Creating an environmentally (and socially) sustainable development that pushed technical boundaries and questioned commonly held views regarding people's needs and wants, established the ethos of the project. Homes at GMV are "forward thinking" not only in their appearance but in the way they are constructed and the way they function.

In order to meet the objective of producing a highly sustainable residential development, environmental performance targets were embedded in the original agreement between the HCA and GMVL. These included, amongst others, ambitious (at the time) energy consumption, construction waste and water consumption targets.