Built Green Conference 2016: Award Winners

By Sadie Normoyle, Built Green™ Coordinator

Built Green relies on the exceptional builders and people who support the program to be where it is today. At the 2016 Built Green Conference, in order to recognize the hard work of Built Green members, we announced the winners of the Built Green Hammer Awards and of the Built Green Pioneer Award.

The Built Green Hammer Awards recognize Built Green members for their outstanding projects and participation over the previous year. The Built Green Pioneer Award recognizes people who have played an integral role in developing and maintaining the Built Green program. Without the time, energy, and support of these Pioneers, Built Green would not be what it is today.

Built Green Hammer Award Winners

Isola Homes is a locally rooted, family-owned company with a passion for building exceptional homes. They collaborate and strive to bring the very best in sophisticated design, modern livability, and unmatched quality in Seattle’s most desirable locations. Their ultimate goal is to create a place that inspires you to live with the same passion that they had for building your home. Over the past year, they have certified 114 homes with Built Green: seventeen at the 3-Star level, 92 at 4-Star, and five at 5-Star.

DEP Homes strives to provide the Seattle housing market with quality homes that are technologically advanced and environmentally responsible. Their homes are strategically located in desirable neighborhoods in order to promote sustainable living through convenient access to shopping, public transportation, and major employers. In the last year, they have realized their vision for elegant sustainability through major projects like “DEP City 15” and “DEP Columbia.” Over the past year, they have certified 39 homes as 4-Star Built Green.

DevCo, Inc. is a privately held real estate investment company, and Heartland Construction is their construction affiliate that is responsible for building all of their projects. With more than 20 years of experience, together they professionally develop, build, and own multi-family apartment communities. Some unique aspects of the Discovery West project were the use of a common domestic hot water system, high energy efficient HVAC system for the common areas in the buildings, and use of low- or no VOC and eco-friendly finish materials throughout the interiors of the buildings. Heartland Construction has done an excellent job incorporating Built Green Standards seamlessly into the project. Their experience on the first two developments helped them to understand the process so the certification process on this project was completed rapidly. Their most recent certification was for 209 4-Star units.

Aegis Living was chosen for this award for their brand new, 129-unit Aegis of Queen Anne at Rodgers Park assisted living community development. The Aegis of Queen Anne at Rodgers Park project met and surpassed Built Green 4-Star requirements. The development collects and retains 80% of storm water and building water discharge; used only low-VOC and low-toxic interior paints and finishes for all surface areas (including doors, windows, and trim); controlled building moisture; used effective air distribution and filtration systems; sent at least 85% of jobsite waste to a local recycling center; and maximized efforts to install locally-produced materials (local windows, cement, and wood).

Sola 24 LLC achieved Built Green 4-Star certification for a 23-unit project in Seattle this past year. Their premise was simple - super tight buildings consume less energy for heating and cooling. In order to achieve this, they used spray foam insulation to achieve a virtually airtight building shell. In addition, all penetrations, such as lights, switches, and outlets were sealed with caulking or gaskets and large, high-tech Andersen E-Series windows that provide natural daylight for both light and warmth. This combination of efficiency and natural light makes the spaces inviting and relaxed.

Fairwinds Development is a family-owned, father-and-son-operated developer of single-family and low density multi-family homes in North Seattle neighborhoods. The Eltovar rowhouse project that they have been working on this past year is an example of a certified 4-Star Built Green project. Over the past year, they have achieved certification for nine 4-Star projects.

This past year Malboeuf Bowie Architecture certified a 5-star remodeled home in the Wedgewood Neighborhood– the only 5-Star remodel so far in 2016. They kept the foundation (minimizing ground disturbance) and installed a new concrete slab floor with hydronic radiant heating. With a 6.4 kW solar PV system, the home is modeled to perform 45% better than new homes built to code.

