The Beacon Hill neighborhood in southeast Seattle is one of that city’s most culturally diverse and, in terms of housing prices over the past 18 months, one of its most stable.

Dwell Development, based in Seattle and focused on building “ecologically sound” houses that are relatively close to the metro area’s Sound Transit Link Light Rail system, recently completed four homes in Beacon Hill. Each earned the highest certification rating – five stars – from Built Green, the nonprofit program of the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties, in Washington state, and all four were the subject of Built Green’s August case study.

Each of the four single-family homes offers just over 1,600 sq. ft. on three floors. Two feature 800-watt PV systems and two are prewired for solar.

Built Green notes that the developer offered a “high percentage” of the lumber salvaged from the site – including siding, beams, and some framing lumber – for use elsewhere in the neighborhood, and at least 90% of the site waste was diverted to recycling and green waste programs. The houses were constructed with locally produced cedar siding, framing lumber, and concrete.

The building envelopes are 10% more energy efficient than required by Washington energy code, while the interiors are heated by high-efficiency hydronic systems, with separate zones for sleeping and living. Two of the houses have one-car garages, and two have 500-sq.-ft. rooftop decks.