Featured Home

Stafford Homes has adopted the name of its parent company, DR Horton, the largest home builder in the U.S. One thing hasn't changed: the company continues to build quality Built Green homes in the Puget Sound region. This is one of many homes the company has certified in the Issaquah Highlands development, a Built Green certified community. As part of this community DR Horton promotes site and water protection, adopting such practices as water management systems that allow groundwater to recharge, infiltration systems for rooftop runoff, erosion controls through not disposing of topsoil in lowlands, and the use of compost to stabilize disturbed slopes. In addition to the many green features of the home itself, open spaces, walking trails and parks are features of the surrounding community.

New Members

Dean Homes, Bellevue – Exclusive Residences

Emerald City CTi, Issaquah – Repair/ Resurface Driveways, Patios, Pool Decks

Kirkland Builders Group, Kirkland – Quality Home Builders

Living Lightly (email), Seattle – Green Remodeling and Development

McNaughton Associates (email), Bellevue – Building Designers

Natural Building Solutions (email), Seattle – Green Remodeling and Development

View our current members.

Events

Sustainability Forum for Snohomish County will be held Feb. 27, 2004 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the PUD Auditorium in Everett. For registration info click here and go to News and Events. See more details below.

Seattle Home Show will once again feature a Built Green exhibit at the Seattle Exhibition Center on Feb. 14 – 22, from 10:00 a.m. until 8:30 or 9:00 p.m. most days. Andersen Windows stepped forward to sponsor our space, while Skyline Pacific Northwest Displays will help out again with the booth itself. Want to participate in staffing the booth as a Built Green member? Contact Robin Rogers via email.

National Green Building Conference The National Association of Home Builders is sponsoring its 2004 annual National Green Building Conference - Bringing Home the Green - in Austin, Texas, the birthplace of the green building movement, March 14-16. This Conference explores cutting edge building technologies and looks at the future of green building in America. Register online or contact the NAHB University of Housing at 800.368.5242, ext. 8338 or registrar@nahb.com.

Built Green Conference April 6 For a closer look at our local green home building scene, the second Built Green Conference will be held April 6 at Pickering Barn in Issaquah. Plans are underway for an all-day meeting with keynote speaker Bob Brownell of Bielinski Homes, break-out sessions, a trade show of green products and closing reception. Mark your calendars! To provide input for desired course content, contact Robin Rogers via email. For exhibits and sponsorship information, please contact Pam Worner via email or by calling 425.451.7920. Mark your calendars!

Pickering Barn has been completely renovated and modernized to provide excellent meeting facilities and plenty of parking. Over 80% of the siding, columns and beams were salvaged from the original barn structure for reuse in the renovation, and modern recycled materials were used extensively. Directions

Built Green Idea Home The Grand Opening of the Puget Sound Energy Built Green Idea Home will be on Saturday, February 14, in Issaquah Highlands. Directions to Issaquah Highlands. Map of Issaquah Highlands Community. A special course will be offered on the building of the Idea Home - designed for builders and other industry professionals - in conjunction with the Built Green Conference on April 6. The Home will be open for nine weekends to the general public as a demonstration of green building products and technologies.

Rampathon 2004 One the favorite MBA charitable events of the year will happen all day on Saturday, May 15: Rampathon. Rampathon is a ramp-building spree across both counties, where MBA members and other volunteers build free wheelchair ramps for low-income disabled homeowners. You can volunteer to be a ramp captain, ramp builder, donate ramp materials or deliver supplies and refreshments by contacting the Master Builders Care Foundation at 425.451.7920. Maybe we could have the first Built Green ramp this year, built with ‘green’ products such as FSC or SFI certified lumber or ipe durable decking that needs no finishing! If you are or know an individual or organization in need of an ADA-approved ramp, please fill out an application by the Feb. 17 application deadline.

