Featured Home

The newest Built Green-certified multifamily project is the recently completed Luminaire Condominiums in the Lake City neighborhood of Seattle. Built by Kauri Investments, these 50 units feature certified recycled steel stud framing. Each home also includes bamboo flooring, a rapidly renewable material that is harder, more moisture-resistant and more stable than oak. A "rain screen" exterior helps withstand the Northwest’s weather by deterring rainwater intrusion into walls – similar to the way a rain fly over a tent keeps a tent drier. CAT-5e, CATV and Smart Box wiring provide high-speed Internet service to promote live-work lifestyle and gas-saving telecommuting. The building has secured underground parking that minimizes its footprint on its urban infill lot. This project is also certified by the City of Seattle’s Built Smart program to ensure the building minimizes energy consumption. Read more on the "Case Studies" page. Incidentally, Kauri Investments takes its name from the kauri tree, a native to New Zealand that can grow to several hundred feet tall and live a thousand years. The tree symbolizes shelter, growth, agelessness, strength and beauty.

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

New Sponsor

Parsons Public Relations
Parsons Public Relations has become the newest sponsor of the Built Green program through an in-kind donation of its specialty: providing senior-level counsel in communications and marketing services for design, architecture, horticulture and sustainably-minded companies and organizations. The company’s impressive list of relevant clients includes Mithun, Environmental Home Center, Shirey Contracting, Sustainable Northwest, Sustainable Development Center, EnviroStars and more. We’re thrilled to have the company’s expert assistance as we continue to promote the Built Green program!

New Members

Advanced Building Consultants Inc.
Start Building Your Dream Home Today...It's as Simple as ABC!

Baylis Architects
Commercial, Multifamily, Residential, Retail and Interior Architecture

Core Design Inc.
Planning, Civil Engineering and Surveying

Kauri Investments Ltd.
Building Assets with Management

Leightonbuilds Inc.
Restorations, Remodels and New Construction

Lynden Door Inc.
Standard Construction, Residential and Architectural Doors

Milgard Windows
Clearly the Best

The Old European Floors Inc.
Environmentally Friendly Floors

Regal Homes LLC
Building the American Dream One Home at a Time

Robert Harrison Architects
Lyrical Sustainable Design

Suncadia
Resort - Community – Legacy in Roslyn, WA

View our current members.

MBA Website Listing

MBA Website Listing
Are you an MBA member? If so, you can have your listing on the MBA website upgraded with a hyperlink to your own website. The cost is $200 for a hyperlink to your website for one calendar year. Email Janna Williamson if you’d like to particiapte. The MBA website averages 8,000 unique visitors per month and is searchable by type of business, so your business could benefit from the added accessibility!

Rediscovered Wood

Certification for Rediscovered Wood SmartWood evaluates forest products operations that are reclaiming or using reclaimed, recycled, and/or salvaged wood materials. Those that meet the SmartWood standards are awarded certification for Rediscovered Wood. The program is available to mills, secondary manufacturers, brokers/distributors, wholesalers and other outlets.

Events

Friday, July 8
Whatcom County
Join the Building Industry Association of Whatcom County for a FREE Builders Breakfast, sponsored by Puget Sound Energy. This event is open to any builders, sub-contractors, remodelers or anyone interested in learning more about the cost-saving benefits through Energy Star. This event will be held at the first three Built Green projects in Whatcom County on Friday, July 8 from 7:30 a.m. Free food and drinks with guided tours of Energy Star and Built Green-certified homes will be provided at the 1500 block of Britton Circle in Bellingham, WA.

Monday, July 11
Green Development=Economic Development
Bert Gregory of Mithun and Dennis Wilde of Edlen Development will present Green Development=Economic Development on Monday, July 11 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Seattle Central Library Auditorium. More information

Wednesday, July 13
Brown Bag Lunch will be held at the PUD Building Training Center at 2320 California St. in Everett on Wednesday, July 13 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Green materials, job-site recycling and healthy materials will be the focus. Bring your own lunch or purchase one at the Deli located in the PUD lobby. For more information and to RSVP, please call Kathy Kiwala, Snohomish County at (425) 388-3425 and press "0." Directions

Thursday, July 14 to Saturday, July 16
The North American Rainwater Harvesting Conference will include two days of presentations, poster sessions, and exhibit displays at Seattle Center. There will be guided tours on Wednesday, July 13 and self-guided tours on Saturday, July 16. More info...

August 4-6
Plan Ahead!
The Knowledge by Design Conference is slated for August 4-6 in Seattle.

