BUILDING INFORMATION
The GRAND HOUSE CONSORTIUM is comprised of university students and professionals from Cambridge, Ontario and beyond, with the main objective to build a Twelve-Bedroom Student Residence. We have secured property in Cambridge’s historic downtown, and our official ground breaking happened on June 3, 2007. Click here for some event highlights!
The 4,500 sqft, 12-bedroom building has a southern solar orientation to maximize on the free energy from the sun for passive heating and potential PV energy generation. The building structural components were designed by Halcrow Yolles. The house features a modified post and beam straw bale construction technique with straw bale infill insulation. Working together with Icynene insulation for the attic and floors we hope to acheive an R-40 insulation value! The building will collect the rain water which falls on our steel roof, donated by the Canadian Sheet Steel Building Institue. This water will be used for flushing toilets, but the system is designed to potentially supply rain water for laundry and even shower use in the future. The Grand House has the support of many other local companies such as Turkstra Lumber, and a complete list may be found by following the link to our progect sponsors page.
The Grand House will be heated with infloor radiant heating. The mechanical systems are designed for potential upgrades with solar thermal water heating and PV (photo-voltaic) solar power generation. The Power Pipe supplied by RenewABILITY Energy Inc. will preheat incoming domestic cold water through a heat exchanger using warm waste drain water from showers and sinks.
We are working towards LEED certification and also incorporating as much reused and recycled content ion the building construction. We are working hard to minimize the impact to the site and its surroundings, leaving as many existing trees as posible and enhancing the site by replanting with native and edible species once the construction is complete.
It will be co-operatively run and provide affordable accommodation, a common kitchen, living space and bathrooms. The Grand House Student Co-op is responsible for the design, construction, and project management and owns the residence. Each semester 12 students will call the Grand House home and be co-owners of the co-op. Their housing fee will go towards operating costs and debt service payments of the mortgages used to execute the project.
Please check back to see updates and see our GH events & photo section to see updated site pictures.
