Cost-Effective Options for Meeting 2018 WSEC, Built Green, and Priority Green

Guest Author: Cybil Tribie, Senior Project Associate, Evergreen Certified

In March of 2021, the Residential 2018 Washington State Energy Code (WSEC) came into effect, and with it came the new 2021 Built Green Single Family/Townhome New Construction and Multifamily Checklists.

Both the new code and Built Green offered a few surprises with their updates. Code now includes the Fuel Normalization Credits (Table R406.2); and Built Green now offers three different pathways to meet their energy efficiency requirements. Two of those three paths for projects permitted under the residential code are modeling-based utilizing a performance approach, and the last is a prescriptive approach – selecting additional credits from WSEC 2018 Table R406.2 & R406.3. While all three paths are viable ways to meet their requirement, this post will only focus on the prescriptive approach for residential projects.

If you aren’t already familiar with it, the WSEC requires that units (based on size categories) obtain a certain number of credits from Tables R406.2 and R406.3 (the full table can be found here on pages RE-41 – RE-48). Those credit options span from thermal envelope improvements to HVAC upgrades to Energy Star appliance and even reducing overall air leakage. While most of the categories limit you to only choosing one option per category, you can mix and match all the different categories to obtain the minimum credit number required for your unit size.

The table below breaks down how many credits are required per unit size:

Unit Size	WSEC 2018
Small units* (less than 1,500 SF of conditioned floor area)	3.0 credits
Medium (between 1,500SF – 5,000SF)	6.0 credits
Large (greater than 5,000SF)	7.0 credits
Dwellings serving R-2 occupancies	4.5 credits
Additions less than or equal to 500SF**	1.5 credits

*Small units must have less than 300SF of fenestration otherwise they fall into the medium category
**Additions greater than 500SF but less than 1500SF fall into the small category

Earlier I mentioned that the new code threw in a surprise, the Fuel Normalization Credits (Table R406.2). Table R406.2 provides you with additional (or negative) points depending on the primary heating source being used for the units. For example, if you’re planning on using ductless mini-splits and electric resistance heaters (System Type 4 in Table R406.2), you’ll obtain 0.5 credits that is applied towards the total number required in the table above. That means that throughout Table R406.3, you’d only have to claim 2.5 credits, 5.5 credits, and so on depending on the unit size.

So now that we’ve gone through how the new code changed, let’s look at a couple suggestions on how to just meet code depending on your unit size.

A small unit (less than 1,500SF) using electric space heating and gas water heating could select the following credit options:

Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 4)	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance heaters	0.5
Credit 3.4	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance – HSPF 10	1.5
Credit 5.3	Energy Star gas water heater - UEF 0.91	1.0
TOTAL POINTS		3.0

But if you’re thinking of going all electric, here’s a path forward for code:

Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 4)	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance heaters	0.5
Credit 3.4	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance – HSPF 10	1.5
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater – NEEA Tier III	2.0
TOTAL POINTS		4.0

The tables above represent two different options for how to meet your energy credit requirements for code. While going all electric with a hybrid heat pump water heater gets you above and beyond the 3.0 credit requirement, it will also help propel you forward with the Built Green prescriptive approach and being eligible for green building incentive programs, like Seattle’s Priority Green. Priority Green – faster permitting with the City of Seattle – requires that your project achieve 2.0 credits in addition the R406 requirements for new dwelling units, the same as Built Green 4-Star certification, so why not double dip and meet your Built Green and Priority Green requirements all in one shot?

Built Green 4-Star certification requires that you get (depending on star level) 3-Star - +1.0pt, 4-Star - +2.0pts, and 5-Star - +3.0pts beyond the minimum required for code based on your size level and fuel type. So, let’s review what that would look like.

Unit Size	WSEC 2018	Built Green 4-Star/Priority Green
Small units* (less than 1,500 SF of conditioned floor area)	3.0 credits	5.0 credits
Medium (between 1,500SF – 5,000SF)	6.0 credits	8.0 credits
Large (greater than 5,000SF)	7.0 credits	9.0 credits
Dwellings serving R-2 occupancies	4.5 credits	6.5 credits
Additions less than or equal to 500SF**	1.5 credits	3.5 credits

*Small units must have less than 300SF of fenestration otherwise they fall into the medium category
**Additions greater than 500SF but less than 1500SF fall into the small category

The following tables provide examples of what a 4-Star Built Green project might want to consider claiming if pursuing the prescriptive approach for Built Green’s energy efficiency requirements. Note that the Priority Green program does not allow for natural gas to be used in the home and projects must select electric-only options to qualify.

