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Kathryn W. Davis Student Residence Village
 When College of the Atlantic opens its new student housing this month,
the load on its heating system will be astoundingly minimal. Fifty-one
people will be housed through a Maine winter at the heating load of a
single family home. The public is welcome to our opening ceremonies,
from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, August 21.
That's because the three duplexes that form the Kathryn W. Davis
Student Residence Village are constructed with utmost energy
conservation in mind. Thanks to composting toilets, they will also
barely tax the town of Bar Harbor's water and sewage system.
David Hales, COA's president, believes that these residences, designed
by Coldham & Hartman Architects of Amherst, MA, will be as green as
any in the nation's college and university system.
They'll also have water views.
Named for benefactor Kathryn W. Davis, the sustainability of the
Kathryn W. Davis Student Residence Village is evident in every
detail-in keeping with COA's position as the first college or
university to be carbon neutral. The minimal heating load is the result
of an exceptional level of thermal integrity and a super-insulated
design. The wood pellet furnace burns local, renewable energy, while
recycled materials offset the impact of initial construction.
 The heating load is also minimized by construction that features
double-stud walls. In other words, says Millard Dority, the college's
director of buildings and grounds, "There is virtually no thermal
connection between the interior and exterior walls." All buildings have
in-floor radiant heating on the ground floor, with hydronic wall
mounted heaters on upper floors. Available light is maximized to reduce
electricity use.
"These are very smart investments, economically and environmentally,"
says COA President David Hales. "More than residences, these spaces
represent our fundamental values as an institution. They're designed to
meet the full range of human needs-including fun."
Recycling is evident throughout the building, from the exterior fiber
cement clapboards to the foot of cellulose insulation created from
shredded newspapers, to the gray water from showers that will preheat
water going into the hot water system. Similarly, during the heating
season, an energy recovery central ventilation unit will preheat fresh
air coming into the building.
Because COA believes that learning never stops, each unit includes its
own household meter: Students will always know how much energy and
water they are using. Common kitchens, dining rooms, recreation and
study areas will help enhance student bonding, increasing the nightly
discussions among the eight or nine students living in each residence.
 Other elements of the new construction are standard at COA, where all
electricity comes from renewable hydropower. All floors and all offices
have recycling bins, all kitchens have composting bins, green cleaning
supplies are favored, and lighting comes from light-emitting diodes
where possible, with compact fluorescent bulbs elsewhere. Appliances
are all energy-efficient and paints are non-toxic.
Additionally, students helped to choose furniture and carpeting.
Working with COA's dean of student life, students considered a wide
range of environmental factors, including sustainably harvested wood,
recycled materials, fabrics that can be cleaned with water and an
assurance that nothing off-gases.
The tightness of the buildings surprised even the contractors. Says
Richard Riegel Burbank of Evergreen
 Home Performance LLC, who provided
the insulation and air tightness testing: "I think COA can make the
claim that these buildings are the most airtight of any dorm, perhaps
in the world." This efficiency bodes well for the air quality system,
allowing, he says, "the heat recovery ventilation to provide superior
air quality at the lowest energy cost."
It will also help to heat the college's other building project, a
creative reuse of an historic home into the Deering Common Community
Center, to open in September.
Perhaps most special about these very special residences has been the
student input. The residences were initially conceived as three larger
units in a single connected building. But the students-who have a true
say in decision-making at COA-felt this would be too exclusive, almost
like a gated community. They asked for smaller, individual buildings,
allowing a more intimate experience among those living there, but with
ground floor common spaces open to the entire community. This re-design
also routed the campus pathway through the housing to create the
feeling of walking through a village street. Ultimately, this simple
modular design contained costs and created a repetitive, aesthetically
pleasing rhythm, which students can't wait to enjoy. Commented one
potential student, who visited COA in the middle of a comprehensive
college tour to the East and West coasts, "These are the most beautiful
rooms I've seen yet!"
College of the Atlantic was founded in 1969 on the premise that
education should go beyond understanding the world as it is, to
enabling students to actively shape its future. A leader in
environmental stewardship and experiential education, COA has pioneered
a distinctive interdisciplinary approach to learning-human ecology-that
develops the kinds of creative thinkers and doers who can lead all
sectors of society to promote sustainable ecosystems while meeting
compelling and growing human needs.
The opening is free, the public is welcome. Call 288-2944 ext. 291 for more information.
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