About 22 miles northwest of Austin, a small sustainable-minded community called Colonia Serendipity is beginning to take shape. There will be no pool, no clubhouse and no playground. There will be only 13 homes, each situated on more than an acre, with a common area and, perhaps, a community garden.

Colonia Serendipity was conceived as "a place where neighbors share an affinity for the land, and promote mindful living," the Web site says.

The tranquil community is perched on a limestone ridge on one of the highest points in the Spicewood area, with long, uninterrupted views north and east to Lake Travis, and south and west toward the Hill Country.

The neighborhood's environmental guidelines — some voluntary, others mandatory — are committed to preventing soil erosion, using native vegetation and protecting wildlife habitats. Developer Sharon Seligman, who lives in a renovated home on the property, says design and building guidelines insist on "compatible architecture" with "a modern aesthetic to indigenous Texas architecture using native materials."

She envisions a close-knit community of homeowners who share a desire to be good stewards of the land — a community that "respects individual privacy but resists the anonymity of today's massive subdivisions."

"I wanted to take that 23½ acres and, with as little impact as possible, turn it into ... not a neighborhood but a community. I thought people would be attracted to the idea of living in a community with others who had the same values. My three things were conservation, wildlife habitat and good design."

Seligman doesn't want to tame the land but rather live in harmony with it.

Conservation, she says, "just always made a lot of sense to me. I bought the property in '94, sort of as an investment, a retreat, and I didn't have any big plans for it. The growth in the area — subdivisions going in — has been dramatic ... and I was bothered by what I thought was a lack of interest in keeping the Hill Country looking like the Hill Country."

Segilman is encouraging, but not requiring, residents here to build homes to green building standards.

"It doesn't say they have to be certified green in the deed restrictions (which) speak more to the use of land and water and architectural guidelines," she says. "It's not the type of development where I'm going to be cracking the whip. I provide the encouragement. ... I hope I can be persuasive enough to show (residents) the benefits of going green. I'm looking for builders who build green ... who really have decided that even if it costs them a little on the profit margin, there are certain values that they will not let go of. Some things are still not cost-effective, and I don't expect people to do what they feel like they can't do."

To get an idea of the kind of homes Segilman has in mind for the property, consider the first completed home, built by New Urban Home Builders. The 3,679-square-foot home, which is expected to be certified green by Austin Energy's Green Building program, is on the market for $875,000.

Because the community is a registered natural habitat, builder Scott Branc says, he "tried to do minimal impact on the surrounding environment" by working around existing oak trees and striving for understated architecture that seems to acknowledge its setting rather than overwhelm it.

"When you look at it, it's a good-looking house, but it doesn't jump off the property, and it is in harmony with the property, and I like that," Seligman says.

Branc used nontoxic, durable building materials, as well as water- and energy-efficient products such as insulated steel doors, energy-efficient windows and expanding spray-foam insulation. Bathrooms are equipped with low-flow faucets, humidity-sensing fans and dual-flush toilets.

The house has a standing-seam Galvalume metal roof, a five-ton electric heat pump, fiber cement siding and a programmable thermostat.

"This house is extremely energy-efficient," Branc says. "The ductwork is all in conditioned space. Green building is just building a better house, (and) my approach to green building is ... it needs to make fiscal sense. It has to make sense and be practical. It's not (always) that much more expensive."

But it can be.

Not everyone wants, or can afford, upgrades such as solar panels. A less costly way to minimize solar heat gain is to design a home with overhangs and porches, which Branc did. But he also designed this house with the future in mind. He oriented the house north and south so solar panels can be added later, and he prewired the house for future technology needs. Rainwater collection systems also can be added easily by the new homeowners, he says.

"The home was built with such thoughtfulness toward preserving the environment," says broker Dee Shultz of Luxury Homes by Keller Williams, which is listing the property. "The builder ... has gone so far as to recycle 50 to 70 percent of the waste material from his job site. These items were ground up and recycled/used as part of the neighborhood project of maintaining an environmentally friendly lifestyle."

Branc wanted to build a house that was not only eco-friendly, but also comfortable and compatible with its setting. To do that, he designed a contemporary Arts and Crafts style home with public, semipublic and private areas. To the left of the entry is the great room, with a kitchen that is open to the living and dining areas. French doors in the dining room lead to a roomy screened porch with a corner fireplace.

Inside, the high ceilings — some with beams — and plentiful windows help fill the home with light, while the open floor plan creates the comfortable flow necessary for modern entertaining.

Anchoring the living room is a stone fireplace flanked by painted built-ins that add function and help to create a casual, relaxed feeling. To connect the great room spaces, he used stone on the far kitchen wall, along with a polished travertine backsplash.

A center island and sizable walk-in pantry offer plenty of work and storage space.

Eco-friendly engineered hardwood and stained concrete flooring lend a warm, rustic feel to the home, while sleek, stainless-steel, Energy Star-rated appliances and contemporary light fixtures set a modern tone.

To the right of the entry is a hallways leading to the home's semiprivate areas including a laundry room, hall bathroom and a flex room that could be used as a formal dining room, den or office.

"The house was designed to be extra flexible," Branc says.

The flex room, which is dressed up with wainscoting, can be closed off via pocket French doors with frosted glass. The hall bathroom also can be accessed from this room, which allows it to serve also as a guest room or in-law suite, he says.

In the private wing is a sensibly proportioned master bedroom with an oversized walk-in closet and a generous master bathroom.

French doors just across the hall from the flex room, as well as those in the main floor master bedroom suite, offer immediate access to the backyard.

A mudroom just off the three-car garage offers a place to drop off shoes, coats and cell phones before heading up the stairs to the second story, which houses two bedrooms — each with a private bath — and a game room with a porch overlooking the driveway. Also upstairs are the mechanical room and plenty of air-conditioned attic storage.

"He's very detail-oriented and committed to function," Seligman says. The house "is going to live very well."

Parade of Homes goes green

The 56th annual Parade of Homes will showcase homes at Catellus Development Group's Mueller development May 23 through June 7.

It's the first time in decades that the Home Builders Association Greater Austin's tour has focused on Central Austin. The homes from local builders are described as 'ultra-green, ultra-urban.' All five have received five-star ratings from Austin Energy's Green Building Program.

Prices of homes on tour start at about $1 million and range from 3,000 to 4,500 square feet.

Admission is $15, $12 for seniors and children 5-17. No credit cards accepted. Information: www.AustinHomeBuilders.com, www.muelleraustin.com.