Friday, September 17 to Sunday, September 19
Kittitas Valley Tour of Homes will feature a Built Green Showcase Lodge located in the Suncadia Resort near Roslyn, WA, among many other fine homes. This Built Green demonstration home will be partially completed so the structure, systems, insulation and other internal materials are visible. For more information, call (800) 492-9422 or click here.

October 6-9
Seattle Interior Show will be held October 6-9 at the Washington State Convention Center. More info...

March 16, 2006
The Built Green Conference 2006 will be held March 16, 2006! Read about last year’s event.

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

Rain Barrels

Rain Barrels Made by Local Non-Profit
At Work! introduces a new product to enhance its commitment to the beautiful Northwest environment: rain barrels. Made with food grade barrels that used to hold peppers and olives, they reuse these colorful barrels to create a product that will be useful to home garden or business landscaping needs. Two styles of rain barrels are available: a downspout barrel ($65.26 each) and a series connecting barrel ($42.28 each), plus tax an delivery charges.

These may be purchased at the Bellevue, Issaquah or Kenmore offices and either picked up at the Issaquah location or delivered locally to your home or business! To order your rain barrels, call Jeff Strom at (425) 274-4040 or (425) 766-7582, or contact him via email. Mention that you saw it in Built Green News! After ordering, pick up locations are at AtWork! locations in either Bellevue or Issaquah. AtWork!'s mission is to help people with disabilities be productive, integrated and contributing members of their communities, while providing customized commercial solutions for area businesses which create employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Courses

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

Tuesday, July 12
Introduction to Built Green
This free seminar provides an introduction to the Built Green™ program from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Tuesday, July 12 at the MBA Housing Center in Bellevue. Learn how to certify a project, find out what "green" means, how the Built Green program works and other resources. The seminar presents examples of projects and covers how to fill out the Built Green checklist. This seminar fulfills the course requirement to certify homes as Built Green. For further information, contact education@mbaks.com or (425) 460-8238.

October 2005 – June 2006
Sustainable Building Advisor
The Sustainable Building Advisor Certificate Program is a nine-month, specialized training program, designed to enable graduates to advise employers or clients on strategies and tools for implementing sustainable building. Taught by Built Green-member company O’Brien and Company, classes meet once a month on a Friday and Saturday at Seattle Central Community College. The registration deadline is Thursday, Sept. 1.

King County

King County Unveils New Incentives to "Build Green"
On Wednesday, June 22, King County Executive Ron Sims announced new incentives for projects to incorporate green building and low impact development. The new incentives highlight King County's commitment to sustainable development and are intended to encourage builders and developers to design and build projects engineered in ways most friendly to the environment. The incentives, administered by King County Departments of Natural Resources and Parks (DNRP) and DDES, are effective immediately for projects permitted in unincorporated King County. They include:

Dedicated Green Track at DDES for green building and low impact development projects. Building and development proposals in this track are assigned to a Green Team, composed of selected King County staff with expertise in green design and construction techniques and in Built Green™ and LEED™ programs.

No Cost DDES Project Management, for residential permit applications achieving a Built Green™ five-star rating. The DDES Project Manager provides customers with a single point of contact during the permit review process, enhancing service levels, efficiency and predictability for the customer.

Free green building technical consulting services on Tuesday mornings, 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., at the DDES Permit Center, or by appointment by contacting the King County Green Building program at (206) 263-6037 or via email.

Cost-sharing and fee discounts for use of low-impact development best management practices (BMPs) such as converting existing impervious surfaces to native-vegetated landscape, compost-amended lawn or grass surface, or modular-grid pavement. Free LID technical consulting by appointment by contacting Storm Water Services at (206) 296-1973 or via email.

For more information about the new incentives contact the King County Green Building Program at (206) 263-6037 or online.

From the Director

We’ve been publishing Built Green News since Oct. 2003, and each week there is still more news! We continue to have more members, more certifications, more resources and products, and more interest in residential green building. This newsletter was designed to communicate with our members in a way that would also be sustainable – and save paper. The only paper we use is for archiving back issues of the newsletters. Each month more than 3,000 people receive the newsletter via e-mail. We also post Built Green News on the Built Green website for even greater access; our website averages more than 4,500 unique visitors per month with visitors clicking all around in the site to not only the news, but also to see member companies, to view case studies and to find resources on how to build "green."

And now, we have yet another online resource for green home building in the state of Washington, and that is the new Built Green Washington website made possible through a grant from the state Department of Ecology (see top of page). This website allows all the Built Green programs in Washington to be connected via one internet source so that a resident anywhere in the state can find a Built Green program, resources or upcoming events.

