Prescott Passive House in Kansas City

This is the most recent project to be built by Studio 804 (the University of Kansas School of Architecture, Design, and Planning design/build program).  It’s the first by the group to seek Passive House certification, and, like the Buffalo House, Prescott House was designed and built to LEED Platinum standards.

Prescott, located at 32 S 16th Street, has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and nearly 1,700 square feet of space.

One thing to keep in mind is the fact that it’s being offered for sale at $180,000, which is based on HUD guidelines for 80% of the area median income of a family with two adults and two children. Probably twice this amount went into the home with student labor and donated materials.

As a contender for Passive House certification – likely the first Passive House in the state of Kansas — Prescott is extremely efficient.

According to Studio 804, energy consumption for heating and cooling is reduced by 90% with a “super-insulated, virtually airtight building shell, broad Southern exposure, and an energy recovery ventilator that provides constant fresh air and even distribution of heat.”

The energy-efficient windows hail from Austria and a company called Zech, while the home is clad in a blackish rain screen of Douglas fir that’s been charred using the shou sugi ban technique — literally translated as “burnt cedar planks” — from Japan.

[+] Learn more about the Prescott Passive House.

Media credits: Studio 804.