Small Units (less than 1,500 SF)

Small units with less than 1,500 SF of conditioned floor area, with less than 300 SF of fenestration, benefit the most from electric ductless mini-split systems for space heating. If space allows in the small unit for a heat pump water heater, it will reach the required prescriptive credits with less action items.

Ductless electric space heating and gas water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 4)	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance heaters	0.5
Credit 3.4	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance – HSPF 10	1.5
Credit 5.3	Energy Star gas water heater - UEF 0.91	1.0
CODE TOTAL POINTS		3.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.2	2.0ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.65	1.0
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances with ductless dryer	0.5
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		5.0

Ductless electric space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 4)	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance heaters	0.5
Credit 3.4	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance – HSPF 10	1.5
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater – NEEA Tier III	2.0
CODE TOTAL POINTS		4.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.1	3.0ACH air leakage High efficacy exhaust fan	0.5
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		5.0

Medium Units (1,500 SF-5,000 SF)

What about a medium sized unit (1,500SF-5,000SF) using different space and water heating options? There are a multitude of mix-and-match options that you can utilize, but below are some examples of how to get there for code and Built Green. It’s important to remember though that when using the Built Green prescriptive approach, less than 50% of your WSEC credits can come from PV.

Gas space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 1)	Combustion heating equipment	0.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.2	2.0ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.65	1.0
Credit 3.1	Energy Star Furnace	1.0
Credit 4.2	All HVAC equipment and ducts in conditioned space	1.0
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater – NEEA Tier III	2.0
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances	0.5
CODE TOTAL POINTS		6.0
Credit 6.1	2,400kWh of solar	2.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		8.0

Ductless electric space heating and gas water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 2)	Heat pump space heating with no electric resistance	1.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.2	2.0ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.65	1.0
Credit 3.6	Ductless mini-split with minimal electric resistance – HSPF 10	2.0
Credit 5.3	Gas water heater – UEF 0.91	1.0
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances	0.5
CODE TOTAL POINTS		6.0
Credit 6.1	2,400kWh of solar	2.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		8.0

Ducted electric space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 2)	Heat pump space heating with no electric resistance	1.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 3.5	Air-source centrally ducted heat pump – HSPF 11.0	1.5
Credit 4.2	All HVAC equipment and ducts in conditioned space	1.0
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater - TIER III	2.0
CODE TOTAL POINTS		6.0
Credit 2.2	1.5ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.75	1.5
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances with a ventless dryer	0.5
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		8.0

Ductless electric space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 2)	Heat pump space heating with no electric resistance	1.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.2	2.0ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.65	1.0
Credit 3.6	Ductless mini-split with minimal electric resistance – HSPF 10	2.0
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater - TIER III	2.0
CODE TOTAL POINTS		6.5
Credit 6.1	1,200kWh of solar	1.0
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances	0.5
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		8.0

Ductless electric space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 4)	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance heaters	0.5
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.3	1.5ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.75	1.5
Credit 3.4	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance – HSPF 10	1.5
Credit 5.6	Heat pump water heater with a split air-to-refrigerant compressor located outside	2.5
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances with a ventless dryer	0.5
CODE TOTAL POINTS		7.0
Credit 6.1	1,200kWh of solar	1.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		8.0

Large Units (5,000+SF)

And we can’t forget about the large units (5,000SF+). Below are just a couple options for how to obtain those Built Green points prescriptively.

Gas space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 1)	Combustion heating equipment	0.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.3	1.5ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.75	1.5
Credit 3.1	Energy Star furnace	1.0
Credit 4.2	All HVAC equipment and ducts in conditioned space	1.0
Credit 5.6	Heat pump water heater with a split air-to-refrigerant compressor located outside	2.5
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances	0.5
CODE TOTAL POINTS		7.0
Credit 6.1	2,400kWh of solar	2.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		9.0

Ducted electric space heating and gas water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 2)	Heat pump space heating with no electric resistance	1.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.3	1.5ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.75	1.5
Credit 3.5	Air-source centrally ducted heat pump – HSPF 11.0	1.5
Credit 4.2	All HVAC equipment and ducts in conditioned space	1.0
Credit 5.3	Energy Star gas water heater - UEF 0.91	1.0
Credit 7.1	Energy Star appliances with a ventless dryer	0.5
CODE TOTAL POINTS		7.0
Credit 6.1	2,400kWh of solar	2.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		9.0

