Go Green Expo This Weekend
Green is the new pink.
Green living has been a topic of discussion at universities across the nation, a household word since Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” and even has its own section in most newspapers nowadays. With all these products around you claiming they are green or eco-friendly it’s hard to decide what green really means.
That’s why you need to visit the Go Green Expo this weekend at the Cobb Galleria Center in Atlanta. If you want to learn more about living a green lifestyle, what “eco-friendly” really means and which products are truly green, you should attend. Or if you are an early-adopter of this very-important trend, you should go too! You can never be too green.
The expo will have over 200 exhibits including HollyBeth’s, an Atlanta-based eco-friendly beauty product company. HollyBeth’s products are made from organic plant extracts and owner HollyBeth Anderson has partnered with UNICEF’s Inspired Gifts to provide drinking water to underpriveledged communities across the world through the sale of her Wildflower Dry Oil.
The Go Green Expo will also have acoustic musical performances, green job opportunities, free yoga sessions, a rock climbing wall, free organic food sampling, hybrid car test drives, eco-kids zone & organic garden, green marketplace, demonstrations and hands-on activities.
This day of fun and education will be held at the Cobb Galleria Centre (Two Galleria Parkway, Atlanta, GA 30339) Saturday June 27, 10am-6pm and Sunday June 28th, 10am-5pm. The cost will be $10 for a full wekend pass (Saturday & Sunday), $5 for students and seniors with proper ID and free for children 12 and under.
Join the Worlds Greenest Building on Facebook
Independence Station has launched a Facebook group titled Fans of the World’s Greenest Building. Facebook is one of the most popular social networking sites on the Internet and The World’s Greenest Building’s Facebook group will be a great tool for future residents to connect with the builders and developers, as well as other potential homeowners, in an innovative and unique way.
Anyone interested in learning more about this extraordinary green built project can find a plethora of information through the Facebook group. They can view pictures of the construction of the building as well as renderings of (Continued…)
Brock Built Green House Sold
Midtown lawyer, Kinshasa K. Williams, recently became the proud owner of Brock Built’s Green House. The EarthCraft home had been open to the public for tours since completion in August 2008. When Williams closed on her new eco-friendly home not only did she purchase a new home, but it also resulted in a $225,000 donation to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Prior to buying the Green House, Williams lived in a condominium in Midtown. As a native of New Orleans, Williams was immediately drawn to the large porches and Craftsman style of the Green House. Interiors of the home include energy efficient appliances, plumbing, doors and windows as well as environmentally friendly plants. The beautiful exteriors include an herb garden, rain garden, outdoor fireplace, rain barrel and much more. (Continued…)
WicksteadWorks Receives EarthCraft’s Renovator of the Year Award
A huge congrats to Frank Wickstead and WicksteadWorks, the 2009 EarthCraft Renovator of the Year.
The award, given by Southface and The Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association, distinguishes an EarthCraft House renovator that has gone above and beyond to reduce energy use in an existing home. The annual awards program honors the leading builders, developers, renovators and manufacturers dedicated to protecting the environment through sustainable design and construction of homes, communities and products.
WicksteadWorks is an Atlanta remodeler that builds to a minimum standard of EarthCraft certification on all projects.
The EarthCraft House program is a voluntary, green building third-party validation program that serves as a blueprint for healthy comfortable homes that reduce utility bills and protect the environment. Since the program’s inception in 1999, more 450 builders have become builder members, and more than 7,150 homes in the Southeast region have been certified to EarthCraft House standards.
Move Over Canada, the United States is Taking Back the LEED
Dockside Green is the current world record leader in the LEED sustainability rating. The master-planned development is in Victoria, British Colombia and received an unprecedented rating of 63 points out of a possible 70. While this is a tremendous feat, Aldeia, LLC decided it was time an American structure took the world record from this Canadian project. I mean it has had the title for about a year now, and that’s long enough. So, nestled in the little pioneer town of Independence, OR, you’ll find Independence Station currently under construction, which plans to take the top LEED rating from Victoria Dockside with a LEED score between 64 and 66.
