Altair EcoVillage Project Moves Forward – September 2026

Imagine the home of the future: a place where living simply creates more time for what matters. Where neighbors know one another, streets are designed for people rather than cars, and shared land is thoughtfully cared for—creating habitat for wildlife and places for people to gather. Where efficient homes keep energy bills low and the sun powers our homes and vehicles.

This kind of community is rare today, but Altair EcoVillage is working to make it real in Kimberton, Pennsylvania. The planned 28-home community will be a sustainable, pedestrian-oriented, 55+ neighborhood featuring simple, highly energy-efficient townhomes, shared spaces, and low-impact design. But creating something different in a system built around conventional development comes with challenges. While local officials have expressed support for the vision, navigating existing codes and the development approval process has taken longer—and cost more—than anticipated. After recent delays in gaining Township approval of a parking variance, the Altair EcoVillage cohousing community is moving forward again. Altair is resubmitting the site plan for approval, then will focus on the building drawings for building permits.

There is just one significant hurdle: funding.

After spending over $1M, Altair EcoVillage needs approximately $30,000 per month or a total of $200,000 to carry the project through the remaining approval process.

The door is now open for interested people who want to help bring Altair EcoVillage to life, either as future homeowners or as investors:

1. A future homeowner may be able to pre-pay for a reservation on their townhouse now. Altair is offering up to 7.5% APR credited toward the purchase of an Altair EcoVillage home. Homes range from one-story flats at around $450K to spacious two-story end units for $650K. These prices are right in line with regional home sales figures, but living in the EcoVillage, with low-energy bills, a ride-sharing program, and other features, is less expensive than living elsewhere.

2. Alternatively, Altair EcoVillage is seeking investments of $50,000 or more with a 5% APR return on investment at the completion of the project. Altair is offering a share of the land as collateral, a property that was landlocked, but is now prime for development due to its now road access to Kimberton Road.

A special kind of community

Altair EcoVillage is being designed as a 28-unit cohousing community for adults 55 and older, with approximately 20 percent (5) of the homes planned for households headed by someone younger than 55 and their families. The community will feature clustered townhomes, a large common house for meals, gatherings, and social activities, walking paths, and shared amenities. But while defining features of Altair EcoVillage are the healthy buildings, the low energy bills, and the extensive open space, even more important is the community itself. Residents will have a meaningful role in the administration, maintenance, and ongoing life of the neighborhood. The goal is to create a place where people know their neighbors before they move in, share resources and activities, and remain active and connected as they age. The Cohousing model (see cohousingalliance.org) has proven to support daily interaction and combat loneliness, and residents live longer in these communities.

Why Kimberton?

Altair EcoVillage is located in Chester County, one of Pennsylvania’s most desirable and economically active counties. It has high ratings for medical support, infrastructure, and open space, and is expected to grow another 20 percent by 2050. The location offers convenient access to employment, shopping, recreation, cultural events, and neighboring communities. Planned improvements to regional passenger rail could eventually provide another transportation option, connecting the Phoenixville area with communities including Pottstown, Reading, and Philadelphia. Neighboring Phoenixville is one of the top five “hot” communities per Pennsylvania realtors.

For Altair EcoVillage members, however, location is only part of the attraction. The opportunity is to create something that is increasingly difficult to find: a small, intentional community where people can have both privacy and connection, independence, and support 

Now is the time for interested people to help Altair EcoVillage cross the finish line.

Interested in becoming an Altair EcoVillage homeowner or investor? 

Explore the website: altairecovillage.org. 
Contact Joel Bartlett at altairecovillage@gmail.com or 610-220-6172. 

We invite you to learn more about the project, investment opportunities, and the next steps toward making Altair EcoVillage a reality.

Here’s info about our pending construction process

Altair is looking forward to plan for construction of our homes and the infrastructure of our community, perhaps as soon as the fall. So we figured it would be of interest to members, supporters, and interested others to hear about the issues involved.

There are different methodologies for bringing residential construction projects to fruition:
a. Developer-driven with a Cohousing Project Manager interface
b. Members hire a General Contractor and a Project Manager who oversees and coordinates the work of consultants
c. An in-house Project Manager runs the bidding and the construction
d. An in-house Project Manager oversees and coordinates work designated to the cohousing membership along with selected consultants; the membership and investors contract with a Construction Management firm at the point of construction.

