A house in Rock Hill is something new for the region: It’s the first to be certified as a Passive House. Architect Jessica Deem of Virescent Architecture + Design says the certification from the nonprofit Phius is the first for any residence on the eastern half of Missouri. “I think Kansas City beat us to the first one in the state,” she says.
What the certification means is that the 3,466-square-foot home is designed to be so energy efficient, it can produce as much energy as it uses. Solar panels on the roof generate 14,844 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, while expert insulation and high-performance windows keep the house airtight even on the coldest, or hottest, days.
Deem says she first became aware of the Passive House movement while studying in Switzerland, and she stayed abreast of homes being built in Minneapolis and Chicago even after moving back to her native St. Louis in 2012 and starting her firm in 2017. It wasn’t until being hired to design the home in Rock Hill, however, that she was able to design one of her own. “I came back here with the intent of bringing this knowledge back, and it maybe took a little longer than I was expecting,” she acknowledges. “We have the expertise here. We just haven’t really had the demand for it. We’re hoping this is the first of more projects to come.”…