Featured Homes Tour

Green Leaf Construction	BLIP Design
Velocipede Architects	Sunshine Construction

This month we present four urban Built Green homes that were selected for the sold-out Built Green Homes Tour that was held March 18 in Seattle. Each home was an entry in the Seattle Built Green Design Competition. One of the homes is the first Five-Star Built Green home with more than 400 points on the Built Green checklist. Three of the homes won awards for remodeling, and the builder of the fourth Four-Star Built Green home won an award for a separate single-family project. Sponsors of the tour included the Environmental Home Center as our starting point, Home Street Bank for providing yummy lunches from Organic-to-Go, and King County for providing hybrid buses as transportation around the city to each home. Read more about these projects on the Case Studies page.

To see other previously featured virtual tours, click here. Virtual tours created by Northwest Property Imaging.

New Members

Northwest Linings
Supplying and installing membrane liners since 1973

Puget Sound Solar
Puget Sound Region's Premier Installer of Solar Energy Systems

Swenson Say Faget
Structural engineers committed to quality, innovative design solutions

Prestige Custom Builders, Inc.
Traditional residential remodeling, tear-down new construction, whole house renovations, additions, kitchens, baths

Alexander Lighting
A wide range of builder, residential and commercial lighting and controls

Sound Power, Inc.
Electrical contractors experienced in all phases of commercial and residential electrical work, including solar

View our current members.

New Certifications

Congratulations to our 63 newest Built Green certified homes, from Cougar Mountain to Snohomish County!

Hughes Building Company certified a Three-Star home on Cougar Mountain.

Bennett Homes certified 62 Three-Star homes this month; one in King County and 61 in Snohomish County.

Events

Thursday, April 7
Seventh Annual GreenWorld®
GreenWorld, an annual sustainable design event presented by the Northern Pacific Chapter of the International Interior Design Association (IIDA), will be held on Thursday, April 7 from 5:00 pm – 10:30 pm at the Bell Harbor Conference Center in Seattle. This year’s event will feature education, exhibits and a lecture by Jean-Michel Cousteau in a hip cocktail-party atmosphere to inspire the public to explore issues of environmental sustainability. Tickets are available for advance purchase only. For information, contact (425) 260-0418 or via email.

Wednesday, April 20
Surface Water Management Issues for Sustainable Development
An expert panel will address all aspects of a project including the geotechnical study, storm water engineering, permitting and economic versus environmental benefits. This event is part of the Brown Bag Series sponsored by the Sustainable Development Task Force of Snohomish County, and will be held Wednesday, April 20th from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm at the PUD Building Training Center, 2320 California St, Everett.

Thursday & Friday, April 28 & 29
What Makes It Green?
The AIA Seattle Committee on the Environment’s annual event will be held at Seattle City Hall this year. For more information email or call (206) 448-4938.

Every Saturday & Sunday through May 1
Olympia Built Green
The Puget Sound Energy Living Green Idea Home & Expo is open in Olympia every Saturday and Sunday through May 1 showcasing three Built Green™ certified homes. The homes are located in Cooper Crest, a new low-impact development in the City of Olympia, built by SoundBuilt Homes. Two homes incorporate many environmentally friendly products and finish materials, such as bamboo floors, wool carpets, decking and low-VOC (volatile organic compound) interior paint. One home features an unfinished interior that allows visitors to see energy efficient and environmentally friendly construction techniques that are normally covered up in a finished home. Seminars and exhibits by vendors, suppliers and sub-contractors involved in building of the three homes will be ongoing each weekend, along with tours. Admission is free (suggested $5 donation to the PSE "Warm Home Fund" or Thurston County Food Bank). Directions.

Wednesday, May 18
Low Impact Development in Puget Sound: Experiences and Practices in Residential Development
During this one-day accredited seminar at the MBA, a diverse group of professionals will share their low impact development experiences. Instead of a theoretical discussion, expect balanced and realistic perspectives on the integration of LID techniques into residential communities. Key questions remain about this evolving development practice and its value to consumers, the environment, and the bottom line. Gain a broader understanding of the merits or challenges of using low impact development techniques to create livable communities. Faculty includes principals from CamWest, Snohomish County, Hillis, Clark, Martin and Peterson law offices, Weber + Thompson Architects, Associated Earth Sciences, Triad Associates and Washington State University. The seminar will be held on Wednesday, May 18 at the MBA Housing Center from 9:00 am - 4:30 pm. For further information and to register, contact Lorman Education Services at 1-888-678-5565 or visit their website and enter seminar id 345355 in the Express Registration box. Please mention priority code 17130 when registering.

MBA Calendar of Events is posted at the bottom left of the homepage. For more information, contact James Cadungug at (425) 460-8213.