Green Homes Book

Good Green Homes is a new "coffee table" book that includes three local green practitioners and Built Green members: Living Shelter Design of Issaquah, Kathleen O’Brien of O'Brien and Company on Bainbridge Island, and Ross Chapin Architects who works with The Cottage Company to design Built Green cottages. From the Book: "creating a good green home isn't just about conservation, about using less or saving more. It's about creating better homes that are healthier to live in, easier on the environment, more valuable over the long-term, and more delightful to come home to." We have a copy of the book in the MBA membership center library for your use.

NAHB Coloring Book

Entitled Homes of Our Own

From the Director

International Builders Show, NAHB and Green Building The highlight of the International Builders Show in Las Vegas for me was the Green Building Subcommittee meeting on the Saturday before the trade show, with more than 40 attendees. For years green building has existed at a sub-subcommittee level of NAHB. NAHB elevated its status last year to full sub-committee within the codes and standards committee, and began some serious work towards supporting its members’ efforts in the green building arena. With substantial dedicated funding from NAHB and the Wood Products Council, the subcommittee has established an advisory board to develop national green building guidelines, or a template, to facilitate green home building in areas with no existing green home building programs. My hope is also to maintain a connection with existing programs. The advisory board and stakeholders will meet in Austin, Texas, after the National Green Building Conference in mid-March to review the draft guidelines. NAHB is also developing a green home builder certification track that should be finalized for a roll-out in January '05. Got input? Send me an email.

Robin Rogers, Program Director

Community Leaders Meet to Discuss Sustainable Growth in Snohomish

A forum at the PUD Auditorium in Everett on February 27 from 8:00 am to noon will provide a community discussion on how green building and sustainable development practices can contribute to economic vitality in Snohomish County. The Forum features experts and civic leaders engaging in a discussion of practical steps to achieve sustainable growth in the county. Speakers include County Executive, Aaron Reardon; Ed Hansen from Snohomish County PUD; Sam Anderson the executive officer of the Master Builders Assocation; Bert Gregory with Mithun Architects; Bill Trimm the Snohomish County Community Development Director; and others. The forum is open to the public.
For registration info visit their website and click on News and Events. Please call Deanna Seaman at 425-388-6473 for more information. Or call PUD at 425-783-8275.

Product Spotlight

Enercept Panels – Super-Insulated Building Systems

Enercept structural insulated panels offer faster construction, less jobsite waste, and increased strength, while reducing energy use by 50%.

Distributor: www.greendepotinc.com.

For information on how to list your "green" products* in this space, please contact Pam Worner by phone at 425.451.7920 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. We will list no more than three per newsletter.

New Certified Projects

Congratulations to three of our builders this month for certifying a total of 265 homes last month as Built Green! Bennett Homes certified 57; Shea Homes has 131 and The Dwelling Company completed 77.

Green Demographics

MBA Public Policy Director, Scott Hildebrand, points out that the environment could have an impact on the big election this year. As reported in American Demographics Magazine, the presidential race could be close enough (remember 2000?) that the "environmental" votes could swing certain states. Between 7 and 11 percent (depending on age) of voters in the 2000 election cast their ballots based primarily on a candidate’s stance on green issues, according to an exit poll conducted by the LA Times Nov. 7, 2000. So, even though only about five percent of voters polled on Election Day list the environment as one of their two most important issues, green might play a decisive role. In Oregon for example, Bush lost the state by less than one percent of the vote, and in Florida the margin was less than a thousand votes. The poll and the article are available through subscription.

Demographics

The Los Angeles Times

Built Green Tacoma

Our home building compatriots to the south have a new Built Green program launched last fall. As part of their educational program, they will hold classes in Tacoma on the following Built Green topics:

Energy Efficient Construction CGB/CGA/7.5 RE on Feb. 12

Build/Design Green and Profit on April 15

Tapping the Green in Built Green on Sept. 8

For more information on these or other classes in Tacoma, please call Amanda Fields at BIAW at 800.228.4229.

