 Feature |
  King County, Seattle Announce Second Round of Built Green® Incentive Opening Nov. 19!
The King County/Seattle Built Green® Incentive provides grant funding for single-family residential, town-home and community development projects to help offset the cost of certifying and designing innovative projects that achieve a four- or five-start Built Green certification, and meet key water conservation, stormwater management, and recycling goals. Eligible projects may receive between $2,500 and $15,000 depending on the project type and level of green design and building elements employed.
As local governments draw the connection between water conservation and quality, stormwater runoff, and residential development, incentives for the development industry to reduce its impact on the environment and conserve valuable natural resources have become increasingly important. The grants, which will be competitively awarded, are funded through the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, and Seattle Public Utilities.
Built Green is a residential building program that provides a rating system for single and multifamily housing projects, remodels and community developments. The program certifies projects at the 1- through 5- star level based on the number of points a project earns in categories that highlight energy and water conservation, healthy materials, and minimized impacts to the property. Seattle and King County, helped develop the program in partnership with the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties, and value Built Green as an industry benchmark for green residential development.
The King County/Seattle Built Green Incentive was established to encourage developers, builders, and residents building new homes to use green building standards while attempting to address barriers such as higher upfront costs for projects. Grant award projects will serve as demonstrations of high performance, replicable, green housing for the region, and highlight builders and developers who are making outstanding contributions to local communities, our economy, and the environment.
Built Green Incentive applications are due Friday, Dec. 21, 2007. Applications and guidelines will be available online on Nov. 19.
| Classes |
Tuesday, Nov. 13, Bellevue
Introduction to Built Green™
This seminar provides an introduction to the Built Green program from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 13 at MBA Housing Center, 335 116th Ave. SE in Bellevue. Learn how to certify a project and use the checklist, how to join, how the program works and other resources. The seminar presents examples of projects and covers how to fill out the Built Green checklist. This orientation has a cost of $30 and is required in order to certify homes as Built Green. To register, contact the MBA University registrar at education@mbaks.com or go online.
Thursday, November 15, Bellevue
Introduction to Ductless, Mini Split Heat Pumps
Join us for an introduction to ductless, mini split heat pumps and learn more about what PSE offers ENERGY STAR® builders in your area.
Do you find ductwork challenging?
- Improperly sealed duct work can reduce a heating system's efficiency by up to 30 percent
- Properly sizing and installing traditional duct work can be time consuming and expensive
Have you tried ductless?
Ductless, mini split heat pumps require no ductwork and eliminate duct related energy losses
- Ductless, mini split heat pumps are designed to be easily installed
- Ductless, mini split heat pumps require less labor and increase productivity
Want to learn more?
Join us for an exciting opportunity to learn about the many advantages of ductless, mini split heat pumps and the benefits offered for your next project.
When: Thursday, November 15 from 7:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.
Where: MBA Housing Center: 335 116th Ave. SE, Bellevue, WA 98004
Cost: $30 (includes a continental breakfast)
To Register: contact Kristin Parker at (425) 460-8231 or via email
For more information: visit www.masterbuildersinfo.com.
| Events |
Visit the Built Green Washington website for green home building courses and events across the state of Washington.
December 11 and 12, Meydenbauer Center, Bellevue
2007 Northwest Builders Show Features Solar Electric Technologies and Green Classes
Mike Nelson, Photovoltaic Projects Specialist and Manager of the Northwest Solar Center, will hold a class to present the technical, economic and marketing strategies for including renewable energy in your business plan. David Johnston, a nationally recognized speaker on green building, will speak about what is working in green remodeling. The Environmental and Energy Building Association will offer pre-conference all day seminars on Dec. 10. There are group rates available for the educational passport by contacting the Trade Show Director, Lesley Odland. For a complete list of classes, please visit the NW Builder Show website at .
The show will also feature several exhibitors that are authoritative resources of information about the processes and vitality of producing solar energy. OutBack Power Systems will be displaying products that allow you to connect your renewable energy system to your home or commercial electrical system and use or sell power back to the utility. Sunergy Systems is a solar integrator providing full-service design, engineering, sales, installation and service of solar electric and solar thermal applications for homebuilders, architects, business facilities and homeowners. Puget Sound Solar has designed and installed 90 solar electric systems and 50 hot water systems in Washington. The Exhibit floor is free if you register before November 30, to register please visit the website.
For additional information contact Lesley Odland, Director of Trade Show Operations for the Master Builders Association, by email.
| BG Tip of the Month |
Have You Heard of Google? Here Comes Blackle!
Earlier this year a blog post under the title Black Google Would Save 750 Megawatt-hours a Year identified the potential for energy savings if the immensly popular search engine Google changed their format from white to black. Heap Media took the challenge and created Blackle. Some debate has occurred around how much energy is really saved (see the running tally on the homepage) and what issues arise due to readability. I will leave it to you to determine your own opinion on the matter, however it is a good reminder that there may be little things we can do in our everyday life that collectively can have a large impact on the world around us! To check out Blackle visit the website here. For more information on the website and why it was created, as well as links to websites with more information on some of the small things you can do to help make a change in your everyday life, please visit: www.blackle.com/about/.
| New Built Green Resource |
NEW 2008 Built Green Conference Website!
In response to increased demand and attention to the Built Green Conference, Built Green has developed a new website to host complete information, logistics and registration for the 2008 Built Green Conference. The website is being launched the second week in November will have current information on speakers, programming, and exhibitors. In addition, attendees will be able to register for the conference and get group rates on hotel reservations directly through the website.
Please visit the 2008 Built Green Conference website at www.builtgreenconference.com!
| King County |
 King County RFQ - Sale of Brooks Village Property for Housing Development
The King County Department of Executive Services is pleased to offer an opportunity for interested parties to apply for the purchase of approximately 14 acres of undeveloped urban land for the purpose of developing single family and/or multi-family housing. One of the goals of this request for qualifications and proposalsis to provide affordable housing. All submissions for this property must include affordable housing as a part of the proposed development.
The Brooks Village parcel is located in unincorporated King County, approximately five miles southeast of downtown Seattle. It is one of the last large tracts of undeveloped land in the Skyway neighborhood.
Access to the site is along Renton Avenue South, a major arterial that feeds into I-5 and the I-405/SR 167 Interchange. The immediate neighborhood is in a redevelopment stage, with construction consisting of single and multi-family uses.
The site is unimproved land, with final plat approval for a residential subdivision. The recorded plat allows the development of 48 lots. To take advantage of this existing recorded plat, the Department of Development and Environmental Services (DDES) will require infrastructure improvements to be completed and a performance financial guarantee to be posted.
To download an electronic copy of the RFQ form, please visit: the website.
| Contact
Built Green |
 Master
Builders Association
335 - 116th Avenue SE
Bellevue, WA 98004
P:
(425) 460-8238
F: (425) 646-5985
builtgreen@mbaks.com
www.builtgreen.net
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