Model Remodel’s backyard cottage in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood received Built Green 4-Star certification for its calculated design and mindful construction. Durability, energy efficiency, and overall user-healthiness come together in this comfy second story studio dwelling atop a two-car garage. The trees around the unit offer privacy and the feeling of a tree house while the windows on the north and south open to carry the cool, aromatic, Lake Washington breeze through during the summer heat.

The two units by TC Legend Homes are stunning examples of healthy, sustainable, and energy efficient single-family homes. Located on two peaceful wooded lots in the Victory Heights neighborhood of Seattle, the outward appearance of these 5-Star dwellings belie their advanced construction and ultra-high performance. The homes are constructed using Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) which is one of the trademarks of builder Ted Clifton, a leading figure in the net-zero energy building community. TC Legend Homes also included many advanced energy efficiency measures in addition to the 9.5 kW solar arrays on each roof. They also meet 100% rainwater infiltration on site, have continuous exhaust ventilation, and used salvaged materials from the previous home.

Built Green Pioneer Award

David Barnes

Sam Lai

Aaron Fairchild

The Built Green Pioneer Award this year was award to David Barnes, Sam Lai, and Aaron Fairchild. David Barnes pioneered the green building priority permit review in the City of Kirkland as well as makes a big effort to reach out and loop builders into the Built Green program.

Sam Lai and Aaron Fairchild, both of Green Canopy, have worked tirelessly to support Built Green and have come up with idea after idea to better the program. They played a huge role in the conference this year and in the past. Sam Lai sits on the Built Green Marketing Subcommittee and Aaron Fairchild was on the Built Green Executive Committee and now is an MBA Board Member.

While it was difficult to select the nominees and award recipients from such a talented, hard working group of Built Green members, we wish to thank everyone who has been involved with and helped Built Green over the course of this year. We are already looking forward to next year’s Built Green Conference and sincerely hope you will join us!

Vital Stats	Section	Points
Location: Seattle Star Level: 4-Star Checklist: 2018 Single-Family/Townhome Checklist Verifier: Balderston Associates	Site and Water	117
Energy Efficiency	94
Health and Indoor Air Quality	119
Material Efficiency	75
	Total Score	470

This modern Tudor Detached Accessory Dwelling Unit (DADU) demonstrates a way to add density to an existing neighborhood while honoring the historical design and character of its traditional Seattle community. Designed by CAST architecture, and built by Align Builders, the cottage is packed with plenty of Built Green features that integrate into its blending of modern and historical design details.

CAST architecture Modern Tudor DADU front facade

The interior celebrates values of beauty and shelter by the timbered and vaulted living area and comfortable flow of spaces through the kitchen and bedrooms downstairs. The Seattle code limits DADUs to 1000 sf, but the cottage gives the feeling of a spacious and comfortable 2-bedroom home.

Energy Efficiency

Wall insulation is the standard code R21, but the builder focused on executing the install to the HERS Grade 1 standards. This requires third-party inspection and batts that are evenly fluffed and filled with extra care to eliminate gaps and compressions.
The vaulted ceilings have R38 fiberglass batts.
Windows are low-e argon from Andersen.
Panasonic Intellibalance HRV installed to provide filtered fresh air directly to bedrooms and exhausts stale air while recovering about 80% of the heat energy.
The flush-mounted ceiling cassettes of the multi-head ductless heat pump system provides energy efficient space heating with unobtrusive design.
Low-flow toilet, sink, and shower fixtures.
ENERGY STAR appliances and 100% LED lighting.

Low-Impact Development and Rainwater Infiltration

The DADU occupies the existing home’s former back garden. The site included street access to both sides of the property, allowing for separate private entrances for both homes, and instantly integrating this DADU into the existing streetscape of the neighborhood. The bay window and arched front entry make it a familiar-looking addition for those walking around through the neighborhood.

There is no garage, but a side parking driveway is done with permeable paving stones. Also roof drainage is directed to infiltration trenches and pits so that it can be treated and infiltrated onsite. Landscaping is drought tolerant with only a small shared grass area that connects to the existing parts of the backyard.