Ducted electric space and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 2)	Heat pump space heating with no electric resistance	1.0
Credit 1.3	Windows: U-0.28 Floors: R-38 R-10 under entire slab	0.5
Credit 2.2	2.0ACH air leakage HRV with SRE 0.65	1.0
Credit 3.5	Air-source centrally ducted heat pump – HSPF 11.0	1.5
Credit 4.2	All HVAC equipment and ducts in conditioned space	1.0
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater - TIER III	2.0
CODE TOTAL POINTS		7.0
Credit 6.1	2,400kWh of solar	2.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		9.0

Multifamily R-2 Occupancies

All the tables above demonstrate a variety of different compliances paths to meeting Energy Code as well as Built Green. Below are two ways to do that for R-2 Occupancies. The important thing to keep in mind is that the points values in Tables R406.2 & 406.3 are different for R-2 Occupancy.

Ductless electric space heating and gas water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 4)	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance heaters	N/A
Credit 1.1	Vertical fenestration – U 0.24	0.5
Credit 2.1	0.30 cfm/ft²@ 50Pa and 0.35 watts/cfm ventilation	1.0
Credit 3.4	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance	2.0
Credit 5.3	Energy Star gas water heater - UEF 0.91	1.0
CODE TOTAL POINTS		4.5
Credit 6.1	2,400kWh of solar	2.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		6.5

Ductless electric space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 4)	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance heaters	N/A
Credit 2.1	0.30 cfm/ft²@ 50Pa and 0.35 watts/cfm ventilation	1.0
Credit 3.4	Ductless mini-split with electric resistance	2.0
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater - TIER III	2.5
CODE TOTAL POINTS		5.5
Credit 6.1	1,200kWh of solar	1.0
BUILT GREEN TOTAL POINTS		6.5

Ductless electric space heating and electric water heating
Option	Description	Credit
Fuel Normalization (Type 2)	Heat pump space heating with no electric resistance	1.0
Credit 3.6	Ductless mini-split with minimal electric resistance – HSPF 10	3.0
Credit 5.5	Heat pump water heater - TIER III	2.5
BUILT GREEN AND CODE TOTAL POINTS		6.5

All of the above tables provide options for exceeding the 2018 WSEC-R and meeting the requirements for Built Green certification and Priority Green expedited permitting. Builders will need to evaluate which prescriptive credits work best for the project’s site, design, size, and budget. To do this we recommend discussing options with your energy consultant or Built Green Verifier during the design process. Lastly, by selecting electric-only options builders will also earn additional indoor air quality credits to further their Built Green certification, future code-proof their energy designs, and provide more resilient and desirable homes for their buyers.

This webinar provides a detailed look into the prescriptive energy efficiency code credit options for residential projects that meet the 2018 Residential Washington State Energy Code and Built Green requirements. Speakers include representatives from Evergreen Certified and Built Green. Access webinar HERE.

Ted was awarded Project of the Year at the 2016 Built Green Conference for his two-home net zero energy project in the Victory Heights neighborhood of Seattle. These homes were constructed using Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs)—one of the trademarks of Ted’s work. The homes include 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. These projects were featured in a past Built Green Case Study.

Ted first became involved with Built Green because his father and a client encouraged him. He had already been building 3-Star Built Green homes in Bellingham, which inspired him to do even better. He originally started building sustainable and Built Green homes because he wanted the most stout, durable homes and thought Built Green was a good representation of the “epitome of green.” With his first net zero home, however, he realized that he could drastically reduce the amount of energy needed to maintain a home, or even eliminate it, and actually provide extra energy to power an electric car or two.

This point is often how he communicates the advantages of his projects, as compared to code built homes, to buyers. He explains that the homes make their own power, with some to spare. Ted has also found that the demand for these types of über green homes has been increasing. As he explained, he frequently gets ten or more emails a week from people wanting TC Legend Homes to build them a home.

2016 Built Green Conference Project of the Year by TC Legend Homes

Currently, he is working on an Emerald Star project that is pushing the boundaries of his company’s process even further. The house will make its own power and collect its own water. When asked what his favorite project so far is, he replied, “my current project, because it is always a step better than the last.”

In terms of the future, Ted is excited to see increases in efficiency in envelope systems, windows, heat pumps, and solar technology. He also mentions lighting, appliances, and toilets that just keep getting better and better. When talking about his company, he states that they are making a company whose movement is focused towards education and innovation and just building enough houses to continue their research and development.

In parting, Ted shared “our crew works three days per week, I commute in an electric car, and have a mullet.”

