Homes in our net-zero 12-unit hempcrete building are coming online

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By David Hall

Back when we were working on the creation of The Newburyport Farmers Market at the Tannery Marketplace with Shari Wilkinson, she and I got to thinking: Wouldn't it be cool to create a community of homes in Newburyport focused on urban farming with chickens, bees, and space to grow lots of veggies and flowers?

I could not stop thinking about it. Make net-zero homes with super-insulated walls, heat pumps, and solar panels—no energy bills. Places to charge electric vehicles, front porches with rockers, it would be fantastic if you could have some common space with a kitchen and gathering areas, and a little post office, wifi, stuffed chairs in sunny nooks. A fire pit, outdoor kitchen, and pizza oven would be awesome. Keith Moskow and I got a little carried away (I more so perhaps?).

Hillside Center for Sustainable Living, the net-positive housing project is designed to exceed Passive House and Leed Platinum standards. Constructed with custom designed Hempcrete Biocomposite Wall Panels built on site, the project includes one, two and three bedroom apartments, common house, community barn, greenhouse and individual growing areas. Homes in our new 12-unit Hempcrete building are coming online. It is the largest multi-unit hempcrete structure in North America. Filmed by  @ruebenfilmz ​

Why not build with plant fibers mixed with lime binder for walls and coat them with natural plasters? It sounded good, but we didn't want to wreck existing green space for such a project. It had to be on land that prior industrial uses had blighted.

We were young(er) and naive, so we found a four-acre junk yard in Newburyport contaminated with coal ash and built it. That was 12 years ago!!!!!!

We are getting there! Five buildings are complete, and construction of the final building with a common area will start this spring.

Homes in our 12-unit Hempcrete building are coming online now. It is the largest multi-unit hempcrete structure in North America. We sequestered 35,000 tons of CO2 in the walls. Living at Hillside with no utility costs can be a part of something positive. You can rent with the benefits of ownership stability. Before buying a home, check us out. There are restrictions on rent increases for as long as you live there.

Remember, you can grow as many veggies as you need and gather eggs from the hen house with your kids (or your neighbors' kids). Hillside Bliss.

Hillside Open House is this coming Thursday afternoon, the 10th, Friday the 11th, and Saturday the 12th. (Sunday by appointment only).

Thursday afternoon is a "Pre Open House Reception for friends, residents, and neighbors of Hillside AND the craftsmen who made it all possible". 5 pm to 7:30 pm. (aka party)

Tours of the model 1 and 2 bedrooms are available to the public as follows.

Kudos to the men and women on the Hall and Moskow crew: you rock! Shout out to Alex and Chris, who have loved ones managing illness.