Community Wins National Sustainability Award

Developer Magazine has honored River Dunes with one of its prestigious Editor’s Choice Sustainability Awards, and has recognized the 1,345-acre community as the best in the country in the sustainable single-family community category for 2008.

The Pamlico County, North Carolina community won accolades for conserving critical natural areas and wetlands; preventing and controlling stormwater using low-impact development measures; maintaining natural vegetated buffers along the shoreline; and minimizing impacts to water quality and habitat.

“We are very pleased that Developer Magazine has recognized River Dunes for the efforts of all those who have worked so hard in making this a sustainable community, minimizing the impacts to our environment,” says Ed Mitchell, president of River Dunes Corp. “We went into this project determined to make River Dunes a leader in sustainable development. This wonderful award is testament that we have made great progress in achieving that goal.”

“The winners of Developer Magazine’s 2008 Editor’s Choice Sustainability Awards demonstrate the creativity and forward-thinking of the development community today,” says Shabnam Mogharabi, editor-in-chief of Developer Magazine. “These projects represent the best of the best. They employ green practices and embody a true spirit of responsibility and stewardship.”

River Dunes offers a welcoming entrance. (Photo courtesy of River Dunes Corp.)

Adds Mark Smith, PE, LEED AP, national director of planning and land development for McKim & Creed, "The River Dunes design team was challenged to utilize innovation and technology, as well as practical measures, to develop a sustainable community. Ed Mitchell served as the champion in the process, always advocating the protection of the natural environment. McKim & Creed is proud to be a part of the sustainability ethic demonstrated in this award-winning coastal community."

Sustainable Attributes of River Dunes

River Dunes worked with 26 local, state and federal agencies to plan and permit the community. Among the unique features is a 238-acre conservation easement along with hundreds of acres of greenspace in the midst of the residential development that will preserve sensitive aquatic nursery areas and provide a beautiful ecological amenity for the residents.

Another outstanding element is the 28-acre, 400-slip inland marina, which protects 14 miles of natural shoreline from development. A 1,100-ft. channel creates a safe harbor for the community. "The location of the marina is the key component in shifting the concentration of the amenities to the project inward, protecting the shoreline and creating a ‘village’ concept,” says Grant Livengood, PE, director of planning and land development for McKim & Creed. “Compact vibrant centers within the development isolate areas of critical runoff management, allowing for engineered infiltration systems to treat and release this water in a way that minimizes impacts to the sensitive aquatic habitats of the surrounding coastal environment."

McKim & Creed has been a part of the River Dunes team since the project’s inception, providing surveying and engineering services for nearly 10 years. “Most recently, we’ve staked out three new roads for construction, completed Section 1B Final Plat for 14 new lots and refreshed the wetlands flagging in the areas of the new roads and in Section 1B,” says Joe Chance, PLS, McKim & Creed project manager. “Refreshing the flagging in the areas of construction is an extra precaution to make sure these sensitive wetland areas are not disturbed during construction activities.”

River Dunes is scheduled for build out within the next eight to 10 years, and will ultimately include a combination of waterfront single-family residences and clustered village-style units for a total of 630 homes.

About the Awards

Editor’s Choice Sustainability Award recipients are selected by a panel of industry judges who select winners in categories such as residential, civic, commercial, institutional, urban development, office and retail. Winners are recognized for incorporating sustainable principles throughout the zoning, planning, design and development processes.

Learn more about River Dunes by visiting these sites: River Dunes and McKim & Creed Client Newsletter, Autumn 2007.

Generous porches and wide sidewalks characterize the coastal maritime village feel of River Dunes. (Photo courtesy of River Dunes Corp.)

River Dunes partnered with the local sewer authority to design and construct a new 0.5-mgd Regional Water Reclamation Facility. The highly treated reclaimed wastewater is then beneficially reused for maintaining water levels in three amenity ponds (including the 18-acre pond shown above) and for landscape irrigation.

This is one of the planted bioretention areas that are utilized in the higher density areas of the project. Concentrations of stormwater runoff are conveyed into these best management practices to provide water quality and protect the surrounding jurisdictional wetlands.

McKim & Creed has provided site development services for the marina and residential areas of River Dunes. (Photo by Harry Taylor, courtesy of River Dunes Corporation)