“There had always been this preconception that ‘green’ homes had to look like something from a science project and would stick out in the community,” says Avalon’s Terra Davidson. “Having the Discovery 4 house in its permanent location in Elgin in McKenzie Towne shows how well this can fit in the community.”

Discovery 4 represents the ultimate in ‘green’ living technology and is designed to generate as much energy as it consumes on an annual basis. Built in partnership with SAIT’s Green Building Technology Applied Research, the 1,540-square-foot home is the “culmination of years of work towards meeting our vision of building Net-Zero homes at no additional cost to consumers by 2015,” says Ryan Scott, CEO and President of Avalon Master Builder.

“This terrific private-public partnership which will facilitate an exchange of ideas, foster learning and research of new green building technologies,” he adds. “SAIT and the home building industry will both benefit.”

The Discovery 4 House is located at 4 Elgin Meadows Circle S.E. Public viewings are available Monday thru Thursday from 2 to 8 p.m. The home is listed at around $549,000 including lot and GST and a whole lot of R&D.