The Kenzi. First all electric backup.

Five stories. No fossil fuels. First in Boston electric backup at scale

Client: Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH)

Firm: DREAM Collaborative, Sara Kudra, Affordable Housing Director

Stats

50 Units, age 55+ affordable housing
61,463 GSF, 5 stories
EUI 6.54 kBtu/sf/yr

Photography: Jane Messinger, Sara Kudra, Josh Solmos, ReVision Energy

The Kenzi is the first all electric emergency backup in the state of Massachusetts. With a predicted Energy Use Intensity among the best preforming in the city of Boston.

The project provides development without displacement, affordable age-restricted living, and groundbreaking sustainability. In an environmental justice community greatly impacted by the damage of Urban Renewal, the building provides an opportunity for Roxbury residents to age in place within their own community, while also leaving a light carbon footprint.

Part of a Planned Development Area (PDA) with Nuestra Communidad, the site will be home to 12 mixed-use buildings for a total 380 home ownership and rental units site wide

Resilient Infrastructure

First Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) for emergency power over 4-stories; City of Boston
Passive House envelope slows any heat loss/gain in the event of a utility outage, allowing residents to remain home during an outage
65kW of solar PV array on roof to minimize dependence on external utilities for power
Rear of site features a bioswale to collect and ﬁlter water runoff from adjacent site
EV charging stations located in garage
Extreme Temps

Passive House enclosure mitigates extreme temperature swings and will provide a healthy, efﬁciently conditioned interior environment.
Habitable landscaped garage roof mitigates heat island effect, producing an oasis of cooled area on a southern exposure
Carbon Reduction

Aim toward lower embodied carbon materials, and decrease Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emitting materials
Operational carbon reduced via photovoltaics on the roof and energy efﬁ cient Passive House enclosure
High efﬁciency ERVs paired with air source heat pumps take advantage of existing energy in the air to control interior air and domestic water temperatures.
Predicted EUI: 6.54 kBtu/SF/yr (88% reduction from baseline code)
Mechanical

Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERV) located in ceiling corridors; 2 per ﬂoor
VRF air source heat pumps on roof
Heating/Cooling distributed via ﬂoor-by-ﬂoor branch controller to fan coils for each unit