EcoHome Guy

This lil' ol' EcoBroker is proud to announce that construction on 546 Edgewood Avenue is officially underway. We call the project LEEDing Edge because it is on track to be one of Atlanta's first LEED Platinum homes. We almost had the home under contract before construction even began. Alas, it was not meant to be so the home is still available to a qualified buyer [FMLS #3750205].

The home is located within Atlanta's Old Fourth Ward at the corner of Howell and Edgewood and at the edge of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic District. The property is zoned Commercial/Residential and will feature a green roof, rainwater reclamation, and will be electrically engineered for solar. The home is also within walking distance to a future stop on the BeltLine.

The photo above shows the home coming out of the ground. Below is a rendering of how the building will appear when completed later this year [click for larger version].

The Old Fourth Ward itself is in the beginning stages of a fantastic transformation [www.o4wplan.com].  The final Master Plan for the area was approved on August 12, 2008 and features:

• All new construction to LEED, Earthcraft, or other evolving green-building standards
• More pedestrian and bike-friendly with emphasis on new parks, green space, and community gardens
• Underutilized land converted to mixed-use and more thickly settled land-planning except in historic neighborhoods
• Ample senior housing for aging-in-place
• No gated communities
• Neighborhood Power Plant
• Financial resources for green updates
• Green infrastructure
• A significant BeltLine Redevelopment District

There is a lot of talk in the building industry about using recycled materials in everything from sheathing and concrete to countertops, tile and flooring. Manufacturers market these products as green alternatives to products made from virgin and non-renewable resources. But is this enough? Most recycled-content products still require loads of energy to recover, ship, repackage, and deliver back to market; moreover the recycling process itself requires more energy and often leaves waste toxins behind.

Mike Fletcher (“Fletch” to friends and foes alike), the architect and developer for LEEDing Edge, uses the familiar mantra, “Reduce. Reuse. Recycle” as a guiding design principal. Fletch argues that the Three R’s are not to be considered equally, but represent a hierarchy of sustainability. Reduce First. When you must consume, then Reuse. When not possible or practical to Reuse, then Recycle.

So what about reusing building materials in our new buildings? We love old materials for their nostalgia, history and character. They cause us to pause and consider their past, and their story; they give us a connection to previous generation long passed and to the natural world in ways new products cannot. Manufacturers today even ‘distress’ new products to make them appear old and rustic in the hopes of making this connection. This often requires additional steps during manufacturing, using more energy and creating more waste.

Reused building materials not only protect our existing resources, but they also reduce our landfills. Roughly half of all landfill material is construction waste. Much of this is debris from demolition of existing buildings; how much of that debris could be reused? More importantly, who today is salvaging these materials and making them available for our reuse?

There are a number of businesses in the Atlanta area that specialize in reused and salvaged building materials. Of the reclaimed materials that Fletch has purchased for LEEDing Edge, perhaps the most exciting is the 200 year old reclaimed wood flooring and trim. Salvaged from an old Ohio home, the white pine has character and grain you cannot find in new wood flooring. The wood is provided by Piney Hill Wood Flooring, owned by the Hix Family in Chatsworth, GA. The Hix family has a fascinating history of their own. Their love affair with wood began with Ross’ father Kerry Hix, who began restoring and rebuilding mountain cabins nearly 50 years ago. His passion for the beauty and utility of wood has passed on to his sons – Aaron has become a widely-respected furniture maker, and Ross has grown the family business to include salvaging, milling and selling antique wood materials from old buildings.

As production and delivery energy costs continue to climb and our natural resources become depleted, the demand to reuse products and materials will grow even further, and reused building materials will be commonplace. This trend is beginning to have an impact on proactive designers as well. During World War II, the need for materials such as steel was so great that Ford Motor Company created “disassembly lines” to deconstruct old cars. Today, German law requires car manufacturers to build their cars to be dismantled and salvaged or recycled.

Imagine the possibilities if your home was designed to be deconstructed at the end of its useful life? It could move with you; it could expand and shrink to your needs without the expense and waste of traditional construction; and its pieces could become part of other people’s homes when you no longer need it. Architecture would mimic nature’s ability to adapt to changing environmental conditions…

I had the pleasure of previewing Oakland Park with a group of my fellow EcoBrokers yesterday. OP is Atlanta's first LEED [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] certified multi-family residential development to market so it's naturally on my radar. It's a little over 1/2 mile from the King Memorial MARTA Station but it's such an outstanding development I'm qualifying it for my Rail Estate Rebate when you choose to purchase one of the condominiums with me as your trusty Buyer's Agent. For my visit I opted to make the walk from MARTA which is on the north side of Oakland Cemetery. OP is appropriately named as it sits across the street from the southeast corner of the cemetery. Those who choose to make the connection between OP and MARTA on foot can do so through one of Atlanta's most historically significant green spaces.

