Return to GBI Home Page

News

Green Building Program Takes Root
Inaugural Tour Featured 12 Homes

A wave of interest in "green building" concepts is sweeping the nation, and the Home Builders Association of Durham, Orange, and Chatham Counties (HBADOC) and its members are on the leading edge. The 2006 Green Building Home Tour, held in our area on May 20 and 21, was the first tour that's been initiated as part of the Green Building Initiative (GBI) of the National Association of Home Builders.

"We certainly hope that other communities across the nation will emulate your model," commented Mark Rasmussen, who is helping the GBI to launch local programs all over the country. "Local green home tours like yours provide a perfect opportunity to educate consumers and allow interested individuals to see the advantages first hand," he continued.

HBA officers were pleased with the attendance at the event. "This was a different crowd than you see at the Parade of Homes, because there weren't many gawkers," commented Dan Mahoney, HBADOC President. "Nearly everyone on the tour was already interested in green building concepts and wanted to see them up close," he continued.

Twelve homes, built by the following HBA members, were on the inaugural green home tour: Anderson Homes (with three entries), Carolina Country Builders, Chandler Design Build, Cimarron Homes, JD Mahoney Construction (with two entries), M Squared Builders and Designers (with two entries), John Rufty Homes, and Will Johnson Building Company. The homes ranged in style from contemporary to traditional and in price from $179,000 to $2.2 million.

"We're proud that all types of builders in our community were eager to embrace green building concepts," said Nick Tennyson, Executive Vice President of the HBADOC. "Participants in our event included custom builders who construct only a few homes per year as well as production builders who produce hundreds," he continued.

"The different homes on our tour showed that green building principles can be incorporated in a wide variety of ways," commented Michele Myers, chair of the HBA GBI Committee. "All twelve homes had Energy Star components, but they differed greatly in style and other features. The tour showed that green homes can fit a broad spectrum of aesthetic tastes and retain their curb appeal while still being more energy efficient, healthier, and environmentally responsible," she continued.

Marty Black, a builder from Ann Arbor, MI, definitely plans to apply some of the concepts that she learned while visiting. "The tour confirmed that I'm on the right track, and it also enabled me to learn about additional green features that I can begin to incorporate," she said.

Judy Kincaid, one of several hundred people who visited the homes on the tour, was enthusiastic about the energy savings that green homes will produce. "As a volunteer with Clean Energy Durham, I was thrilled to see that some of the builders have committed to attaining Energy Star® certification for all of their homes," she said. "Each Energy Star® home will use 30% less energy than a regular home of comparable size, and that's a big deal!"

"For next year's tour, I'd like to see more homes, more visitors, and maybe even a biodiesel bus to take people between houses," commented Myers. "We can accomplish all of these things if we build synergistic relationships with other interested groups," she added.

Tracey Goetz, manager of the Prudential Carolinas Realty office in Durham, remarked that the time has come for the green building movement to take root. "With consumers and home buyers being increasingly concerned about energy costs, I can't imagine a better time to boost the awareness in our community of green building concepts."