InTown Homes' first big dream was to revive West Tampa to its glory days as a major urban destination. Now the developer is adding to that lofty goal the ability to cut its residents' carbon footprints.
InTown, the brainchild of former Hillsborough County Commissioner Ed Turanchik and his business partner Teresa Caddick, is unveiling a new design for its affordable homes this week, a Mediterranean-style home that cuts energy use by 25-50 percent.
"We think this is an important milestone in housing in the Bay area as it shows that environmentally sound, energy efficient workforce housing can be built at an attainable price," Turanchik said last week. The price tag for the new MoMed model: $194,000, $199,000 or $204,000, depending on how many energy-saving features you want. He projects that a monthly electric bill for the middle-priced model will be about $65. And then there's the environmental savings: an annual reduction of carbon emissions of 5.4 tons, 52 pounds of sulphur dioxide and nearly 30 pounds of nitrogen oxide. Some of the housing materials (including the carpeting) are made from recycled products, but the real savings come from the MoMed's small and flat roof, which is painted white to reflect sunlight and offers a smaller surface to heat than conventional housing.
"When gas gets up to $4 a gallon, this urban neighborhood is going to look even more attractive," Turanchik said. The first MoMed, in fact, has already been sold to an empty-nester couple from Davis Islands who wanted lower taxes, insurance bills and energy costs.
InTown has survived the housing slump, putting 35 new homes into West Tampa, which at its height in the early 20th century was the fifth largest city in Florida. Turanchik insisted on using urban designs rather than city-mandated suburban guidelines that pushed homes farther back from sidewalks.
This article appears in Mar 5-11, 2008.