After the short trek the other EcoBrokers and I were treated to refreshment and organic munchies at Stella Italian Trattoria located on the street level of the development. Alan Altman and Valencia Justice of the on-site sales team were our gracious host and hostess and made the tour very enjoyable.

The first thing I noticed when entering the residential area was the lack of the typical new construction smell due to the use of low volatile organic compound [VOC] paints, adhesives, sealants and carpeting throughout the building. Typically my eyes would have been burning within minutes of walking down the carpeted hallways. Improved indoor air quality is a primary benefit of LEED construction. Other eco-friendly features of the homes include:

• Operable, low-emittance, double-paned windows
• Bamboo flooring in kitchen and living areas
• Dual flush toilets and high performance plumbing fixtures
• Energy Star appliances
• High efficiency heating and cooling
• On-site recycling center
• Steel and concrete construction
• Drought-resistance landscaping
• Moped/bike racks

Premium amenities include:

• Dramatic community rooftop sun-deck with barbecue and stunning city skyline views that will never be blocked [because of the cemetery]
  
• Controlled access parking deck
  
• Free high-speed WiFi throughout the property
• Fitness center
• Deep private balconies and patios
• Grant Park location

My client broke ground April 1st on 546 Edgewood Avenue. Christened LEEDing Edge, this home is on track to be one of Atlanta's first LEED for Homes Platinum Certified residences. Look for the location on the map below at the corner of Howell St. and Edgewood Avenue. Click on the property and home for sale icons for more information on this ground-breaking home.

One of Atlanta's most desirable intown neighborhoods will soon have a new LEED, EnergyStar, and Earthcraft certified development. The 12 unit neighborhood will be located in Inman Park and is on track for LEED Gold certification, setting a new standard for a green development in the Atlanta market.

The homes will start in the $180's and feature:

• covered outdoor living space
• tankless hot water heaters
• dual flush toilets
• vegetative roofs
• concrete flooring
• garage parking

Beautiful, historic Inman Park is on the National Registry of Historic Places as one of the nation's first garden suburbs. Residents used to commute to and from Atlanta on streetcars via the restored Trolley Barn [circa 1889], a spectacular landmark of the community.

The property is located just minutes from Downtown, Midtown, Virginia Highlands, and Little 5 Points with great shopping and restaurants at nearby Edgewood Shopping District.

The homes will have a walk score of 72. Although it just misses my Walk Score Rebate by 3 points, it's still classified as "Very Walkable." Good news is that the development will be well within 1/2 mile of the Inman Park MARTA station, qualifying Buyers I represent for my Rail Estate Rebate. 

You can currently reserve a home at pre-construction pricing. Hurry before prices increase in mid-February when the development is listed. The neighborhood is scheduled for completion in Summer 2008.

GreenSteel Homes has it's first prototype completed and installed in a Traditional Neighborhood Development [TND] in Tallahasse, Florida, home to GreenSteel's brand new manufacturing plant. The prototype cottage is certified LEED for Homes Gold [peep the floorplan here]. Their models, designed by architect Bruce Tolar, are evolutions of The Katrina Cottage, the little house that roared after the Hurricane. The home has a surprisingly open feel for just 1125 square feet of space and can be delivered with HVAC, electrical, plumbing and interior finishes in place for as low as $100 per square foot [excluding the foundation and site development costs]. The homes use steel studs, wall panels filled with ground mineral rock, cementitious-board exteriors, wood or laminate floors, Andersen windows and metal roofs. Most of the materials are recycled or recyclable, don't harbor mold or mildew and are nonflammable.

GreenSteel co-owner Bud Chiles has a goal to manufacture about 250 cottages in 2008. They could do more, but there's a high commitment to quality and environmentally sound construction.

Another goal is to see the creation of model villages of the GreenSteel homes built around the country. The inspiration for this initiative is Tolar and Company's Cottage Square in Ocean Springs, MS. I am working on a partnership with Chiles and Tolar to do just that in Atlanta, Georgia. Success would mean Atlanta's first certified LEED Gold home on the ground later this year -- and possibly within Atlanta's first community certified LEED for Neighborhood Development.