ST ALBANS, VT – Cathedral Square was honored last week at Efficiency Vermont’s Better Building by Design (BBD) conference, where Reid Commons in St. Albans took home a Best of the Best Performance Excellence Award for Residential New Construction in the Multifamily Homes category. The annual conference draws design professionals, construction leaders, and climate workforce experts from across the region. This year, ten organizations were recognized for exceptional work in affordability, energy performance, and workforce development. Duncan Wisniewski Architecture, ReArch Construction, Engineering Services of Vermont, Green Mountain Enclosure Consulting, and Evernorth Energy Services were partners on the project.
Reid Commons is a 33-unit affordable apartment community for adults ages 55 and older in St. Albans, with 27 one-bedroom and six two-bedroom apartments serving low- and moderate-income residents. Cathedral Square’s first fossil fuel-free building, Reid Commons opened in fall 2025 on a brownfield site that the city worked for more than 16 years to remediate after the former Fonda-Solo manufacturing facility closed. Of the 33 households who moved in, six came from homelessness, 11 from homeownership, and 70% had previously lived in St. Albans.
Heating, cooling, and hot water at Reid Commons all run on a closed-loop geothermal system drawing from eight 700-foot wells. The building’s thermal envelope goes beyond Efficiency Vermont’s High Performance program requirements, with triple-pane windows, dense-pack cellulose insulation, and an air tightness rating of 0.06cfm/sf at 50 PA. Fresh air circulates through a floor-by-floor Energy Recovery Ventilation system, and because the geothermal setup keeps the roof clear of compressors, the building also carries a 35.97 kWdc solar array with capacity for future growth.
Beyond its energy performance, Reid Commons offers residents on-site access to SASH® (Support and Services at Home) plus SHINES and HIP, Cathedral Square’s housing retention and incentive programs. Residents enjoy a community room with kitchen, a gym, walking paths, garden beds, a back garden area, and covered parking, with downtown St. Albans just a short walk away.
“Reid Commons shows what’s possible when affordability and energy performance go hand in hand,” shared Cathedral Square’s Director of Real Estate Development Cindy Reid. “We’re grateful to Efficiency Vermont for this recognition, and proud that residents here have stable, comfortable, permanently affordable homes while at the same time reducing our carbon footprint.”
Cathedral Square is a national leader in the creation of affordable, service-enriched housing communities for older adults and people with diverse needs. Established in Burlington in 1977, Cathedral Square now operates 28 housing communities in Chittenden, Franklin, and Grand Isle counties and administers the award-winning SASH® (Support and Services at Home) model, created in 2009 by Cathedral Square and available to Medicare recipients statewide, free of charge, since 2011. Cathedral Square homes are well-maintained and consistently earn top scores from federal housing inspectors. They also meet or exceed standards for accessibility, environmentally sustainable building practices, energy efficiency, and amenities. Learn more at: https://cathedralsquare.org/
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