A 16-acre luxury retirement community is rising in Naples, Florida, and is implementing smart water features. Comprised of 96 garden apartment homes, a center for healthy living, and a 64-unit assisted living and memory care center, Moorings Park at Grey Oaks—which follows in the footsteps of the existing LEED Silver Moorings Park—is being spearheaded by Steve Brinkert, the organization’s vice president of resident services, and James Krall, its executive director of engineering and construction. “Our CEO, Dan Lavender, was the driving force behind the development of this community,” Brinkert says. “He saw it as a great opportunity for our first satellite campus.” Scheduled for completion in early 2017, the project offers lessons in greener development.
Water ecosystems
Stormwater will be collected and treated through a series of on-site detention and retention ponds before being discharged via the Gordon River. The ponds help refill the water table and provide storage during heavy rain events. Irrigation water will be a blend of treated, reused municipal water and pumped ground water stored in separate, lined lakes. These lakes will supply the irrigation needs of the development and surrounding golf courses; rainwater sensors will minimize demand. City-supplied potable water will be used for drinking only within the individual units and apartments, where low-flow faucets and fixtures further reduce water usage.
Low-irrigation Landscaping
The name of the development hints at what one can expect from the landscaping. “We hired one of the premier designers here in Southwest Florida, JRL Design Studio,” Krall says. “They took a good, hard look at the desires of this community, and the design includes extensive use of native vegetation such as oak trees.” The overriding goal of the landscape design to create a lush, natural environment that requires minimal irrigation to further reduce water use.
Energy Conservation
Specifications for the project included an emphasis on high SEER-rated HVAC systems. Local building codes require a SEER rating of 16, but the systems used at Moorings Park at Grey Oaks will be rated at 18, using less energy. In addition, the air-conditioning systems include energy-recovery units. Extensive use of high-efficiency appliances, LED lighting, and tight building construction standards have been incorporated into the design, and construction management teams will be charged with maintaining tight control during the building process to minimize waste.
