After a year of meeting virtually, we would like to extend a
huge thank you to those who attended the in-person Built Green Conference that
took place on September 16th at the Lynwood Convention Center. The
day was filled with reunions, networking, and captivating sessions tackling
everything from building science to policy to increasing inclusivity in our
industry and communities.
Throughout the day the year’s theme “Equitable Futures” was
embraced by our speakers. The concepts of equity, adaptability, resiliency, and
innovation were integrated across sessions that covered policies to retrofit
and remodel existing building stock to reduce carbon emissions, field practices
to promote cost-effective material and full-house salvaging and reuse, best
practices to increase community engagement and support for inclusive
communities, creating spaces and company culture that are conducive to a
diverse workforce, and technical knowledge to design and build homes that can
adapt to a changing climate.
Our morning keynote Sam Rashkin of Retooling the U.S.
Housing began the day by defining the future of housing through solution-based
innovations to tackle the five crises impacting builders today. Rashkin
challenged us all, “to address pain points related to user experience
readiness, housing affordability, trade availability, productivity and
digitization in our industry”. As one of the most fragmented industries, our
producers, products, research, and innovation for problem solving is often too
narrowly focused. Rashkin argues for “connecting the dots” through integrated innovations
such as user experience optimizations, design optimization, mass-customization
in building practices, and digitizing practices through emerging SaaS Data Aggregation.
We recommend checking out Sam Rashkin’s forthcoming book Housing 2.0: A Disruption Survival Guide for more information surrounding these concepts and
more!
Following our keynote address, conference goers had the
opportunity to attend sessions from four different tracks: The Future is Here,
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Equitable Transitions, and Resilient Structures. The
sessions topics ranged from addressing how community engagement can inform
design processes, examining the carbon accounting benefits of moving a house,
implementable material salvaging and reuse, concepts driving Washington State
Energy Code (WSEC-R) forward and a multi-sector panels discussing the policies
and programs needed to address emissions from existing buildings.
Session Highlights and Take-Aways
Grace Kim, Schemata
Workshop, Donald King, Mimar Studio,
and Brian Runberg, Runberg Architecture Group,
described the extensive effort they took to engage with Seattle’s Central
District community on the 23rd and Jackson project. Over the course
of 2 years and over 100 meetings with community members they delivered a
multifamily mixed-use development, that included affordable housing units and
small business incubator spaces, that was whole-heartedly supported by the
community and seen as a community asset. From the start they approached the
community with humbleness and no predetermined designs, using instead a
call-and-response design process with community members. This collaborative process,
while time-consuming, helped to built active engagement by community members
that in turn smoothed the design board review process and reduced costly
redesigns.
“We can’t stop gentrification, but we can look at how we can be more inclusive in our development and design.” – Donald King
Jeff McCord with House to
Home explained embodied carbon accounting benefits of moving a house for
another century of use through a triaged approach: rehab, repurpose, move, and
salvage. Jeff McCord explained how 20% to 40% of landfill space is taken by
construction and demolition debris. McCord stated that “moving a house, when
possible, is one of the single greatest ways the embodied carbon from that
house and waste generated from construction and demolition can be saved.”
Dan Wildenhaus of BetterBuilt
NW and Poppy Storm of 2050 Institute explained how we are currently witnessing a market transformation imperative.
Wildenhaus explained that by “2035 every new thing that goes into a new
building, or existing one, will need to be high efficiency and electric”. Poppy
furthered that “by 2030 we have to achieve emissions below that of 1990, and
then by 2050 we must be carbon neutral. This is a tall order with a tight
timeline that will require innovations in streamlining equipment and envelope
design.”
Greg Davenport with Mitsubishi Electric had the opportunity to present the South
Perry Blockhouse Life Project in Spokane that includes many green building
features and innovations; such as cross laminated timber, solar power
production, off-site building customization, and high-density, transit oriented
designs.
Karen Dove, ANEW, Jay
Pershing, WELD Seattle, and Sarah
Smith, Sawhorse Revolution, each
work in different ways to develop more inclusivity and representation within
the building and construction industries. The largest challenge faced by the individuals
they work with are barriers created by detrimental workplace culture once they
enter the industry. Karen recalled one firm she worked with that hired five
women trades people - and due to the poor workplace culture and harassment they
experienced - once their apprenticeship ended they left the industry, at a
replacement cost of $200,000. Shifting the culture in a company to view
inclusivity as an issue of safety and productivity is critical to being
successful in recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce.
With Covid vaccination being required for all attendees, and
plenty of room to accommodate social distancing, throughout the day our
community was once again able to come together to share ideas and catch up with
friends. Even with masks in place we could see all the smiling eyes and hear
the joy in people’s voices as they were able to connect in a way that cannot be
replicated over a computer screen.
2021 Built Green Hammer Awards
As per tradition, we recognized Built Green’s outstanding
builders and advocates during our annual Built Green Hammer Award ceremony. The
best projects from the past year were highlighted and Built Green supporters
were recognized for their contributions to the program. This year the award
plaques were made from old-growth cedar planks that were salvaged from a
submerged house boat foundation that was removed from Lake Union.
Award Category: Builder, Custom or Small Speculative, less than 10 homes
Winner: Dwell
Development
Description: Dwell Development is an award-winning,
sustainable residential builder. Dwell Development is founded in the belief
that sustainable, efficient design can create a better tomorrow. Their projects
in the past year have averaged well above 600 points and are energy efficient
featuring high performance properties and sleek modern designs. Along a few
blocks on Bagley Ave. N there are three new Built Green 5-Star certified,
net-zero energy homes. To learn more about these projects, read the Built
Green case study.
