Solar-powered Grow Community continues to blossom outside of Seattle

Bainbridge Island’s fast-growing intentional community enters phase two with the unveiling of new intergenerational micro-neighborhoods where cars are out of sight, out of mind.

When I last checked in with Grow Community, an exceptionally sustainable residential development on Bainbridge Island, Wash., it consisted of nothing more than three net-zero energy model homes, a sales office, and a whole lot of well-deserved hype.

Now, nearly two years later, it’s apparent that this beyond LEED-striving intentional community has gone through quite the growth spurt.

In the time since the first phase of Grow Community entered the sales process (and quickly sold out), the development’s maiden micro-neighborhood, the near-completed Village, has emerged as the largest solar-powered community in Washington State. And in addition to Grow Community and its developers, Asani Development, being the subject of a decent amount of local, national, and international press, one of the Village’s Jonathan Davis-designed panelized homes was featured prominently in Sherri Koones’ latest coffee table-ready modular building tome “Prefabulous World.” Fast Company went as far to deem the Village — and Grow Community, as a whole — as “arguably the most resilient – and healthiest” urban neighborhood in the entire United States.

While continuing to garner the accolades, Grow Community has announced plans to move ahead with phase two of the development, a phase that will see the creation of two new micro-neighborhoods, the Grove and the Park, along with a community center to join the Village.

Sales for homes at the Grove kicked off earlier this month with prices starting in the $400s.

What strikes me most about phase two of Grow Community is what a departure it is from phase one while managing to stay true to the development’s overall — and very much holistic —vision of creating a progressive yet totally laid-back eco-utopia driven by the rigorous framework established by One Planet Living’s Communities program.