Using Biodiesel Fuel

Earthwise Excavation septic system installation on Camano Island with a loader running on biodiesel. (Photo: Jennifer Buchanan/The Herald)

One Company’s Success
Built Green member Earthwise Excavation has had success with using biodiesel fuel in its construction equipment. Earthwise uses biodiesel fuel in all 18 of its vehicles, from bulldozers and backhoes to the trucks that haul them to work sites. The company does not just use B10 or B20 biodiesel fuel (which is the 10 and 20 percent biodiesel some businesses have begun mixing with regular diesel fuel), but 100 percent soy-crop biodiesel fuel. "This vegetable oil fuel burns well in diesel engines, and the results are amazing," says co-owner Albert Postema. "I was able to hook up with Alternative FuelWerks in Ballard as a supplier. We were both heading in the same direction, trying to lessen the impact on the environment from diesel fuel. By comparison with other fuels, biodiesel is almost carbon-neutral."

Energy Star Homes NW

Model Home Offer: Get $500 when you open an Energy Star Model Home
A Built Green Home with Energy Star can reach the 4-star level…or beyond! Builders opening an Energy Star model home will receive expert technical assistance in meeting the standards, sales staff training, and free marketing materials. Models should be open for 3 months. There is also a 20-30% rebate for Energy Star Advertising, and public relations support for openings. In addition, check with your utility to see if it provides help with Energy Star lights and fixtures. The Energy Star Home improvements can save at least 15 percent on utility costs for your homebuyers, and savings may be higher with the advanced performance of Energy Star lighting and appliances.

Email Tom Balderston, Puget Sound builder outreach specialist. For general program information on the website.

Puget Sound Energy

PSE donates appliances to Habitat for Humanity homeowner in Snoqualmie Ridge

Puget Sound Energy Finds One Million Reasons to Celebrate
Puget Sound Energy recently became Washington's first utility to serve one million electric customers. To celebrate, PSE presented its ceremonial one-millionth power customer with free, energy-efficient Energy Star appliances and a ceremonial gold electric meter at the home in Snoqualmie Ridge. The customer's residence is currently under construction using Built Green standards for energy efficiency, and is being built by Habitat for Humanity of East King County. PSE also announced that, on behalf of all 1 million PSE electric customers, the company is donating the equivalent of 1 million kilowatt-hours of free electricity to help needy households pay their energy bills. The utility's $60,000 donation to the PSE-Salvation Army Warm Home Fund approximates Puget Sound Energy’s retail price for 1 million kilowatt-hours of electric power. Meanwhile, the company also is buying enough "green tags" from the Bonneville Environmental Foundation to essentially convert the 1 million kilowatt-hours worth of donated electricity into "green" power. Besides its 1 million electric customers, PSE also has 672,000 natural-gas customers. Altogether, the utility serves half of all Washington households.

Habitat's Newest Home

Newest Habitat for Humanity home in Snoqualmie Ridge has views of beautiful mountains and trees!

Habitat for Humanity's Newest Built Green Home
A local affiliate of Habitat for Humanity is building the largest Habitat community in the Pacific Northwest in the Built Green community of Snoqualmie Ridge. The East King County affiliate has built homes for 24 Habitat families in Snoqualmie, and has received donated land from Weyerhaeuser for an additional 26 homes. Two homes are currently completing construction, including the affiliate's first Built Green home, thanks to sponsorship from Lumbermans. Built Green waives all certification fees for such income-qualified homes. These homes will be complete by June. Volunteers are welcome at the Habitat worksite on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Call the Habitat office at (425) 869-6007 to schedule a time to come out and build!

New Built Green Assistant

We are happy to announce the hiring of our new Built Green Assistant, Amanda Reed. Amanda comes to us with an educational background in Art History and a professional background in administrative support. She is very excited to be a part of the green building movement in Seattle and support the growth of Built Green. Please contact Amanda with any questions you may have about the program or to get help with any part of the certification process!

She can be reached via email or at (425) 460-8238.

From the Director

Need Workers?
The Millionair Club Charity has been a source of temporary labor in the Seattle area for 84 years, and has often worked with members of the Master Builders Association. The club serves only people who want to work, people who want to help themselves and who are willing to let the Millionair Club be part of their effort. Potential workers must apply, go through an orientation and interview, and agree to UA testing and a background check via the Washington State Patrol system. When successfully enrolled in the worker pool, they receive picture ID cards. When assigned to a job, there is follow-up and monitoring. The club does not specify wages or hours and does not charge either the employer or the worker any fees. They ask that a minimum wage of $8.00 – more for certain labor requiring determined skills – and at least a four-hour workday is part of the agreement. The club, in many cases, supplies transportation, even to Eastside businesses. Another important feature of the Millionair Club’s service is the offer of taking on all payroll aspects for any employer who may want to use several workers over a longer time. This means no employment hassle and no worries about taxes. This service varies cost-wise due to differing L&I rates but, generally speaking, $11.50 per hour would be billed for a job paying $8.00.