Option “d.” applies to Altair. We’re able to proceed in that way because we have the benefit of an active and dedicated in-house Project Manager, Joel Bartlett.

Typically, a Construction Manager will be responsile for all of the following:

• Preliminary construction consulting

• Value engineering (expenses optimization), means and methods

• Project Management software – accounting and timeline

• Seeking subcontractor bids and recommending awards

• On-site daily construction management from trailer, job meetings, safety checks

• Reporting and logging all activities

• Assuring on-site material and performance tests

• Code Official inspections

• Material suppliers and sub-contractor payment requisitions

• Job reports, project management updates, and client interaction

• Change orders, if required

• Punch lists in conjunction with Owner’s consultants

• Final close-outs, occupancy permits

• Turn over Maintenance and Warranty contracts to the Homeowners Association at the end.

Altair is fortunate to be able to employ the services of a local construction management firm, C. Raymond Davis & Sons (CRD ... https://www.craymonddavis.com). Their offices are located just down the street from our site on Kimberton Road! From there they’ll be able to keep a close eye as construction estimating proceeds later this year or early next year, but when construction starts, they’ll have a trailer on site.

Our relationship with CRD goes back 15 years. They offered to help with our land purchase ten years ago, and they’ve been active with the Kimberton Village Business Association.

Good news for us is that they are guaranteeing the construction costs. If there turn out to be savings on bids compared with the guaranteed construction costs, a percentage of the savings will accrue to Altair and another percent to C. R. Davis. This provides a strong incentive for folks to purchase homes knowing the price won’t go up and the Reserve Fund for the HOA will get a starting boost to reduce the monthly fee.

So … what is this thing called “SALDO”?? (Part Two)

When we fulfill the criteria of the East Pikeland Township Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (SALDO) and then move toward construction of our community, Altair will be setting a precedent. We’ll be the first project within the township to come to fruition guided by an exemplary special ordinance, one that we helped to formulate. We can be proud of our input into the process that resulted in what’s called the KLID, the Kimberton Low-Impact Development district. It’s an ordinance that overlays the usual zoning regulations with the goal of fostering low-impact developments. One way that’s accomplished is by adhering to the ecologically and socially responsible “Sustainable SITES” criteria.

KLID constitutes East Pikeland Township’s zoning code chapter 28, having sections 2800 through 2806. Section 2805 is labeled: “Design And Performance Standards For Low Impact Development Housing Communities.” It begins by saying: “All development under this Article shall attain at least the minimum scores and percentages recited in this Ordinance as to the sustainable land development assessment method SITES v2 Rating System; the dwelling unit energy assessment system HERS [Home Energy Rating System]; and other renewable energy requirements. Development shall incorporate the following standards within its design and function to facilitate social interaction, low-impact site design, energy conservation, and renewable energy.”

Toward that end it proceeds to stipulate things like:

• Parking standards

• Reduction of water usage

• Use of native plants

• Support of human physical activity by providing for recreation facilities

• Promotion of on-site food production

• Reduction of light pollution

• Encouragement of fuel efficient and multi-modal transportation

• Exterior building design that harmonizes with that of Historic Kimberton

The ordinance requires that the low-impact implementation be documented per specifications of the Sustainable SITES V2 initiative rating system. The Sites website says: “SITES provides a comprehensive framework for designing, developing and managing sustainable and resilient landscapes and other outdoor spaces. SITES is the ideal tool to support nature-positive design. By providing performance measures SITES supports the unique conditions of each site, encouraging project teams to be flexible and creative as they develop beautiful, functional and regenerative landscapes.” Out of 200 potential points a project can conceivably earn under the SITES rating system Altair needs to document to the township our potential to get 85 points.

There are 10 sections of the SITES rating system. They cover a wide range of environmental and health impacts of landscapes, outdoor spaces, and social interaction; things like:

• Site selection

• Using an integrative and collaborative development process

• Water, soils, and vegetation

• Materials selection

• Human health and well-being

• Construction issues

• Maintenance of the site and community through the years

• Innovating and modeling best practices and educating the public about them

The program’s Reference Guide says: “The Sustainable SITES System is a cost-benefit approach to adopting forward-thinking ecological practices in order to substantially protect and improve a community’s resiliency and quality of life.”