CAST architecture Modern Tudor DADU dining kitchen

CAST architecture Modern Tudor DADU entry stair

Indoor Air Quality and Moisture Protection

The DADU emphasizes simple interior finishes with low toxicity and good ventilation for fresh air. Finish materials include a Strand Woven Poplar flooring from Ecotimber, and natural Marmoleum. The builder made sure to check that finish products, such as paints, caulks, and stains, were all low emitting and low VOC products. Paints used were Benjamin Moore “Aura” zero VOC products.

The exterior siding is installed over a HydroGap WRB that provides “rain screen” drainage. The lower-level stucco is also a water managed system. Window and door flashing details were checked on site for complete seals and physical drainage planes to ensure a very long-lasting wall system that prevents moisture-related damage and molds.

CAST architecture Modern Tudor DADU living room

Materials With Reduced Environmental Impact

The interior finish materials were not only selected for their low-chemical emitting properties to assist with healthy indoor air quality, but also for their environmentally friendly properties. The finished flooring materials selected were Cradle-to-Cradle certified carpets from Shaw and climate-positive Marmoleum. CAST’s most eco-friendly flooring selections were the ones they excluded, reducing resource extraction and pollution in the first place. They did this in two ways, first the exclusion of vinyl flooring, and the second by utilizing the lower floor’s concrete slab as the finished floor.

Locally produced cabinets from Canyon Creek meet low-VOC certification standards. Materials that were made with recycled content were used for the drywall, trim, doors, and cabinets. The builder tracked and reported recycling of job site waste, as all Built Green builders must do, and achieved at least a 75% diversion-from-landfill rate. To reduce toxicity Sill plates were borate-treated instead of using standard pressure-treated lumber.

cast-architecture-modern-tudor-dadu

Built Green™

02/19/2020

Indoor Air Quality—How to Not Let It Walk All Over You

Author: Sonja O'Claire, Built Green Program Manager

There’s a lot of focus these days on how volatile organic compounds (VOCs) contribute to unsafe indoor air quality, from building materials to finishes. With the average American spending about 90% of their time indoors surrounded by these materials, there’s good reason for concern. However, another major contributor to poor indoor air quality often escapes attention—shoes.

While outside, shoes can pick up many harmful pollutants such as allergens, radon, pesticides, mold, heavy metals, and numerous other VOCs. These VOCs can then be tracked into homes, undermining the time, money, and energy put into constructing Built Green homes out of low-VOC materials.

The EPA states that exposure to such pollutants, even short-term, can be detrimental to health and have lasting implications after repeated exposure. Short-term health effects can include dizziness, eye/nose/throat irritation, headaches, and fatigue. Long-term health effects can range from lifelong heart and respiratory diseases to potentially fatal cancers. Asthma is the third-ranking cause for hospitalization among children younger than 15, and Washington state ranks 1.1% above the national median of 9.4% for adults who self-report suffering from asthma.

Built Green recognizes the importance of providing healthy indoor air for all those living in Built Green certified homes. That is why there are numerous checklist credits dedicated to decreasing the amount of pollutants being tracked into Built Green homes by shoes. Credit 4-69 of the multifamily checklist, a requirement for all 4-star certified and above projects, earns a project three points for permanently installed track-off mats, carpets, and/or shoe grates at the principle entryway of a building. On both the multifamily and single-family checklists, two points can be earned by providing a dedicated shoe removal and storage area at the entrance to each unit.

Contemporary home featuring a built-in shoe storage area, built by Model Remodel and designed by CAST Architecture. Photo by Cindy Apple Photography.

Durable and effective entryway strategies for multifamily projects include:

Exterior metal architectural grills
Interior architectural metal grills with carpet and/or rubber tread inserts
Metal roll-up mats (with a cleaning contract)
Replaceable carpet tiles (with a cleaning and replacement schedule)
Segregated vestibules with grills or walk-off carpeting (with a cleaning and replacement schedule)

For single-family homes, a designated shoe removal and storage area could be designed into the home’s entrance to provide an attractive and intuitive place for residents to reduce their exposure. There are a variety of ways to achieve this; examples include built-in seating and/or shelves, space-defining flooring materials, or a closet next to the entrance.

