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A house being built on Northwest Pumpkin Ridge Road may seem diminutive, but its design will make it one of the most resilient homes in the Portland-metro area.

鈥淭he walls are 18 inches thick,鈥� said Rick Berry, a designer at Scott | Edwards Architecture, which worked with Hammer and Hand to design the structure. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a standard house, but then we added a whole other layer.鈥�

The 3,600-square-foot house was designed to passive house standards. The house will be extremely insulated, with 12-inch TJI stud bays. It also will have triple-pane windows and be oriented to face the south 鈥� all bedrooms will face this direction 鈥� to maximize solar gain. On that side of the house, large overhangs will ensure that the house receives maximum light during wintertime and less during summertime.

Northwest ENERGY STAR, a local branch of a program started by the Environmental Protection Agency, has named the house one of six 鈥渟uper-efficient鈥� ones in the Northwest.

Scott | Edwards Architecture previously designed a restaurant to passive house standards, but not a home, Berry said. One of the biggest project challenges was working with a tight budget.

鈥淭hat is the (most) simplistic, straightforward design you can do,鈥� Berry said.

Design and construction usually costs more for a passive house than a typical one, Berry said, but there is a payoff. The owners of this home will pay only about $50 a year to heat and cool it.

Aside from its sustainable design, the house鈥檚 most notable feature will be its large, covered deck and large windows. These features will blur the line between indoors and outdoors, Berry said.

鈥�(The owners) really wanted a connection to the site,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he site has such great views; we wanted to open it up to that.鈥�

Construction of the house is expected to finish later this year.

鈥淥n the Boards鈥� is a weekly feature that spotlights local firms鈥� best design work. Submissions from architectural and engineering firms are encouraged. Please call 503-802-7240 or email [email protected].