Built Green in USA

Built Green is spreading! The name is trademarked by Built Green™ Colorado, but now crosses several state lines with permission from our namesake:

Built Green Colorado

Built Green Kitsap

Built Green of Southwestern Washington

Built Green Pierce County

Vermont Built Green

Hawaii Built Green

Built Green Santa Barbara

Built Green of King and Snohomish Counties

Green home building programs are mainly offered by NAHB-member home builder associations, but several are run by municipalities, utility companies or non-profit organizations. There are currently about thirty such programs in the U.S. To view green home building programs in the U.S., visit the NAHB Research Center website.

MBA University

Learn at Lunch is on the second Wednesday of every month at the MBA. On Feb. 11, Brian Cloward, from Mithun Architects and lead designer of the Built Green Idea Home, will be speaking about the evolution of a demonstration Built Green home, how it was built within a specified budget, and lessons that were learned along the way. Brian brings his perspective from both a builder’s and designer’s eye.

Building, Marketing and Financing Green Construction teaches realtors, builders and other industry partners how to leverage green to benefit your business. Taught by Dave Porter of Countrywide Home Loans, a Built Green veteran and popular speaker on the topic, this course offers 3.5 clock hours. Thursday, Feb. 5 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Cost: $45 members, $90 non-members.

Site, Soils and Landscaping: Environmentally Friendly Techniques offers a greener bottom line with these low impact practices with easier installation, fewer callbacks and happier customers. Start with efficient site and soil management techniques to produce healthier soils, and progress to establishing a landscape using the right plants for the site, organic fertilization, compost, mulching, integrated pest management and other field-tested practices – and how to sell these upgrades to your clients. All three instructors are experts in their fields: David McDonald of Seattle Public Utilities, Ladd Smith of InHarmony, and Len Zickler of AHBL. Wednesday, Feb. 25 from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the MBA. Cost: $45 members, $90 non-members.

Built Green Orientation provides an overview of the entire program on March 17 from 8 - 10 am at the MBA. The course is free and open to anyone. Register by calling 425.451.7920. This course (or equivalent) is required for certifying a Built Green project.

MBA Calendar of Events

Many other courses are available through the MBA University. Contact Kelly Lykken for information and to register at 425.451.7920 or via email.

Energy Star Lighting Rebates – PSE’s 2004 Lighting program will kick off in 2004 with a $2 rebate on Energy Star qualified compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFL's). Look for the coupons in your February electric bill, or while shopping at area retailers of CFL's. Coupons can be redeemed for a discount right at the cash register. There will be special promotions throughout the year on variety of Energy Star Qualified CFL's for use in specialty applications, such as 3-way lamps, Recessed cans, and Outdoor fixtures. Rebates for these products will be higher than $2. Watch for more updates on www.pse.com, and in future editions of the E-Newsletter.

Save up to $20 on Energy Star Qualified fluorescent lighting fixtures. PSE will have rebates of $10 for outdoor, and $20 for indoor fixtures that qualify for the Energy Star label. These coupons will be available in February. Visit www.pse.com for details and a list of participating retailers. Energy Star qualified lighting choices use 75% less energy, and last up to 10 times longer than standard bulbs. Start 2004 off right by using PSE coupons to begin saving today.

Sustainable Development Training for DDES Employees
The DDES (Department of Development and Environmental Services) launched a sustainable development training series in January with an introduction to Built Green. The training is part of King County’s effort to support and promote low impact development and green building in the County. The objective of the training is to provide education and resources on sustainable development to DDES staff including planners, engineers, management, and other code related officials. The trainings are structured to provide detailed, technical information on design strategies and construction practices, highlighting successful case studies in our region. Over the next several weeks, additional training is scheduled on Soil BMPs for Stormwater Management, Erosion Control and Landscape Success; a field trip to Redmond Ridge; Pervious Pavement; a field trip to SEA Streets and the Broadview Green Grid Project to study bioretention in action; and finally Green Roofs. For further information, contact either Katie Spataro via email in the Solid Waste Division at 206-263-6037 or Cynthia Moffitt via email in DDES at 206-296-7095.

Contact Built Green

Master Builders Association
335 – 116th Avenue SE
Bellevue, WA 98004
Directions
P: 425.451.7920
P: 800.522.2209
F: 425.646.5985
builtgreen@mbaks.com