It feels different here. We're at the office, talking shop. Moving past the acoustic guitar and AC/DC record (yes, record), you get a sense that these guys and gals are doing something cool and modern—so modern, in fact, that the industry has yet to catch up. It makes sense that there's a guitar in the office because this team strums to the tune of their own chords, setting new standards in homebuilding and daring anyone to do the same. Welcome to Green Canopy Homes.

BEATRICE (THEY NAME THEIR HOMES)

We're on the roof of "Beatrice" now, overlooking Lake Washington and Bellevue on one side, with a clear shot of the Smith Tower in Seattle on the other. But enough about the view—we're standing on top of building science. The guts of this home will soon be filled with enough gadgetry to wow even the most ardent tech geek, delivering cleaner air, more efficient heating, and an overall sense of innovative superiority.

Driven by the Built Green® checklists, along with meticulous Quality Control Inspection Checklists (QCIC) of their own, every Green Canopy job site is synchronized via iPads that deliver real-time project management tracking and communication. This process ensures that critical updates are made and that any mistakes don't happen twice. It's all about getting better here, from process to parts. Better homes lead to a better brand, which in turn provides validation for that tree logo on the front of each Green Canopy-certified home.

"That tree logo," by the way, is there for much more than feng shui. Turning residential homebuilding innovation into an industry strength is made possible by Value, Innovation, Beauty, and Efficiency, or VIBE, the way Green Canopy sees it. Their brand is secured—not grounded—by these four "roots," seen literally on the face of each home, welcoming owners and guests into the future of home living. And if a home doesn't meet the rigorous checklists, then it doesn't receive the logo. In other words, this brand delivers.

THE GENESIS OF BETTER BUILDING

Let's take a step back to a sleep-deprived evening in 2008. Owners Aaron Fairchild and Sam Lai had both recently welcomed their newborns, and through their giddiness came the idea for Green Canopy Homes. After trademarking their moniker, they went to work on answering a simple question: Are we making a difference? Heady question, but these guys wouldn't have it any other way. They're looking to create history.

Of course, history is defined by change and nobody knows that better than this crew. They don't throw history out, however; in fact, they embrace it in all its past beauty. Case in point; each project they take on comes with the name of an iconic and typically historical female figure. "Beatrice" is named after Beatrice Simms, founder of Seattle's chapter of Colored Women's Clubs. Each project's story continues long after the team leaves, too, as Lai envisions his future homeowners living, laughing, and growing up healthier and happier inside their Green Canopy home.

After a familial chat with the project managers, in conversation outside of Beatrice, Lai finishes his point on home efficiency by comparing vehicle MPGs to home efficiency ratings. "Hopefully my kids will think about their home MPGs in the same way (as their vehicles')," he says, almost as an afterthought. "I guarantee you they will," quips Fairchild, never one to miss a beat. The attention to detail is strong.

Those who know Aaron Fairchild may know his father, who knew everyone. Aaron worked at his father's bank from 1995 to 2008, refining his financing skills and using his area residential homebuilding experience to put investors in a place where they could succeed and do so without sacrificing values. One day, at the height of the financial crisis, Fairchild decided it was time to enter the real estate industry. Why? Human reasoning can be a tricky thing to grasp, but a simple analogy sums up his thought process: this was his chance to build something beautiful from the crash.

CHANGE WAS COMING

Of course, cultivating said change means planting the right seeds in the right place. In this case, it means building sustainability in the cultural center of the Northwest, the greater Seattle and Portland areas. Green Canopy has sprouted roots in some of the most visible and dense areas of the Puget Sound region, spanning a diverse price range. Built Green-certified homes, like the ones Green Canopy specializes in, now make up 57 percent of all residential homes built in the soil-rich Seattle area. The roots of change are spreading—must be all the rain.

BACK TO THE FUTURE

At the Earth 6 property in Delridge, consisting of six detached single-family units, Fairchild fervently points out features, describing the living area as "Volkswagen luxury," inside the well-sealed envelope construction of the home. Green Canopy projects that go on the market in the low $400,000 range, such as the Earth 6 units, contain features not typically found at that price, and both Fairchild and Lai are quick to point out that they have had help in being able to spread the technology around. In steps the Washington State Housing Finance Commission (WSHFC), without whom, Green Canopy would not have been able to build the Earth 6 homes the way they wanted to. The WSHFC has helped builders like Green Canopy deliver deep energy efficiency to homes of all shapes and sizes, allowing lower-end residences to experience the joy of high efficiency ERVs, eco panels, and 230 percent more efficient heat pumps creating compressed energy with the intensity of "high schoolers on the dance floor" (another Fairchild classic), just like they do inside million-dollar homes. In WSHFC, Green Canopy sees a like-minded ally, not afraid to think outside the box and take measurable risks to achieve their mission. In their own words, green innovation within the building industry typically "hasn't been a strength," though Fairchild and friends are working on that.

