In the spotlight Built Green Colorado, McStain Neighborhoods nab national awards

Colorado's green building movement recently grabbed the national spotlight with a double win in at the National Green Building Conference.

Built Green Colorado took top honors for Green Program of the Year Award for the Established Program Category, while McStain neighborhoods received this year's Green Project of the Year Award for the Production Category. Both shared the stage with other national winners in recognition of their contributions at March 31 ceremonies in Baltimore. The National Green Building Conference is sponsored by the NAHB Research Center.

"I think our program has really created a national model, set a national standard for green building programs," said Kim Calomino, director of Built Green Colorado for the HBA of Metro Denver. "We're so pleased to receive an award that acknowledges the quality of our program. It really congratulates all the hard work. the hundreds and hundreds of volunteer hours that people put in to make a successful program, as well as our many builder and sponsor members."

Those thoughts were echoed by John Kurowski of Kurowski Development, the "founding father" of Built Green Colorado.

"This is a great tribute to the many volunteers who contributed their time and talent in the mid-1990s when we were starting, and those who continue to contribute today to make Built Green a program that has a tremendous positive impact on housing." he said.

Well-defined mission

The award is given to a home builder association. nonprofit group, utility or other agency with an exemplary green building program that is more than three years old, with demonstrated efforts to expand through advertisement, builder recruitment, training and education. The judges selected the Denver-based statewide program, which is recognized throughout the state of Colorado, because of its well-defined mission and scope. The judges also noted the program's success with nearly 13,500 homes certified under the project since its inception in 1995.

One of the keys to Built Green Colorado winning was its ongoing improvement, said Calomino.

"It's clear that thee judges were saying you don't just set up a checklist and let it roll on forever," she said. "Your job is always moving ahead, communicating to the home buyer and the marketplace about the importance of what you offer."

And the Colorado program is far from sitting still, according to Calomino. Currently, volunteers are hard at work on a plan designed to broaden the program and recognize the important benefits that builders achieve when they try the "house as a system" approach.

"Right now, Built Green is a one-level

"I think our program has really created a national model, set a national standard for green building programs."
-Kim Calomino, director of Built Green Colorado for the HBA of Metro Denver

program with a single point of entry for builders," explained Calomino. "These new levels are being designed around the building science and building systems approaches and will provide additional benefits for those builders taking that approach."

Calomino expects the new additions to debut next year.

Great opportunity

Another major feather in the Built Green cap is the showcase afforded by the annual Parade of Homes. This year's site at Stapleton provides a great opportunity for Built Green to tell its story to the public, according to Calomino. Developer Forest City has shown its commitment to green building by requiring that every home constructed meet or exceed the Built Green Colorado standards. It's an ambitious goal for the largest urban infill development in the United States, and one that the Parade of Homes will showcase.

"Forest City has been a great partner," Calomino said. "They are eager to present the many layers that go into green building.

"They represent the most pro-active developer that we've worked with," she added. "They see the Parade of Homes as an educational forum, for the industry, for the public and for public officials."

On Parade

Those drawn to the Stapleton Parade of Homes (which will focus on the new Urban Estates development) can also get a peak at McStain's Stapleton rowhome, which was the entry that garnered Green Project of the Year Award for the Production Category.

The award is presented to the company that best showcases green design and construction techniques in new homes, in which at least 10 homes have been built to the same specifications. Judges for this year's awards program commented that McStain Neighborhoods had an excellent defect tracking and rating system. In fact, they said that McStain was the only applicant that detailed their extensive documentation process through which problems are identified, repaired, tracked, and used to identify similar problems that might be happening in other homes. This kind of hands-on and preventative troubleshooting goes a long way in customer relations and establishing a reputation as leader in their market. Their corporate culture and commitment to green building was evident to the judges in the fact that most McStain employees independently participate in environmental programs as well.

"We're quite happy for the recognition of all the hard work we have done," said Kristin Shewfelt of McStain Neighborhoods. "McStain has been there since the conception of Built Green, always as a strong supporter. The program has provided us with a strong framework to explain the benefits of building green to our customers.''

A growth industry

Residential green building programs have conk a long way in the last decade or so. 111 1991, Austin. Texas, had the only such program in the country. Today, the NAHB Research Center is tracking 24 existing or developing green building programs. And not just the quantity of programs has grown, but the number of homes certified under those programs as well, particularly in the past two years. In fact, through 2001, about 19,000 homes had been built in accordance with local green building program guidelines. In 2002 alone, over 13.000 green homes were built, increasing the total number of green homes in the country by 70 percent - all in just one year.

The Colorado awards were two of six awards in four categories presented during the opening ceremonies of the NAHB Research Center's National Green Building Conference. Other winners of the National Green Building Awards program for 2003 include:

Green Advocate of the Year - A "Green Advocate" is someone who is a champion for the green building industry. Someone who, through tireless and often voluntary efforts has effected change in the field of resource-efficient new home construction. The 2003 winner of this award is Peter Pfeiffer, principal at Barley + Pfeiffer Architects of Austin, Texas, who is a pioneer and adamant believer in the implementation of passive solar design in all realms of construction.

Green Project of the Year, Affordable Category - This award is presented to the company that best showcases green design and construction techniques in new affordable homes, which are priced at or below 110 percent of the local median sales price. Artistic Homes of Albuquerque won the award in this category.

Green Project of the Year, Custom Category - This award is presented to the company that best showcases green design and construction techniques in a new home that is priced at or above 110 percent of the local median sales price. The winner of this year's award is Coho Construction Services, Inc. of Portland.

National Green Building Program of the Year, New Category - This award is given to a home builder association, nonprofit group, utility, or other agency with an exemplary green building program that is less than three years old. The judges selected Seattle's Built Green program coordinated by the Home Builders Association of King and Snohomish counties as the winner of this award.

Steve Andrews consults with builders for E-Star Colorado and writes on energy issues (sbandrews@att.net). E-Star (www.e-star.com), is a nonprofit home energy rating system that works with both new and existing homes statewide.

2008 Built Green Colorado

Home Builders Association of Metro Denver, 9033 E. Easter Place, Suite 200, Centennial, CO 80112
(303) 778-1400 fax: (303) 733-9440 info@builtgreen.org