鈥淭hat was a really tough vote, but to me it was a matter of location.鈥�

Jeffries was concerned it would be difficult for the influx of new residents to get to other parts of town. He also worried noise from nearby highways makes the site undesirable, which violates rules for low-income housing projects.

Habitat administrators, however, maintain their position that they’ve found the right site for the project.

鈥淲e think it’s a great location,鈥� Gretchen Phelps, executive director of the McMinnville chapter, said. 鈥淗opefully, we’ll eventually have some more support from the neighbors, but we just have to take it one step at a time.鈥�

In the meantime, the organization is building a house on Elmwood Avenue that is similar to the ones planned for the larger development. The house features a slab-on-grade insulated foundation, 14-inch-thick walls and raised heel trusses, all of which combine to reduce future energy needs in the house. The added costs for these features are minimal, according to Daby.

If LUBA upholds the city council’s decision, Habitat will move forward with engineering plans for the larger site’s infrastructure. Candace Haines, city attorney for McMinnville, said the agency was slated to announce its decision by Dec. 29, (after the 91视频’s press deadline for this story).

鈥淲e’re doing some things we haven’t done before, so we’re using the delay as an opportunity to build a sort of model home before moving into the larger development,鈥� Phelps said. 鈥淲e’re aiming for the most energy-efficient homes we can get while balancing that with affordability. Now we’re just waiting for the green light to move forward.鈥