The 35-unit Pax Futura, Seattle’s first certified Passive House apartment building, is in its final leasing stages. Designed by NK Architects and developed by Cascade Built, the building meets the rigorous Passive House standards by consuming as much as 80% less energy for heating and cooling than a standard building.

Passive House is a European standard for energy efficiency that encourages creating buildings that reduce energy use and lower carbon dioxide emissions.

“Building in a way that contributes positively to the community and our environment is our company, and my personal, mission,” Cascade Built founder Sloan Ritchie said in a statement. “We are facing the realities of climate change on a daily basis. We can either address them head-on or turn away and hope they don’t affect us. I’m choosing the former because at this stage, we can still do something meaningful to prevent the continued warming of our planet. Now, everyone who chooses to live in Pax Futura gets to face the challenge head-on and become part of the solution.”

The building includes 32 studio- and one-bedroom apartments, as well as three live/work units and an 1,100 SF ground-floor commercial space. Pax Futura is in the Columbia City neighborhood near the Link light-rail transit system.

The building has filtered fresh air and high-performance windows and doors that cancel out noise.

The project is also certified Built Smart, which emphasizes resource conservation, pared down mechanical systems, superior insulation, low or no VOC finishes and bio-retention planters that manage on-site stormwater.