Village Homes is a

planned community A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

in Davis,

Yolo County Yolo County (; Wintun: ''Yo-loy''), officially the County of Yolo, is a county located in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Yolo County was one of the original counties of California, created in 1850 at the time of statehood ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. It is designed to be ecologically sustainable by harnessing the energies and natural resources that exist in the landscape, especially

stormwater Stormwater, also written storm water, is water that originates from precipitation (storm), including heavy rain and meltwater from hail and snow. Stormwater can soak into the soil ( infiltrate) and become groundwater, be stored on depressed lan ...

and

solar energy Solar energy is the radiant energy from the Sun's sunlight, light and heat, which can be harnessed using a range of technologies such as solar electricity, solar thermal energy (including solar water heating) and solar architecture. It is a ...

History

The principal designer of Village Homes was architect Mike Corbett and his wife Judy Corbett, who began planning in the 1960s, with construction continuing from south to north from the 1970s through the 1980s. Village Homes was completed in 1982, and has attracted international attention from its inception as an early model of an environmentally friendly housing development, including a visit from then-French President

François Mitterrand François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...

Sustainability

The 225 homes and 20 apartment units that now are the Village Homes community use solar panels for heating, and they are oriented around common areas at the rear of the buildings, rather than around the street at the front. All streets are oriented east–west, with all lots positioned north–south. This feature has become standard practice in Davis and elsewhere since it enables homes with passive solar designs to make full use of the sun's energy throughout the year. The development also uses natural drainage, called bioswales, to collect water to irrigate the common areas and support the cultivation of edible foods, such as nut and fruit trees and vegetables for consumption by residents, without incurring the cost of using treated municipal water.Source
Village Homes, Davis, California
Bill Browning and Kim Hamilton
"Village Homes: A model solar community proves its worth"
Smart Communities, Ibid.

References

External links

* http://www.villagehomesdavis.org/ * Village Homes information on the Davis Wiki. * http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC35/Browning.htm * https://web.archive.org/web/20070609124520/http://arch.ced.berkeley.edu/vitalsigns/workup/siegel_house/vh_bkgd.html * https://web.archive.org/web/20131110035906/http://www.earthfuture.com/community/villagehomes.asp

Documentary videos about Village Homes

Global Gardener: Urban Permaculture feat. Bill Mollison (1991)

GeoffLawton.com: Food Forest Suburb (2015)
{{Coord, 38, 32, 50.92, N, 121, 46, 49.83, W, display=title Davis, California Sustainable communities Stormwater management Renewable energy Permaculture