UMd. Group's Eco-Friendly Home Designs Suggested for Cafritz Development

A Riverdale Park as a possible re-direction for the Cafritz Property development.

As of now, the Cafritz Property team hopes to construct a Whole Foods Market, retail stores and 900 housing units on the 38.5-acre property along Baltimore Avenue in Riverdale Park, although the area is currently zoned for residential use.

Let's rethink this, said Joe Kelly, Riverdale Park resident, who sent a letter to the group, suggesting an energy independent housing development instead. He said the group of UMd. students and faculty know a thing or two about building eco-friendly, and Cafritz should draw upon their expertise.

The UMd. group placed second at the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon in 2007, where teams are charged with designing, building and operating solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive.

This year, the UMd. team's entry in the competition is a solar-powered house "inspired by the rich, complex ecosystems of the Chesapeake Bay watershed."

Cafritz Property presented its current plan in June to a crowd of 300 people that . The project has generated concerns over possibly increasing U.S. Route 1 traffic, overcrowding schools and having to change the zoning classification for the property.

Visit Riverdale Park Patch to read Kelly's letter.