Sendero Verde

Sendero Verde, North America’s largest Passive House residential building, raises the bar for sustainable, affordable housing. Located in East Harlem, it provides homes for over 700 families, including nearly 100 units for formerly homeless residents, and features a Harlem Children’s Zone school, community gardens with rainwater irrigation, and robust social programming. 

To meet Passive House performance goals on a budget, the design team employed innovative, cost-effective strategies, including liquid-applied vapor barriers and PVC-frame triple-glazed windows. The resulting design dramatically lowers long-term operating expenses, using 50 percent less energy than a comparable New York City high-rise. 

Residents benefit from reduced utility bills, superior acoustics near Metro-North tracks, and high-quality indoor air delivered via MERV-13 filtered energy recovery ventilators. With its central courtyard and gardens fostering community and connection, Sendero Verde demonstrates that large-scale affordable housing can achieve sustainability, wellness, and high-quality design without prohibitive costs.