Thank you, Ted (and your mullet), for all your work with Built Green! We look forward to the projects you have coming up and are eager to see the completion of your first Emerald Star project!

member-story-tc-legend-homes

Built Green™

09/15/2023

2023 Built Green Hammer Award Winners

As per tradition, at the 2023 Built Green Conference 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 salvaged sequoia planks, locally sourced from Earthwise Architectural Salvage.

Project: Capitol View Condos

Hammer Award Winners - Habitat for Humanity SKC

Hammer Award Winners - Blueprint Capital Services

Award Category: Builder, Medium Multifamily, 50 to 150 Units

Winner: Blueprint Capital Services

Project: Clay Apartments

Award Category: Builder, Large Multifamily, over 150 Units

Winner: Kamiak Real Estate LLC

Project: Goldfinch Elder’s Housing and Denny Apartments

Hammer Award Winners - Kamiak Real Estate LLC

All the top-performing, multifamily buildings, that earned these builders their awards, are now owned and operated by nonprofit organizations, such as Habitat for Humanity, Chief Seattle Club, YWCA, and the Low Income Housing Institute, to provide permanent affordable housing.

Hammer Award Winners - Dwell Development LLC

Award Category: Builder, Remodel

Winner: Dwell Development LLC

Project: Lakehouse 2.0 Renovation

Award Category: Built Green Advocate Private Sector

Winner: O’Brien360

Description: Alistair Jackson, David Reddy, and the whole team at O’Brien360 have been instrumental in guiding and assisting Built Green to hone its checklists through multiple WSEC updates. Providing hours of consultative services and being active participants on Built Green’s technical advisory panel. Additionally, they have been long-time advocates of the program, offering council to some of our public stakeholders who were updating and developing new green building incentives in their cities, to ensure all certification programs were fairly represented.

Award Category: Built Green Advocate Public Sector

Winner: David Barnes, City of Kirkland

Description: As a long-standing Senior Planner in the City of Kirkland, co-chair of the King County Cities Climate Collaborative, member of the Regional Code Collaboration, and a member of the Built Green Executive Committee, David has been an integral part of increasing sustainable development in the Puget Sound region. In the past year, he has advocated on Built Green’s behalf, and included Built Green in the process of developing Kirkland’s new High Performance Green Building Standards and programs. Creating the first green remodel incentive program in the state. He routinely shares with other jurisdictions his experience and advocates for adoption of Built Green incentives to support lower impact development in King and Snohomish Counties.

Award Category: Built Green Pioneer

Winner: Jess Harris, City of Seattle

Description: Jess has been with the City of Seattle for over 20 years and is SDCI’s green building expert. As the City of Seattle’s Green Building Program Manager, he’s directed the creation of one of the region's first green building incentive programs, Priority Green, and later the Living Building Pilot program. He has been a vital partner in the development and adoption of Built Green in Seattle’s housing market. Since 2019, he has been on the Built Green Executive Committee and has previously been awarded two Built Green Hammer awards for public sector advocacy.

Award Category: Built Green Pioneer

Winner: Sean Conta, Targa Homes

Description: A former passive house rater and Built Green verifier, Sean became a builder in 2018. Targa’s team of two focuses on high-performance home building in the custom homes market. From the get-go they implemented high-performance building science techniques to minimize operational emissions in their homes. All of Sean’s projects are 5-star certified and have scored an average of 671 points on their Built Green checklists. In the last couple years, Sean has been an early adopter in measuring and reducing the embodied material emissions of Targa’s homes and was a pilot tester during development of the BEAM Estimator tool. His homes have been featured in numerous Built Green Case Studies and they earned a Built Green Hammer Project of the Year award in 2021.

Hammer Award Winners - Dwell Development LLC Lakehouse

Award Category: Project of the Year

Winner: Dwell Development LLC

Project: Lakehouse 2.0 Development

Description: The Lakehouse 2.0 Development by Dwell Development. This project features the above awarded 5-star Net Zero Energy (NZE) certified historical remodel and NZE-Ready DADU, and a newly constructed NZE-Ready 5-star certified home with an attached ADU. To learn more about this development, read the full Built Green case study.

Congratulations to all our 2023 Built Green Hammer Award Winners!! We can’t wait to see what exciting projects we get to review next year.

