 The High Point Neighborhood is a brand new neighborhood in Seattle, Washington that has gotten EnviroCitizen.org's attention. Opened in 2006, High Point Neighborhood is an example of a sustainable, urban community. The neighborhood is easy to walk through, full of mature trees and scenic views of Elliott Bay and the Seattle skyline and shares "front porch architecture"; a kind of architecture that lends itself to neighbors becoming friends.
The neighborhood of High Point Neighborhood is so nice in fact, that Tom Phillips, the High Point Redevelopment Manager, decided to move there! With twenty acres of parks, playgrounds and services, High Point Neighborhood has a lot to offer. High Point Neighborhood is Seattle's only Built Green™ neighborhood. The design of High Point Neighborhood incorporates a lot of green features, such as a natural drainage system that encourages the filtration and cleaning of rainwater that ends up in Longfellow Creek. Native plants dot the landscape and porous pavement streets and walkways allow rainwater to filter into the ground. Adjacent to the streets, you'll find ditch-like gardens to channel water off of the streets. Each home in High Point Neighborhood meets or exceeds Built Green™ three-star standards, and many of the homes are Energy Star certified.
The site on which High Point Neighborhood stands used to be home to an older housing project that was built during World War II. The Neighborhood's Phase I is complete and hundreds of residents already reside there. It will be completed in 2010 with Phase II, which will yields approximately 1,600 additional homes. About half of the homes will be rental homes, some of which will be offered to families and individuals with low incomes. High Point Neighborhood has already organized the Green Living Committee, which encourages green practices on a practical level in the neighborhood. They also have a Youth Mentoring Committee, a Social Committee and a Traffic Safety Committee, all of which actively engage the residents of High Point Neighborhood.
The Neighborhood offers many services to its residents, including a library, medical and dental clinics, a Community Center, and eventually a grocery store. Despite its infancy, the High Point Neighborhood has already received numerous awards, including the Global Award of Excellence from the Urban Land Institute in 2007, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Award for Smart Growth Achievement, two Gold Nugget Awards, the Green Leaf Award from the International Society of Arboriculturists and the Outstanding Achievement Award from Energy Star.
Clearly, High Point Neighborhood is a wonderful example of one of the ways in which we can achieve a greener future. The design is green, but more importantly the community is committed to sustainability and treading lightly on the ecosystem. EnviroCitizen.org believes that High Point Neighborhood sets a standard for all developers and consumers alike.
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