Why Austin is the Best Green City in America
At Whisper Valley, we aim to cultivate an environmentally-sensitive community dedicated to energy efficiency and cutting-edge technology, and we’re proud to live in a city that cares just as much as we do about taking care of the planet. Today on the Whisper Valley blog, we’re featuring a few reasons why Austin is the Best Green City in America.
Austin Green Initiatives
A big part of why Austin consistently ranks among the top green cities in America is the city’s nationally-renowned green building efforts and its plan to achieve community-wide net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. These initiatives include:
- Achieving at least 55 percent renewable energy by 2025.
- Committing to 65 percent renewable energy by the end of 2027.
- Equipping the utility’s service area with solar capacity totaling at least 950 megawatts by 2025, providing solar power to nearly 156,000 local homes by 2025.
Whisper Valley’s Discovery Center was recently recognized an Austin Energy Green Building 3-Star Project and our homes also exceed the carbon-neutral standard promoted by the City of Austin for all new construction homes.
Green Lifestyle-Friendly City
Another reason Austin is the best green city in America is the green lifestyle amenities offered throughout the city. Austin ranks high among other cities for Farmers Markets per capita, the number of bicycle lanes and an electric scooter-sharing program, the number of electric vehicle charging stations and the percentage of solar and wind power consumed by businesses and residential customers.
Whisper Valley also features green lifestyle amenities including an on-site organic garden and meal delivery program, a fitness center and fitness classes, trails winding throughout the community and a geothermal-heated pool. Events coordinated by our Lifestyle Director also encourage homeowners to get outside and enjoy our community.
Natural Amenities
It’s no surprise to us that Austin has some of the best parks in the nation. When Austin was recognized as the best green city in America last year, they applauded Austin’s 29.9 city park acres per 1,000 residents. From the beloved Zilker Park and the 13-mile Barton Creek Greenbelt to the hiking and fishing at McKinney Falls State Park and everything in between, there’s no shortage of amazing parks for you to enjoy in Austin.
In addition to our current community parks and new parks underway this year in Phase 2, Whisper Valley has plans for a 600-acre signature park with nature trails along wooded creek and rolling green space. The trails will eventually connect to East Metropolitan Park and Walter E. Long Park.
With all of these fabulous green lifestyle offerings, it’s easy to see why Austin is the best green city in America! If you’re moving to Austin or you already live in the city and want to take green living to the next level, we invite you to come tour our community and learn all about Whisper Valley at our community Discovery Center, located at 9400 Petrichor Blvd.