If there were a prize for great backyards, the enclave of Farmside Green would be a serious contender. Designed by one of Ottawa’s premiere architects and executed by a multi-award-winning green builder, the development of 10 uniquely styled homes in a mature Carlington neighbourhood backs directly onto the Central Experimental Farm.
Granted, the farm is not literally the backyard but, hey, who’s quibbling when you’ve got 427 hectares of good-looking serenity within feet of your rear door?
Farmside Green is the brainchild of Roy Nandram, president of Ottawa-based green builder RND Construction. The company is a regular award winner at the national, provincial and local levels and in 2016 walked off with an astounding nine awards at the housing design awards in Ottawa. It is building Farmside Green to R-2000 standards, which is 50 per cent more energy efficient than a conventional home.
Hobin Architecture, also a veteran award winner and a key player in Rendez-Vous LeBreton, which is negotiating with the National Capital Commission over redeveloping LeBreton Flats, designed the project. Hobin and company took its inspiration for the homes’ exteriors, including prominent gables, from farmhouse design and blended that with bright, modern-themed interiors.
Location, location
Close to the Civic campus of The Ottawa Hospital and with easy access to the Queensway, Farmside Green is an “amazing” location, says Nandram. “The opportunity to buy the land came along, and I liked the site. The Experimental Farm was the clincher, and having no backyard neighbours – the project is like a little island.”
There’s also a bike path running behind the project, and both downtown and the lively restaurants and bars of Little Italy are a quick commute.
Heritage & the urban forest
“Barry (Hobin) captured the heritage nature of the neighbourhood with the proportion of the homes,” says Nandram, who launched RND in 1990. “We listened to the community and (city) planners and adjusted the façades of the homes to give a softer look.”
Nandram adds that he plans to preserve as many of the trees that ring the site as possible and replace those that need to be removed for construction.
A man with a fondness for all things green (he’s known as a meticulous gardener), Nandram has even named the homes after traditional Canadian trees, including maple and birch.
Floorplans & features
The new project features six two-storey semis, three two-storey singles and a bungalow with a loft. Square footage ranges from 1,807 for the smaller semis (the Birch) to 2,454 for the largest single (the Hickory). The Walnut bungalow, with a master bedroom on the main floor and two bedrooms plus a loft up top, clocks in at 2,181 square feet.
Every home features a gas fireplace, nine-foot ceilings on the main floor, an electric vehicle charger in the garage and a gate to the bike pathway. Options include a finished basement for a secondary unit and car lift to store a second car in the garage.
Prices at Farmside Green start at $689,000, and construction is planned for next spring.
The green, green place called home
Nandram reports that the owner of the land approached him to develop it because of RND’s record of building green homes and doing so in a sustainable fashion.
A regular winner of green building awards, he adds that over the past three years RND has constructed all its homes to meet rigorous R-2000 certification, a rarity in the Ottawa market.
In the case of Farmside Green, that eco-conscious construction includes upgraded insulation, triple-glazed windows and uber-efficient heating systems.
“Owners will have a thermally comfortable home. They’re not going to feel cold in any room,” says Nandram. “Also, you’re reducing greenhouse gas emissions compared to a regular home.”
Related
RND finalist in 2017 Awards of Distinction