It helps, too, that everyone on the team actually talks the talk when it comes to living green. Lai literally lives and breathes his product, living in a home he collaboratively designed and built himself. Hanging around the crew, especially Lai and Fairchild, it becomes immediately apparent that they really do mean it when they say they want to change the residential homebuilding industry—whether everyone likes it or not.

Cue the chatter of neighbors opposed to modern "monstrosities" being erected in their neck of the woods. Fairchild combats allied neighborhood fronts by simply sitting residents down and talking to them like the people they are, and giving them some say in what they have to look at every day. The loudest typically direct the majority at these gatherings, Fairchild points out, so Green Canopy gives individuals the option to go online and fill out a survey on features like exterior color and roofline shape, which will then influence the design direction Green Canopy takes. The home is then built according to plan—with slight alternations to paint and slope.

When asked whether or not this is enough to satisfy opposed residents, Fairchild counters the clash with reason: "We hold meetings for existing residents even before buying the property, to talk with them and see if building there (in a particular neighborhood) would be a good fit in the first place. If we think it is not right for us, we explain that another builder will eventually buy this land, and they probably won't engage the community at all."

Fairchild also discusses obstacles within the rebuilding process, explaining why he and Green Canopy have moved away from full-gut remodel projects: Persistent frustrations with an elongated plans review process of remodel permits have in the past delayed projects to the point where they "just aren't worth the trouble," he says. Ever the mender, however, he has recently taken a seat on the MBA board, where he hopes to further influence political decision-makers in our region. By engaging the public and manning the front lines of influential industry committees to squash issues before they become problematic, Green Canopy is winning before nail one is hammered.

Inevitably, when one tours a Green Canopy home, the question arises: "Can you do this for us?" With a few more of those questions answered, things won't feel so different anymore.

Cue the guitar.

Two homes completed by TC Legend Homes last year in Seattle. Many projects in Seattle get expedited permits. One of TC Legend Homes’ next projects is targeting Emerald Star!

By Leah Missik, Built Green™ Program Manager

We know that building green is better for the environment. We also know that it is better for home dwellers – who doesn’t like lower bills and better indoor air quality? But is building green better for builders? To be honest, this depends on who you ask. Some of our Built Green members are avid proponents of the program, but at the same time, not every project is Built Green. Therefore, we work hard not only to communicate the benefits of building green to builders, but we also shape the system to make building green even more enticing. A primary way we do this is by working with local government and utility partners on incentives that reward builders who certify their projects Built Green.

Last year, we certified 1,003 projects, which was a continuation of our tremendous recent growth. Much of this growth was concentrated in the City of Seattle. In fact, last year 58% of new single-family homes were Built Green certified! A big reason for our success is our relationship with the City. Seattle offers priority expedited permitting for projects that are certified at 4-Star or higher. Getting a permit faster is a tremendous benefit in this busy market! On top of this, 4-Star or higher Built Green projects may be eligible for a Floor Area Ratio bonus, which allows for extra height or floor area. These incentives compensate for any added costs or effort involved in Built Green, which can be a hurdle, especially for first-timers. Our track record in Seattle clearly demonstrates that builders find these incentives beneficial (otherwise they wouldn’t be utilized!), and that the city is seeing the return in more green housing stock.

Two Built Green 5-Star homes in Kirkland by Dwell Development and CTL Design.

Seattle is not the only city that offers green building incentives, or indeed, expedited permitting. In 2008, the City of Kirkland pioneered expedited permitting for green projects. Today, Built Green projects that achieve 4-Star or higher are eligible. In addition to offering this incentive, city staff works hard to foster connections between builders and the Built Green program. For example, having spoken with Kim Saunders about her upcoming Juanita Farmhouse Cottages project, David Barnes and Scott Guter from Kirkland’s Green Building team connected her with Built Green. As a result of catalyzing this relationship, Kim made the decision not only to aim for Built Green 5-Star certification for each home, but also to obtain Community certification for the whole development!

Not building in Kirkland or Seattle? No problem! Both Issaquah and Redmond have their own priority permitting programs currently, and both cities are also in the process of strengthening their green building incentives. 

Faster permitting is not the only available reward for green builders out there. Any builder that builds within Cascade Water Alliance’s territory that achieves both Built Green and WaterSense certifications is eligible for a $1,000 per unit rebate. This is thanks to a partnership between Built Green and Cascade. The two organizations continue to work on ideas on how to increase water efficiency in homes.

Other utilities are in the game too! Seattle City Light offers a $1,500 per unit rebate for Built Green projects 4-Star and up that consist of five or more units. Projects are eligible if ductless heat pumps are the primary heating source. Further north, Snohomish County PUD will be announcing a new Built Green incentive very soon!

Queen City EcoVillage by Martha Rose, a Built Green certified community in Shoreline.