We also have two other programs to thank in particular for leading the way: the first is Built Green Colorado, our namesake that was begun in 1995. Back in 2000, the Home Builders Association of Metro Denver, granted permission to our program to use the registered trademark name “Built Green” and provided a great model for a green home building program. Thanks are also due to Built Green Kitsap for leading the way in Washington. It was launched as Build a Better Kitsap by the Home Builders Association of Kitsap County and later became Built Green Kitsap. Thanks to you both!

Robin Rogers, Program Director

Featured Website

The Built Green Washington Website
Check out the just-launched statewide website for Built Green programs and information. Created with funding from the Washington State Department of Ecology, this new website offers a portal to residential green building programs all across the state, as well as information on green building in general. Content was provided by O’Brien and Company, and web design and functionality was created by Coryography Design. Existing Built Green programs in the state have been collaborating to provide what we hope will become a useful resource to anyone in Washington designing, building, buying or maintaining a "green" home. The site features an up-to-date calendar of events and current news items related to green building anywhere in Washington. If you have items to include, please send them an email.

New Certifications

Last month there were 39 new Built Green certifications, with 36 new single-family homes, two remodels and one new multifamily project. Built Green certifications can achieve different star levels depending on the number of items selected on the checklists; a higher star rating signifies more points achieved. Kauri Investments certified a two-star multifamily project of 50 condominiums in Lake City; Greenleaf Construction certified a three-star remodel; Blip Design Architects certified a three-star remodel; Tennyson Homes certified a new, three-star single family home; and Quadrant Homes, one of the original Built Green builder members, certified 35 three-star single family homes in June. Congratulations to these builders and designers who make the extra effort to build green!

Building Blitz 2006

Habitat for Humanity Building Blitz 2006 Next June, Habitat for Humanity of East King County is planning a five-day Built Green Builder's Blitz in Snoqualmie Ridge, a development near the city of Snoqualmie. If you would like participate in this highly visible way of helping the community, please contact Tom Granger via email or (425) 869-6007.

Call for Awards!

Enter the AIA-Sunset Western Home Awards 2006
Every other year Sunset magazine offers the Western Home Awards program. Cosponsored by the American Institute of Architects and Sunset since 1957, it spotlights outstanding residential design in the 13 Western states and western Canada. Categories include Custom-Designed Northwest Homes, Remodels, Restorations, Cabins, Mass-Produced and Speculative Houses and New Planned Communities.

Energy Value Housing Awards 2006
The awards honor builders who voluntarily incorporate energy efficiency in the design, construction and marketing of new homes. View past winners to get inspired – only one builder in Washington has won an EVHA in the manufactured housing category. You could be the second!

Call for Abstracts!

2006 Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities Conference, Awards and Trade Show
Green Roofs for Healthy Cities is looking for papers for its Fourth Annual International Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities Conference, Awards and Trade Show May 11-12, 2006 in Boston, MA. A 300-word abstract and 50-word biography is due by Friday, Sept. 30, and final papers by Friday, January 13, 2006. Read more...

Earth Hero Awards

Earth Hero Awards Presented by King County
King County Executive Ron Sims recently presented "Earth Hero" awards to local projects and businesses, including the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties, for projects in King County with green building and/or low impact development components. Award winners included:

Residential Development

• CamWest, a Built Green member, for the Shamrock development east of Renton, which incorporates low impact development design.
• Quadrant Homes, one of the original four Built Green builders, for incorporating green building standards into all new construction.

Custom Single Family Construction

• Jim and Susan Sproull for the green vegetated roof on their Denny Creek workshop designed by Rob Harrison Architects and constructed by Sunshine Construction, both Built Green members companies.

Commercial Development

• Seattle Public Utilities, a Built Green member organization, for the Cedar River Watershed Conference Center.
• Green River Community College for the new technology center.

Supporting Organizations

• Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties for partnering with King County to establish the Built Green™ program.
• Living Shelter Design Architects, a Built Green member, in Issaquah for specializing in innovative green design for several projects recently permitted in unincorporated King County.

BG Member News

Built Green Members Receive Awards for Remodeling Excellence (REX). REX Award winners include AAA Kartak Glass & Closet Corp., Everett; Hughes Building Co. Inc., Redmond; and Westhill Inc., Woodinville. A judging panel, which consisted of local and national remodelers, media experts and architects, received a total of 43 entries for 24 categories. Read more...

Westhill Inc. won an award for a kitchen remodel that featured bamboo floors.

Brian Cloward, co-chair of Built Green’s executive committee, was named as an associate with Mithun Architects. Cloward has been instrumental in shaping the Built Green program, as well as in providing continuous support for program improvements and development.

Ellen Southard, a principal with Swenson Say Fagét, was awarded an AIA Seattle Honor Award, given annually to recognize outstanding achievements by architects and their allies. Southard undertook an extensive research project to bring forward the history of the unique and popular Seattle Times/AIA Home of the Month feature. Read more...