Award Category: Builder,
Small Production, 10 to 100 homes
Winner: Greencity Development
Description: Greencity Development strives to create
a burden free process within our industry that benefits workers, customers, and
the environment. Their townhomes feature contemporary stylings with open floor
plans and windows that fill the rooms with natural lighting. Sleek kitchens,
luxury master suites with spa-like baths and grand rooftop decks combine
comfort with sustainability.
Award Category: Builder, Large Production,
over 100 homes
Winner: Isola
Homes
Description: Isola Homes
is a locally owned company dedicated to providing quality contributions to
Seattle’s neighborhoods by embracing sustainable design and focusing on
environmental stewardship. Over the past year, Isola Homes has continued to
focus on maximizing the sustainability of their homes by expanding their
standard features to include amenities like AeroBarrier technology, community
bike racks, and drought-tolerant landscaping.
Award Category: Builder, Small Multifamily, less than 50 units
Winner: New Image LLC
Project: 4724 31st Ave S, Seattle
Description: The Heathrow
Apartments, is a new design and construction project of nine small efficiency
dwelling units around 350 Sq. Feet each, located in Columbia City neighborhood.
Highlights of this building are its use of over 1700 board feet of salvaged
lumber, utilization of cross laminated timber for load bearing beams and a
whopping energy improvement of 53% over the 2015 WSEC!
Award Category: Builder, Large Multifamily,
50 to 150 Units
Winner: Interbay Apts LLC
Project: 3008 16th Ave W, Seattle
Description: The 93-unit 4-Star Built Green Ivy Apartment complex nestled between the
Magnolia Bridge and Ballard’s Salmon Bay is a stunning sustainable project
including a predicted annual energy consumption 20% less than that of a
corresponding baseline building. The project also features a vegetated roof deck,
Energy Star fixtures, locally produced materials, and recirculation pump hot
water systems.
Award Category: Builder, Large Multifamily,
over 150 Units
Winner: Weber
Thompson
Project: 125 Boren Ave S, Seattle
Description: Weber Thompson is an award-winning
architecture, interior design, and landscape architecture firm recognized
nationally for their green building expertise and leadership in sustainable
design solutions. The Modera First Hill project features 288 apartments that
are uniquely situated to celebrate the history of the area while also looking
ahead to everything that is innovative and shifting within the community. Amenities
provided to residents include a yoga and fitness room, game room, rooftop deck
with stunning views of Mount Rainier and a pet-friendly spa and dog run.
Award Category: Builder,
Remodel
Winner: Model Remodel
Project: Kirkland, 4-star
Remodel
Description: This 4-Star
Built Green Certified Remodel in Kirkland upgrading the existing home with
energy-efficient systems, Energy Star appliances, EV charging, reclaimed
flooring, a roof built for solar panels and more. This year they are aiming for
another 4-Star remodel certification and are excited to be constantly improving
their blower door test results to create the most efficient remodels they can.
Award Category: Built Green Advocate
Private Sector
Winner: Brett Marlo
Description: Brett leads a small sustainable team as
founder of Brett Marlo Design Build specializing in DADUs and ADUs and other small footprint dreams. In addition to
advocating for Built Green across the Tacoma area, she serves on several boards
including the City of Gig Harbor Building Codes Advisory Board, City of Gig
Harbor Design Review Board and Rotary with a passion to serve community.
Award Category: Built Green Advocate Public
Sector
Winner: Beth Jarot
Description: Beth Jarot serves as the Resilient &
Green Building Specialist at the City of Tacoma with the Office of
Environmental Policy & Sustainability. She coordinates sustainable building
policy and programming efforts for the City through collaboration with Environmental
Services, Planning & Development Services, Community & Economic
Development and Tacoma Public Utilities. She has been a critical partner to
bring Built Green into the Tacoma market once again and to develop and advocate
for more green building incentives for our members.
Award Category: Built Green Pioneer
Winner: Dan Wildenhaus
Description: Dan currently provides Building Science
consultation, technical management, market channel development, and training
and presentation services for a variety of programs across the country. For
many years Dan has been an incredible partner and asset to the Built Green
program, providing countless hours of guidance, consultation, and advocacy.
Award Category: Built Green Pioneer
Winner: Ted Clifton
Description: Ted Clifton is the Co-Owner and founder
of TC Legend Homes. Over the last
several years TC Legend Homes have built over 28 Built Green certified homes, including
Seattle’s first Emerald Star certified home, making them a leader in the
Sustainable Housing Industry in Washington State. For many years Ted has
continually shared his passion and wealth of experience and knowledge of proven
strategies with the Built Green Community to improve homes across our region.
Award Category: Project of the Year
Winner: Targa Homes
Project: Crown Hill DADU
Description: With a goal of Built Green 5-star on
every project, Targa Homes is
committed to a holistic sustainability approach. The Crown Hill DADU was framed
with locally reclaimed lumber and features a 2x4 wall with exterior continuous
insulation. Built on a unique Diamond Pier foundation to minimize impact, the
home achieved high levels of air tightness and employs an Energy Recovery
Ventilator for continuous fresh filtered air. To learn more about this
project, read the Built
Green case study.
We hope everyone who came to the conference learned something
new, reunited with old friends, and walked away feeling inspired. We hope to
see you next year!