My connection with the Millionair Club arose through a Built Green home in Seattle where the homeowner is involved with the charity and Built Green members installed a low-voltage system in the home. Even if you don't have a need for workers in your company, there is always a need for donated items such as worker overalls, men’s white socks, disposable razors, and food and hygiene items.

For more information, call (206) 728-JOBS (5627) and ask for Doug Hamre, Day Labor Program Manager, or Richard Bridges, Executive Director.

Robin Rogers, Program Director

Product Spotlight

Mutual Materials' TurfStone is an interlocking, permeable system, which provide an alternative solution to the problem of permanently destroying green space that is sometimes used for parking vehicles such as boats and RVs. With a 40% open area, TurfStone allows ground cover to grow through, while providing the necessary structural strength for vehicle traffic. TurfStone also provides excellent erosion control and soil stabilization to slopes, embankments and low flow channels.

For information on how to list your "green" products* in this space, please contact MBA Sales & Marketing Director Pam Worner by phone at (425) 460-8217, or via email.
*Products must be able to meet at least one Built Green credit (see the four Built Green checklists on our website) to qualify, and the company must be a member-in-good-standing of Built Green.

Built Green Conference

Read about the highly successful Built Green Conference and Expo, Greening the 21st Century, held March 17 at Seattle Center. The conference was made possible by presenting conference sponsors AHBL, King County Solid Waste, Puget Sound Energy, City of Seattle, Northwest Ecobuilding Guild and Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties.

On Friday, March 18, a sold-out tour of Built Green certified homes began at the Environmental Home Center, with builders and designers on-site to talk about the projects. View the tour here.

Built Green Merchandise

Show off your involvement in and support of the Built Green program by purchasing our branded merchandise: baseball caps, denim shirts, jackets and bags. Part of the proceeds from the sale of Built Green logo items are returned to the Built Green program. Click here to shop and order yours.

BG Member News

The Seattle Built Green Design Competition awards were announced during the Built Green Conference at the Seattle Center on March 17. Projects from the 34 competition participants represent a total of 215 living units and range from home remodels and single-family residences, to multifamily and community development projects. The selected projects will receive a financial award of $1,000-$10,000. Four of the homes entered in the competition were featured as part of a green homes tour. The seven winners in the four Built Green programs are:

• Remodels
BLIP Design
Velocipede Architects

• Home Builders
Green Leaf Construction
Martha Rose Construction, Inc.
Sunshine Construction

• Multi-family
Archdiocesan Housing Authority, Environmental Works
Beacon Development Group, and Marpac Construction for Katherine's Place, with 26 units of affordable housing

• Communities
Seattle Housing Authority, Mithun, SvR Design Company and Nakano Associations for High Point Redevelopment Phase I, which will feature 1049 affordable and market rate housing units.

Homebuilder Responsible for Toxic Mold in Oregon
A Beaverton, Oregon, homebuilder is being held accountable for a moldy house that made a family sick. Adair Homes, Inc. typically builds about 800 houses a year in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Read more on eMediaWire. Built Green has member companies that can help prevent mold through vapor barriers and good construction practices, or identify mold through analysis, or clean up mold through environmental technologies. Check out Built Green members online.

Fuel Efficient Vehicles "Patriotic"
A recent poll shows that two out of three Americans now agree that it is patriotic to buy a fuel-efficient vehicle that uses less gasoline and, therefore allows our country to import less oil from the Middle East. Read more. At the Built Green Conference, attendees got to see and sit in the first SUV hybrid, the Ford Escape, from Ford of Bellevue.

Awards

Applications Due in May for Multifamily Awards
You can win unrestricted funding and public recognition for your property and asset management work. The Enterprise Foundation will present the 10th annual MetLife Foundation Awards for Excellence in Affordable Housing. First place winners receive $25,000; second place winners, $15,000; and third place, $10,000. The awards are open to 501(c)(3) community-based or regional nonprofit organizations and Tribes/Tribally Designated Housing Entities. Their website and for the application. For more information, please send an email. The deadline for applications is May 15, 2005.

Excellence in Concrete Awards
Applications are being accepted for the 2005 Award for Excellence in Concrete Construction in eight categories, including residential – single or multifamily, concrete paving, architectural concrete and tilt-up non-industrial structures. Entries must be received by Friday, April 29 at the Washington Aggregates and Concrete Association, a Built Green member association. For more information call (206) 878-1622 or send an email.

