After years in limbo, Philadelphia’s first multi-family Passive House housing project is finished and on the market. Located at 219-235 W. George St., the homes were developed by the Onion Flats group in association with Domani Developers. The housing complex is known as the Onion Flats Stable. Of the projected 70 units, the team later downsized the project to only 27 units due to financial difficulties.

The units have a net living area of 2500 square feet, which includes 3 bedrooms and office space, and 3 bathrooms. About one third of the units in this development are set to be Affordable Housing units. This housing project was designed to obtain the LEED Platinum status, making it the first multi apartment complex in the US to receive this certification.

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In 2011, the Denver chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) partnered with CAD-1, Inc. to administer a design-build competition for a home that would be built for Blue Spruce Habitat for Humanity in Kittredge, Colorado. The winning design of a duplex was submitted by Molly Blakley, Assoc. AIA; Alan Ford, AIA; Kathy Ford, AIA; and Matt Weaver, Assoc. AIA, with Alan Ford Architects P.C. as the Architect of Record.

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Wisconsin-based MODS International builds modular and temporary shelter solutions that incorporate the use of converted cargo shipping containers. Earlier this month, MODS announced that they are donating a MODS unit to a family that lost their home in the tornadoes that recently hit the El Reno area of Oklahoma.

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Residential designer, Keith Dewey, has designed what is considered to be the first shipping container building in Canada: a home in which he lives with his wife and daughter in Victoria, the capital city of British Columbia. Built on a 42 by 40 foot lot, the home comprises 2,000 square feet of living space and was constructed of eight twenty-foot shipping containers that were modified to include windows, doors, and a “proper roof.”

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In a recent article on Indian Country Today Media Network, journalist Nate Seltenrich covered the sustainable building initiatives of several Native American tribes who were the country’s “original green builders.” Through efforts to improve upon substandard housing and economic hardships, indigenous populations are returning to traditional methods of home construction while incorporating modern technologies. Contemporary sustainability calls tribal members back to their cultural heritage and opens up avenues for attainable home ownership and lower energy costs, with the potential to revitalize communities.

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