Addressing entrance track-off areas in Built Green projects during the design phase, rather than at the end, will go a long way in providing better indoor air quality, lower maintenance, and higher value for buyers. It could also be the difference between a multifamily 4-star and 3-star certification.

Pictured: Contemporary home featuring a built-in shoe storage area, built by Model Remodel and designed by CAST Architecture. Photo by Cindy Apple Photography. Learn more about this Built Green whole-house remodel in this case study.

indoor-air-quality-how-to-not-let-it-walk-all-over-you

Built Green™

10/16/2019

2019 Built Green Award Winners

Built Green wouldn’t be the successful program it is today without the hard work of our members, advocates, and partners. That is why, at our annual conference, we take the time to recognize the achievements and efforts of these folks at our reception and awards ceremony!

The Built Green Hammer Awards honor members for their outstanding projects over the past year in different building categories. Check out the winners:

Built Green Hammer Awards, Builder, Custom or Small Speculative, Less Than 10 Homes—TC Legend Homes

Builder, Custom or Small Speculative, Less Than 10 Homes—TC Legend Homes

TC Legend Homes believes everyone should be able to enjoy the comfort and savings of a highly efficient home. Their mission is to make positive-energy and net-zero-energy affordable. At Built Green, we support this mission. TC Legend Homes has done a number of outstanding, affordable, super energy efficient projects this year. Their homes have achieved the among the highest point scores—585, 615, 685, 731, 748, and 771! The verifier on these projects was Elizabeth Coe of Ecoe Company.

One of TC Legend Homes' projects was featured in a case study earlier this year.

Built Green Hammer Awards, Builder, Small Production, 10–100 Homes—MRN Homes LLC

Builder, Small Production, 10–100 Homes—MRN Homes LLC

This category covers many of the builders who are making it possible for more people to live in the already developed urban areas of our region. They build single-family homes, townhouses, and row houses.

MRN Homes LLC is a builder dedicated to building exceptional homes that reflect the evolving needs of their home buyers and the communities in which they live. Their reputation is solidly built on the quality and craftsmanship of the homes they construct. They strive for enduring design and a lasting investment. They built 41 homes with an average of 425 points. Pam Worner of Green Dog Enterprises was the verifier on all MRN’s projects.

Built Green Hammer Awards, Builder, Small Multifamily, Less Than 50 Units—STS Construction Services

Builder, Small Multifamily, Less Than 50 Units—STS Construction Services

This category includes many of the smaller multifamily buildings around the region.

The Roost, built by STS Construction Services, is a delightful Built Green 5-Star multifamily microhousing building. It achieved 611 points on the Built Green checklist. It is unique in its focus on providing affordable housing for artists in a setting that fosters community among the residents. Cybil Tribie of Evergreen Certified was the verifier. The Roost has also been featured in our Housing Choices for Everyone video series and in a case study.

Built Green Hammer Awards, Builder, Large Multifamily, 50–150 Units—Johnson & Carr LLC

Builder, Large Multifamily, 50–150 Units—Johnson & Carr LLC

This category is doing the heavy lifting of adding capacity for more people to live in already-developed neighborhoods.

1404 Boylston is a 107-unit multifamily building with 520 points on our checklist. Johnson & Carr LLC is a local Seattle developer of multifamily and mixed-used projects located in the city’s urban core. Founded by Tyler Carr and Kelten Johnson in 2010, the company specializes in creative applications of urban infill, with a focus on providing affordable and sustainable housing. Pam Worner of Green Dog Enterprises was the verifier.