2023-built-green-hammer-award-winners

Built Green™

11/15/2018

Raising the Bar

Dwell Development 33rd Ave S Reclaimed materials

By Kelsey Brokaw, Built Green Coordinator

Here at Built Green, as one might expect, we believe in sustainability. But if you look closer, you’ll discover other values too: inclusion, market focus, excellence by example. We work for those values every day, but we wouldn’t be nearly as successful if our program wasn’t enriched by members working for those same goals. Today, we look at how Dwell Development is leading the way toward more sustainable housing.

You might have heard of Dwell Development because the company has a stellar reputation for building homes exclusively to the Built Green 5-Star level—or even higher. A Dwell project received the first Built Green® Net Zero Energy label and Dwell built Seattle’s first (and very successful) Built Green Emerald Star home. What’s more, Dwell principal Anthony Maschmedt has built well over 100 certified Built Green homes since joining the program a decade ago. In short, we aren’t talking about feats that many small builders can boast.

Dwell Development King St interior, courtesy Paxson Fay

Dwell builds this way because its guiding principle is to create a better tomorrow. And that starts with individual residents. Dwell believes that homes should be long-lasting, livable, and healthy. Anthony knows that the best way to do that is to build green. His 5-Star homes set owners up for a lifetime of comfortable, sustainable living.

As previous winners of Built Green’s Moving the Market Award (2016), Dwell has a history of raising the bar. But they don’t do that on just a home-by-home basis. Dwell homes are also exclusively built on infill sites. Most readers will recognize this to mean land in developed areas. From our perspective, infill development means sustainability. The simplified math is that the less land we use for homes and transportation, the more we have for biodiverse, wild ecosystems; for recreation; and for renewable energy generation. Anthony sums it up best, “infill development itself is the most sustainable way to build.”

Dwell Development 42nd Ave S infill, courtesy Paxson Fay

And that’s not true just because of my reductive spatial equation. Builders like Anthony also like infill development because it is cost efficient. The density of building in existing urban spaces doesn’t just curtail sprawl, it increases efficiency by slashing the need for expansive, human-centric infrastructure systems. It’s obvious why builders are happy when electric grids and storm drains are already in place on the build site. That’s one less cost, plus it’s more efficient in terms of land-use, distribution, and urban resource management. New residents benefit, too, because amenities and services are already established. Anthony is particularly fond of building near light rail, which provides access to even more amenities and encourages a car-independent lifestyle.

Infill development is not, however, without controversy. In the news now is Seattle’s Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) Environmental Impact Statement, the final version of which was recently released after delays due to legal challenges. Building an ADU makes better use of land and infrastructure by providing more residences on the same single-family lot. Built Green awards points for new projects that include attached or detached accessory dwelling units, a credit that Dwell has taken advantage of in the past.

Infill development doesn’t have to mean destroying existing homes or overwriting neighborhood character. In fact, Dwell preserves existing homes whenever it can, even restoring them while erecting new structures nearby. And when that isn’t possible, Dwell reclaims original materials, reusing them for that recognizable ‘salvaged’ look in its new builds.

Dwell Development 33rd Ave S Reclaimed materials, courtesy Paxson Fay

Nevertheless, Anthony is conscious of the change his new construction brings to neighborhoods and practices making allies, not enemies. He says, “We choose to focus on the positive of it.” That is, the existing home is preserved and there’s a new home for someone else. You may have noticed an influx of people to the Puget Sound area, all of whom need homes. Anthony puts it in his blunt, characteristic way, “We’re not a little city anymore. We’re a big city. And we’ve got to start acting like it.” If we are going to be a big city, we don’t just need to house the booming population and ensure those living in Seattle aren’t priced out, we also need to plan for a sustainable future. How? Green homes and density are part of the answer.

At the same time, that population boom strains existing infrastructure, so that even with favorable zoning, the cost of infrastructure improvements curbs housing density all on its own. This frustrates builders who want to make the same sustainable choices Dwell does but can’t due to rising costs and slim margins. Which is why it’s important to have companies like Dwell out there—and advocates like Anthony—who are on the ground, leading by example, talking to councilmembers, and advocating for greener homes and incentives that will spur more of them. Built Green and MBAKS are partners in that effort. Because just as we all win when green homes are built, we all lose when they are not.

Considering Dwell’s choice to build all green all the time, you’d be right in thinking they’ve developed some expertise. As Anthony modestly says, “We’ve become pretty efficient at it.” And that’s exactly what we need. We need builders who build green and build dense. Builders who raise the bar and show others that building green is possible and even cost-effective. Without them, we’d be stuck in a cycle of sprawl and inefficiency that we cannot afford.

Photos courtesy Dwell Development and Paxson Fay

raising-the-bar