The Canadian Home Builders’ Association of New Brunswick plans to build a centre in Fredericton to show contractors how to build more energy-efficient homes.

On Monday, Fredericton city council gave first and second reading to a zoning amendment to allow for the construction of a “Centre for Residential Construction Excellence.”

The training centre would be dedicated to teaching homeowners, renovators and home builders how to construct “net-zero” homes, said Claudia Simmons, the association’s CEO.

Net-zero homes produce as much energy as they consume by using solar panels or wind turbines to generate electricity, while using advanced insulation materials to help regulate the internal temperature, Simmons said.

Simmons said the single-storey building at 745 Cliffe St. will be wheelchair accessible and have a large training area, offices, a kitchen and washrooms.

It’s also going to have a resource library, demonstrations and wall cutouts as training props for the instructors, she said.

“Homeowners can come in any day of the week, Monday through Friday, nine to five, and we can help them and discuss and train them on their net-zero dreams.”

According to a report by the city’s planning advisory committee, the site would need to be rezoned in order to permit an instructional facility.

The federal government is planning to introduce building codes requiring homes to be net-zero-ready by 2030, along with further net-zero goals by 2050. Simmons said her association wants to take the lead and make sure home builders in the province are prepared.

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