Chicago’s net zero Yannell House lacks green modesty

Billed as one of the greenest homes in America, the net zero Yannell House does a lot to reduce energy.

But what about reducing the building’s entire ecological footprint? Yannell, a 44-year-old pharmacist, could have made just as bold of a statement – although maybe without all the press – by building a net zero house fit for one person. Instead, his $1.6 million, 2,675-square-foot, four bedroom Chicago home could comfortably sleep a family of five.

Who knows, maybe Yannell’s two cats need a lot of extra room to stretch.

Yannell told the Chicago Tribune his home is a reaction to the multimillionaires who choose to build super-sized McMansions. What he is missing, perhaps, is the correlation between green construction and modesty. With a final product much larger than he truly needs, Yannell isn’t accounting for all the extra materials it took to create his green dream.

Even though he’s ordered up a net zero house, he still expects to pay $20 per month to the electric company. What? That’s probably a similar amount to all of those Chicagoans who live in one or two bedroom apartments Why don’t their living quarters have special Web sites with phrases like “The Deepest Shade of Green?”

Let’s not go too far astray here. Yannell’s house is still a thousand times more environmentally conscious than the average wealthy American.

But even his home’s own architects admit they won’t be able to mass market the Yannell House to make a real swing toward sustainability.

Until the rich and famous are willing to sacrifice unnecessary extravagances for the green movement, the real environmental pioneers will continue to live unnoticed in small, tightly sealed homes.

They won’t need some special gadgetry to turn the lights off when they’re not needed, they’ll stand up, walk over to the wall, and flip the switch toward a sustainable earth.