Santa Barbara's Islamic Center Opens Its Doors

After nearly two decades of planning and over two years of construction, the new Santa Barbara Islamic Center has opened its doors in Goleta, CA.  The 6700 sf structure combines traditional Islamic architectural features with a nod to local exterior finishes, such as red tile roofing and board and batten siding.

ISSB North Elevation sketch.png

The naturally ventilated building has incorporated a broad set of green features as well: a PV array on its roof, EV charging stations, native and drought-tolerant landscaping and graywater-ready plumbing.

In Balance Green Consulting provided third-party review of green building criteria for the project – for Built Green Santa Barbara, CALGreen and the City of Goleta. We would like to offer our congratulations to Santa Barbara’s Islamic Community, Paul Zink, Architect, and the entire project team!

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Photovoltaic (PV) and Battery Systems: The Backend

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Photovoltaic (PV) and Battery Systems: The Backend

As the new building code comes into effect January 1, 2020, solar PV systems are becoming a new normal for residential and nonresidential buildings, with batteries not far behind. It will fall on architects, contractors, developers, and other specialists involved in the process of designing and building buildings to make this transition effective and efficient.

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Air-Source Heat Pumps: Simple, Efficient, Economical

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Air-Source Heat Pumps: Simple, Efficient, Economical

As California continues to move new buildings towards the goal of more efficient, all-electric, fossil-fuel-free construction, technologies used for decades in other locations - despite feeling new here - will help us reach our goals. Solar panels will power our overall energy needs, while high-efficiency air-source heat pumps (ASHPs) will satisfy the conditioning needs of these buildings and homes.