Developer, Small Community, Less Than 100 Acres—John Buchan Homes & Kim Saunders

Built by John Buchan Homes and developed by Kim Saunders, Kirkland’s Juanita Farmhouse Cottages achieved both Built Green 5-Star with 628 points, as well as the Built Green Community certification. Comprising nine new cottages and a common house/barn that includes a guest apartment, the site is provided with infiltration swales for roof water drainage that are integrated with native and drought-tolerant landscaping, utilizing all pervious surfaces except for part of the shared driveway. Indoor water use is reduced by the use of low-flow fixtures and WaterSense toilets.

We loved the way this community of modestly sized cottage homes shows that green building can be beautiful in a traditional way. Tom Balderston of Balderston Associates was the verifier. Check out our case study on the Juanita Farmhouse Cottages.

Built Green Hammer Awards, Built Green Advocate, Private Sector—Rose Lathrop

Built Green Advocate, Private Sector—Rose Lathrop

This year, we would like to recognize Rose Lathrop of Sustainable Connections in Bellingham. Rose is on the Built Green Executive Committee and has been tireless in bringing the Shift Zero message to a wider audience. Rose has been a great advocate and champion for green building and sustainability in Whatcom County for years and her contagiously positive approach has helped keep Built Green on the radar for Bellingham builders.

Built Green Hammer Awards, Built Green Pioneer—Alistair Jackson

Built Green Pioneer—Alistair Jackson

The Built Green Pioneer Award goes to an individual who has made a significant contribution to Built Green program.

Alistair is a principal and one of five owners of O’Brien360. O’Brien360’s vision is the equitable advancement of the built environment toward positive life cycle impacts. Their mission is to integrate sustainable building expertise, thoughtful analysis, and a collaborative approach to catalyze positive outcomes.

Alistair leads O’Brien360’s residential services work. He has worked on updates to Built Green and helped develop similar programs in other Washington counties, as well as in California and Hawaii. We appreciate his dedication as a Built Green verifier and multifamily energy modeler, as well as his thoughtful deep dives into the nuances of multifamily energy modeling as it applies to Built Green.

Built Green Hammer Awards, Judges’ Choice—Lopez Community Land Trust

Judges’ Choice—Lopez Community Land Trust

With the Judges’ Choice award, we recognize an outstanding project that doesn’t fit in our usual award categories.

Lopez Community Land Trust has been building net zero affordable housing for more than a decade and continues to unleash the power of community working together. We wanted to recognize their Salish Way Net-Zero Cottages for a few reasons—for their innovative and affordable ownership model, for achieving the highest points on the Built Green checklist of any project this year (871!), and for achieving our net zero certification. Tom Balderston of Balderston Associates was the verifier. Learn more about the Salish Way Net-Zero Cottages in this case study.

Built Green Hammer Awards, Project of the Year—NOCO Flats, Photo: True One Group LLC

Project of the Year—NOCO Flats

And finally, the Built Green Hammer Awards Project of the Year goes to a project and company that has both pushed the envelope of green building and made significant contributions to the Built Green program in the last year. The 2019 recipient is Dwell Development’s NOCO Flats. Dwell’s mission is to always lead, always challenge, and always strive to do more on each and every home they build, with the hope that every home they build is net zero!

NOCO Flats was awarded 612 points on Built Green’s checklist. The four story, 18,000 square foot building has 50 small efficiency apartments and four live/work units, which rent for as little as $999. Amenities include onsite laundry, a game room, heated bike storage, a courtyard, and a rooftop deck. The project features two street-level commercial spaces and no parking. NOCO (which stands for North of Columbia City), is one of the first apartment buildings in Seattle to use next-generation solar technology for hot water, an amazingly cost-effective and ecofriendly way to generate hot water for residents.

Anthony Maschmedt, principal at Dwell, serves on the Built Green executive committee and is a tireless advocate for green building. We appreciate his time and energy! Cybil Tribie of Evergreen Certified was the verifier. NOCO Flats have also been featured in Master Builder magazine.

We are exceedingly proud of all these award recipients for breaking new ground in making affordable, very green buildings, mostly in urban, walkable, bikeable neighborhoods. This is the way forward! Keep it up!

View more pictures from the conference.

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