New Energy Efficient Community Being Built in Florida

Published on January 09, 2019

In the small community of Cortez, Florida, residential developer Pearl Homes has teamed up with sonnen, an energy storage and management company, to develop 148 LEED Platinum Certified homes in a green-energy community called Hunters Point.

The homes are being built with both affordability and energy efficiency in mind, and they will all be connected to Google Home to help them maximize their renewable energy use and the efficiency at which they consume any energy at all.

Blake Richetta, senior vice president of sonnen USA, has said that this community is the first of its kind to combine LEED Platinum designs and certification with intelligent energy storage from sonnen, along with Google Home automation.

Richetta also believes that energy efficient homes such as those being built in Hunter Point are going to become more commonplace in the future.

“We are seeing the beginning of a transformation in home design and home building that will solidify as consumer demand for smarter homes with greater energy efficiency and a dramatically smaller carbon footprint increases,” said Richetta.

To achieve their energy efficiency and affordability goals, the homes will be equipped with solar panels on the roof, a cost-effective energy storage system from sonnen, a smart thermostat, and an electric vehicle charger - all of which will be monitored and controlled by sonnen’s AI software and energy automation system.

For Marshall Gobuty, president of Pearl Homes, the affordability of the homes in the new community is of utmost importance, as he indicates that many consumers relate energy efficiency and onsite renewable energy sources with a big price tag.

However, with the help of sonnen’s residential energy management system and Google Home connectivity, the new homes will be able to use their energy efficiently and effectively; increasing their affordability by lowering their operational costs.  

“The future of homebuilding is ‘less is more’, so we partnered with sonnen to bridge the gap between homebuilders and buyers who think about ‘going green’ but don’t go all the way in terms of making a home truly sustainable,” said Gobuty.

Making Your Home Energy Efficient Without the Need for LEED Platinum Certification

For Ontario homeowners who are considering making improvements to their home’s energy efficiency, it is worth knowing that there are a multitude of different paths that one could take to achieve this goal. Much like how a LEED Platinum certified home becomes energy efficient, your home’s rate of energy consumption can be improved through planning and design.

A Home Energy Assessment can be conducted on your home, allowing you to be made fully aware of how energy efficient it is, and how it could be improved. This means that suggestions for improving energy efficiency will be provided to you by our Registered Energy Advisors, and that they will list them in terms of which suggestions will help you save on energy the most per dollar you spend.

By making your home more energy efficient, you may notice: that it becomes more comfortable to live in due to a reduction in drafts, that your utility bills are significantly lower, that the interior air quality has improved, and even that your home’s market value has improved.

A Home Energy Assessment can also help your home qualify for up to $5,000 of home renovation rebates for both Union Gas and Enbridge customers.