That gives a good sense of what Altair is endeavoring to accomplish. It’s exemplary work, and it will demonstrate East Pikeland Township’s commitment to fostering green living.

Altair 2025 End-of-Year Summary Report

During 2025, we made substantial progress toward completion, and produced the Design Development drawings for the homes and Common House, and  near-finalization of the site plan. Along with information about our stormwater management plans, landscaping, lighting, solar energy infrastructure, etc. we compiled the documentation into a SALDO submission (see: "What is the thing called SALDO?" ... https://www.altairecovillage.org/blog/2025/8/7/what-is-saldo-part1).

The process for obtaining approvals from East Pikeland Township involves considerable back-and-forth discussions with township representatives and consultants. Toward that end we made our initial presentation to the Planning Commission in May. Several iterations of feedback during the year kept us busy addressing township concerns and incorporating suggested modifications. For example: We responded to the township Traffic Engineer who had requested reconfiguration of our entrance-way; and to the local Fire Chief who encouraged us to change the trail around the buildings back into a fire lane.

Our Common House circle was busy selecting appliances, working on equipment lists, and discussing lighting, finishes and room layouts. Our Membership/Outreach circles (Hospitality, Sociocracy, Care and Counsel) continued to focus on social events, Trailblazer orientations, website updates, and all the other aspects of nurturing and maintaining a healthy network of information and interest.

In regard to marketing:

• We were a regular presence at the weekly Phoenixville Farmers Market

• We tabled at the Chester County Sustainability Summit in May and the Greenixville event in September

• We hosted a monthly series of online public information sessions

• We ran an outreach solicitation ad in the quarterly Communities magazine

• Our project was featured in a highly visible article in Lilipoh magazine

Thanks to Dana Waldman, Jonathan DeLone, and others we now have attractive renderings, models, and videos that will greatly enhance our marketing efforts. A 5-minute infomercial (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg-Z07aGYbQ) and a 2-minute virtual site walkthrough (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAzr7E-YdK0) are visible on Youtube. The infomercial was featured by our new real estate broker, Iron Valley Real Estate, on their Facebook page.

During the summer, we made a decision to join the national Cohousing Association’s Community Launch program. Each month CohoUS hosts two online “introduction to cohousing” webinars. One, called The Commons, is scheduled for the 10th of each month. Another, on the 20th of each month, is a session specifically about senior cohousing. Additionally, we participate with the Mid-Atlantic Cohousing association. MAC supports and promotes the development of cohousing communities up and down the east coast. One of their activities is an online Q&A session they host several times a year called “The Dr Is In.” They also organized a bus tour of three Cohousing communities in May.

In December, we got some terrific publicity for our project when John Hoskyns-Abrahall interviewed Joel and Margo about Altair. John is host of the “Centering on Peace” podcast sponsored by the Berks Peace Community. The hour-long program originally aired on Berks Community Television December 9 and has since garnered well over a hundred views: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vTV8OiFX9c

We hosted interesting discussions during the second hour of each of our monthly full-circle meetings. Some of the topics included:

• Aging in place

• Recycling logistics

• Strategies and design considerations for minimizing costs

• Relationship skills in community

• How to motivate participation

• Homeowner Association standards

We’re in the process of re-evaluating who should serve as our contractor for the building envelopes. In November, at the site of our construction manager company, C. Raymond Davis, Joel, and Dennis had a chance to hear a presentation given by New Energy Works of Farmington, NY. It was impressive, and they are submitting a bid for this work!

Our next challenges are to submit Homeowners Association documents and to address the KLID ordinance requirement for reports about our fulfillment of the Sustainable SITES Initiative Silver-level-threshold qualification.  We are preparing for what we hope will be our final submission to the Township for site approval.

The work of finding investors continues because, after obtaining approvals, we’ll need a "nest egg" in order to persuade a bank to extend us a construction loan. So, we’ve added an incentive by offering a 7.5% return on investments toward the cost of purchasing a home. Meanwhile, we’re anticipating that non-profit grant and tax credit possibilities will become available after we complete our IRS 1024A application for tax-exempt status. Incentive programs for the energy infrastructure and the horticulture are out there, we just need to reel them in.

2025 will be remembered as a turning point for the Altair EcoVillage project. We started to see the light at the end of the SALDO tunnel. It gave us confidence that approvals and permits will soon be within reach. Construction and move-in can’t be very far behind!