Landform leads retrofit tour at 2024 Meadowlark Festival

The climate crisis is escalating, and we’re told the solution is to electrify our heating, insulate our homes and install solar panels on our roofs. But what does this future look like? Chris Allen helped answer that question during this year’s Meadowlark tour of two recently completed energy retrofit projects. The tour started above the KVR in Penticton, where a 1970s home has been renovated to add exterior insulation, exterior shading, and outdoor living spaces perched over the rail trail. The group then head south to Valleyview to visit a modern farmhouse dramatically perched on a rock bluff overlooking 10 acres of vineyard. Reusing the foundation and landscaping of a previous home, the new structure minimizes its impact on the fragile landscape. The building design uses passive solar principles to capture winter sun, while large overhangs block summer heat gain. High level clerestory windows allow for natural ventilation. Combined with solar panels, the result is an all-electric home with net zero energy use.  Interior spaces are given definition through natural finishes, and a custom designed concrete hearth. A glass bridge leads to the main bedroom, where floor to ceiling windows and a private balcony allow for visual connection to the pool and vineyards below.