Courses

See the MBA University Winter Education Catalog for a Full List of MBAU Courses. Email or call (425) 460-8238 for information or to register.

Thursday, April 21
Built Green Sales Boot Camp provides intensive practice at pitching green features and teaches you how to identify buyer types. Real estate clock hours are offered for this class that will be held at the MBA on Thursday, April 21 from 8 a.m. to noon.

Various Dates
Introduction to Green Remodeling
Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) is offering free green home remodeling classes in neighborhoods around Seattle. SPU’s green home remodel guides are available online.

• Sunday, April 17 from 2-4 pm at Rainier Beach Library
• Monday, April 18 from 6-7:45 pm at West Seattle Library
• Saturday, May 14 from 2-4 pm at Northeast Library
• Monday, May 16 from 6-7:45 pm at University Library
• Saturday, May 28 from 2-4 pm at Capitol Hill Library
• Saturday, June 11 from 2-4 pm at University Library

Plus there is a series of six in-depth classes on different green remodel topics held at the Central Library Auditorium, 1000 4th Ave, in downtown Seattle from 6 pm to 7:30 pm.

Green Home Remodel Class Series

• April 12: Creating a Dry Garden: Plants that Thrive on Benign Neglect
• April 20: Beautiful Salvage: Used Building Materials in Remodeling Projects
• May 2: Green and Healthy for Kids
• May 10: Supergreen: Pushing the Envelope on Green Home Design

For more information on any of the green remodeling classes, click here. RSVP and questions can be emailed to Thor Peterson.

King County

Habitat Plan for the Green/Duwamish and Central Puget Sound Watershed
The draft plan is available for public review and comment now through Monday, April 25. When finalized, the Habitat Plan will provide a comprehensive, long-term guide to protecting and restoring salmon habitat in southern King County. This plan will contribute to recovery of Chinook salmon across Puget Sound through the regional Shared Strategy. Comments may be emailed.

Snohomish County

Sustainable Development Kiosk Nears Completion
The Sustainable Development Task Force (SDTF) is in the final stages of designing a kiosk to promote sustainable development at various sites throughout the county. Using a grant from the Puget Sound Action Team (PSAT) the kiosk will educate the public about four categories of building and development: site, materials, water & energy. The goal is to have the kiosk move around to different locations. SDTF is currently seeking public areas to display the kiosk. Companies, cities and organizations can sponsor a panel to promote the sustainable development technologies and strategies most important to them. If you are interested in hosting the kiosk or sponsoring panel please call Chris Fate at (425) 783-8274. Snohomish County's website.

Snohomish PUD

PUD Offers an Easy Way to Get a Handle on Energy Usage
PUD business customers can take advantage of a free, Internet-accessible way to analyze electric consumption and charges from Snohomish County PUD. When they register for PowerTrend 2.0, businesses also help the PUD work more effectively with them to meet their energy needs and answer questions. Once signed up, they can log onto password-protected account information to:
• Review the usage and costs for facilities;
• Easily view and print graphical displays of use and cost data
• for three years;
• Access all use/cost information for multiple business accounts; and
• View account information anytime.
For more information on PowerTrend, including free registration, call
PUD Executive Accounts at (425) 783-8275.

Accepting Donations

Habitat for Humanity Accepts Donations for Materials through Second Use
Builders are invited to make building material donations to Habitat for Humanity of East King County. Habitat works with Second Use Building Materials, a Built Green/MBA member company, to divert recyclable and reusable materials from landfills while reselling materials at affordable prices to the public. If needed, Second Use will pick up donations directly from worksites. When materials are sold to the public, 50 percent of the profits are given to Habitat for Humanity. Please call the Habitat line at Second Use to discuss your material donations. Phone: (206) 763-6929 or visit the website.

Green Home Videos

NAHB Partners with HGTV to Provide Green Home Videos
A new website provides up-to-date information on environmentally-friendly construction technologies and building practices. The first video features the first home built to the National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) new Model Green Home Building Guidelines. HGTVPro and NAHB plan to educate builders through a series of 30 or more videos produced by NAHB focusing on best practices in green home construction. The site will also offer informational articles and a free electronic newsletter.

Further Reading

The Green Building Initiative an organization that promotes the use of NAHB's new green home building guidelines, is now providing green guidelines for commercial projects. Green Globes is an interactive, web-based, commercial green building assessment protocol that guides the integration of green principles into a building's design. Adapted from Green Globes of Canada, it has just been introduced to the US market. A free "test drive" is available on the website.

Contact Built Green

Master Builders Association
335 - 116th Avenue SE
Bellevue, WA 98004
Directions
Phone (425) 460-8238
Fax (425) 646-5985
builtgreen@mbaks.com

MBA Calendar of Events

If you have news items for this newsletter, please send us an email.