A breakfast room designed and built by J.A.S. Design-Build was featured in a recent issue of Sunset magazine.

The Green Guide lists Seattle among the top ten greenest cities because of the city’s mandate that its utility, Seattle City Light, meet growing demand with no net increase in greenhouse gases—achieved through self-generated wind energy thus far. The other cities are Austin, TX; Boulder, CO; Chicago, IL; Honolulu, HI; Madison, WI; Minneapolis, MN; Oakland, CA; Portland, OR; and San Francisco, CA.

Seattle Lighting/Globe Lighting recently reduced pricing on its existing stock of Energy Star® light fixtures.

Snohomish County

Presentations on Sustainable Building and Growth
Members of the Sustainable Development Task Force are available to give presentations on sustainable building and growth to local jurisdictions or organizations around the county. The task force is also sponsoring another Brown Bag lunch at the Snohomish County Public Utility District (PUD) in Everett on Wednesday, July 13 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The focus will be on green materials, job-site recycling and healthy materials. Plus, read about the greening of Snoqualmie Gourmet Ice Cream, one of the projects for which SDTF has provided green consulting. NOTE: If you are interested in hosting the portable, professionally designed information kiosk or interested in joining the task force, please call Chris Fate at (425) 783-8274. The taskforce continues to meet on the third Friday of every month at the EDC offices at 728 134th St. SW in Everett. You’re invited to attend the next meeting on Friday, July 15 from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.

MBA Seeks Input on CAO
The Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties is soliciting input and comments on Snohomish County’s draft changes for critical areas regulations and best available science. Comments are due to the county by Friday, July 15, and an environmental impact statement will be released in August. The county must adopt new regulations by Thursday, Dec. 1, 2005. Click here for copies of the draft documents. For more information, please contact South Snohomish County Manager Jennifer Jerabek at (425) 460-8240.4.

Snohomish PUD

Energy Efficiency for Businesses
The Snohomish County Public Utility District (PUD) is hosting a Brown Bag Lunch this month at its Building Training Center in Everett at 2320 California St. Sponsored by the Sustainable Development Task Force of Snohomish County, the lunch will be held Wednesday, July 13 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Green materials, job-site recycling and healthy materials will be the focus.

The seminar will showcase some of the area’s sustainable materials suppliers. Vendors will be available to talk one-on-one about specs and project applications before and after the main presentation, which is from noon to 1 p.m. The presentation will focus on how certain materials rate for Built Green and LEED, and general sustainability features, cost comparisons and other aspects. The event is free and open to the public. Directions

Puget Sound Energy

Rebates Offered from PSE
Puget Sound Energy has rebates for your efficiency options when building green. The energy provider now offers a new simplified builder rebate process that makes it easier than ever to get your rebate money. Builder feedback has allowed the company to create a process that includes electronic processing, direct deposit and personalized customer service. These new features speed up the rebate process allowing builders to get their money quickly and easily.

PSE offers builder rebates up to $700 for Energy Star® qualified natural gas furnaces, appliances, lighting and energy efficient natural gas water heaters with an energy factor of .62 or higher. And now for the first time, PSE is offering an instant home bonus up to $100 for all certified Energy Star qualified homes built in our service area. Rebates plus home bonus can benefit builders up to $800 per home. For rebate restrictions and additional information, call PSE at (800) 562-1482 and ask for Nora Accetturo or Chris Boroughs.

Resources

The fifth edition of GreenSpec includes more than 1,850 product listings that designers, builders, and building owners can use in identifying products that can improve the environmental performance of buildings. This green industry-standard directory costs $89, plus $5 shipping and handling. GreenSpec-listed products can also be found in the online BuildingGreen Suite, a subscription-based information service available for $199 per year, and includes access to: 13 years of Environmental Building News articles, more than 1,850 GreenSpec® product listings, and more than 100 detailed case studies, including 30-plus LEED®-certified projects. One-week access is available for $12.95.

Eco-label: Find Green Products in Europe
If you’re traveling in Europe this summer, you can find green hotels and products! The European Union provides a list of eco-friendly tourist accommodations, as well as green products under the Eco-label.

Building Energy Software Tools Directory
This directory provides information on almost 300 building software tools for evaluating energy efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainability in buildings. The energy tools listed in this directory include databases, spreadsheets, component and systems analyses, and whole-building energy performance simulation programs. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the directory was developed to help researchers, designers, architects, engineers, builders, code officials and others involved in the building life-cycle to evaluate and rank potential energy-efficiency technologies and renewable energy strategies in new or existing buildings. For a list of tools by subject click here.

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

www.builtgreen.net

MBA Calendar of Events

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