The potential score of this sustainable green building is primarily due to its use of renewable energy sources like the sun and vegetable oil. These two sources will supply the entire building with energy. The building will boast a unique 120 kilowatt installation of photovoltaic panels. During sunny months, the panels will produce more than enough energy to run the building, store extra energy in a large battery bank for nighttime use as well as feed power back into the grid. With this innovative energy source, Independence Station is also likely to be the most comprehensive “Smart Grid” project ever built. (Continued…)
Atlanta Takes the Lead in LEED Development
Did you know that on the national map, Atlanta is regarded as one of the most “organically-green” regions?
That means that “green” is driven by market demand and not government mandates. We dive deeply into this issue in our new book due out later this month: “Green Matters: The Residential Builders, Visionaries, Communities & Lifestyles Shaping Atlanta’s Landscape,” www.GreenMattersToday.com which takes a unique look at this issue, and features interviews with myriad renowned business leaders and lifestyle experts. The book explains where the housing market is headed and why, how to optimize your investment as a buyer or owner, and how to begin adopting a greener lifestyle.
Research on the book began in 2006 when Harvey Bernstein, vice president of Industry Analytics and Alliances for McGraw-Hill Construction, declared “Green homebuilding is at a tipping point among the builder population. The data we recently collected indicates 2006 to 2007 is the time frame from which the builder population moves from a majority less involved to more involved with green building. The market is expected to expand up to $38 billion by 2010.”
McGraw-Hill is North America’s leading provider of construction project information, plans and specifications, product information, industry news, and industry trends and forecasts. So we came back to McGraw Hill in 2008 and asked whether green homebuilding has in fact “tipped” as they projected in 2006. The answer was an emphatic “yes.” (Continued…)
A Look at EcoManor, the First LEED-Certified Home in the Southeast
We are lucky enough to have the opportunity to share with you a brief excerpt from the book “Green Matters: The Residential Builders, Visionaries, Communities & Lifestyles Shaping Atlanta’s Landscape.” In this particular column, Michael Eastman and Jill Westfall interviewed Laura Turner Seydel (who is pictured in the top left photo on the book cover), the homeowner of EcoManor:
Laura and Rutherford Seydel live in the first LEED-certified home in the Southeastern United States. But that wasn’t their plan when they bought the lot in 2005. Days after they bought the place, a 150-year-old oak tree came crashing through the 1920’s house occupying the land, essentially splitting it into two. Subsequent insurance hassles left the house a ‘mold factory’ as rains soaked the inside. A tear down became inevitable and then as Turner Seydel says, “the stars lined up.” EcoManor, today, serves as a showcase for green living through a mix of progressive new products and environmentally responsible techniques and is an educational tool for builders, architects, designers, and landscapers. (Continued…)
Consumer Electonics Recycling Event
Atlanta — stop throwing it all away. Reduce the amount of land fill space needed and reduce your carbon footprint.
Recycle your old electronics at Turner Field on Saturday, November 22 from 9 a.m. til 4 p.m. This event is part of the Sony National Take Back Recycling Program in partnership with Waste Management.
Items accepted include: TVs, computer monitors, computer systems, VCRs, DVDs, cameras, phones and other consumer electronics.
Turner Field is located at 755 Hank Aaron Drive, Atlanta, GA 30315.
Post Properties Earns National Sustainability Recognition
Atlanta-based multifamily developer and operator Post Properties was recently awarded a Multi-Housing News Green Services award for its company-wide recycling efforts. Post’s recycling centers collect 840 tons of newspaper, glass and aluminum annually.
Recycling is just one program under the direction of Post’s newly established green team. EcoActive will support Post’s vision to educate associates and residents on the benefits of conserving earth’s natural resources through best practice programs and processes.
The company also minimizes its environmental impact through submetering and eco-conscious landscaping. Two of Post’s newest properties (including Post Alexander in Atlanta) feature green roofs, which limit water runoff, control heating and cooling costs,
and maximize roof life.
NAHB National Green Building Program Expands
The state home builder associations of Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New York and Oklahoma have affiliated with the NAHB National Green Building Program, National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Chairman Sandy Dunn announced this morning.
The new affiliation makes it even easier for home buyers in those states to find green homes and provides additional technical training, education and business opportunities for HBA members.
“I’m delighted to welcome the home builders in these seven states to the certification services offered through NAHBGreen,” said Dunn, who is a home builder in Point Pleasant, W. Va.,. “Our members are looking for an authentic, cost-effective and voluntary way to offer certified green homes to their clients, and they will find it in www.NAHBGreen.com.” (Continued…)