Speaking of new incentives, the City of Shoreline’s Planning Commission has passed a Deep Green Incentive Program along to Council for consideration on March 27, with potential adoption April 17. As it currently stands, the incentive rewards builders who are reaching for 5-Star and Emerald Star with waivers of application fees, a density bonus, reduced parking requirements, potential code departures, and more, depending on project location and certification level. This incentive program would be a big support for builders looking to take their craft to the next level by doing deep green.

This is already a long list of incentives, but we’re not done yet! Built Green is constantly working with its partners to figure out how to increase green building in the region. Snohomish County and Bellevue are both looking at programs that would benefit green builders through some manner of cost reductions, flexibility gain, and/or marketing support.

Why are so many cities and utilities willing to work with us? Not only do we live in a region where care for the environment is a strong value, but also because our partners understand that these incentives are a win/win. Clearly, incentives are good for the builders and Built Green. But, these incentives are beneficial to utilities, which need to increase their efficiency, and to cities, which are working to meet climate goals. The more Built Green homes there are, the greater these efforts are furthered. Additionally, cities are made up of people, and who doesn’t want a healthy, efficient home?

As Built Green grows, we will continue to work with our partners on how to make green building even more accessible. We want green building to be the norm. Please let us know if you have any ideas, or feel free to reach out to your representatives and express why green building is important.

Shannon and Nick Harper, senior director of strategy & policy, discuss our progress in advancing the MBA's legislative priorities, from addressing the Supreme Court's Hirst decision to expanding career and technical education.

See how you can advocate for housing

By Cameron Poague

Q: Our hardwood floors have gone to heck over the winter, and probably long before that. Should we attempt to salvage our floors by refinishing them ourselves or are we asking for trouble?

A: Hardwood floors take the brunt of many blows, including shoe scuffs, heavy furniture scratches, dust, dogs' nails, and all kinds of assorted blotches. These floors, with their alluring old-school charm and increased home value, don't often get the respect they deserve (heck, we walk all over them!) until it's too late.

Let's change that.

How can you tell if your floor needs refinishing? The eye test is probably the most trusted method, but it isn't necessarily the best method. To be certain, isolate the most trafficked area of your floor and spread a few droplets of water onto the section. If droplets form, you're good. If the droplets soak into the wood slowly, it means the finish is starting to wear; when droplets quickly infiltrate the wood, you're due for a refinish.

When you reach the refinishing point, there's an easy way to find out whether you should attempt to take on the process yourself. Just remember: If your floor is less than 3/4-inch thick, get a pro to do the job. How can you find your floor's thickness? Find two floorboards that have a groove between them, enough to fit a business card in between. Push the card as far down as it will go, then mark where the floor surface is. Pull the card out, measure the mark from the edge, and there's your depth.

Other indicators that warrant professional assistance include warped, bent, or soft floorboards and discoloration or stains that won't rub out.

You got this—or do you?

So, you want to go at it alone? Before giving your floor a DIY facelift, you'll need to be aware of a few crucial things. For whole-floor refinishes, you'll be clearing the entire room of furniture, drapes, and any other items that might get in the way. Then cover your vents, lighting fixtures, and doorways with plastic or sheets, taping off the edges so nothing can sneak through.

Next up: Check for protruding nail heads and carpet staples, driving in nails and removing staples if necessary, so they don't tear your sandpaper—when you get to that point. After properly prepping, you'll need to clean the entire area with the right hardwood floor cleaner.

You'll then need to buff and finish your floor. It is paramount to use protection (dust mask, goggles or respirator, gloves, kneepads, etc.) and know with complete confidence how to handle the equipment you are using. Not knowing what you're doing before powering on a sander can lead to exponentially more damage to your floors than you started out with—thereby making moot the whole home-improvement thing you were going for.

Did you know?

It's optimal to wait a week after applying your last layer of finish before putting furniture back onto the floor. Water-based polyurethane finishes take about three hours to dry; oil-based finishes can take eight or more hours. To avoid additional scuffs and scratches, affix felt pads to furniture legs before setting them back in place.

If you couldn't tell by now, the consensus is that it's typically better to hire a professional, especially if your floors are in bad shape or have a lot of historical value. If you decide to go at it yourself, don't skip steps and, above all, be careful.

HomeWork is written by contributing member professionals of the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties. If you have a home improvement, remodeling or residential homebuilding question you'd like answered by one of the MBA's more than 2,800 members, write to homework@mbaks.com.

By MBAKS Senior Policy Analyst Allison Butcher

Seattle Metro Area Sees Uptick in Single Family Permits in 2016

King County ended 2016 with a 7 percent increase in single-family permit activity compared to 2015 and a 7 percent decline in multifamily permits, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. Meanwhile, Snohomish County saw a 13 percent increase in single family permits and a 2 percent increase in multifamily permits at year's end. Both counties continued to have less than one month's supply of housing inventory for sale during January 2017.

The Builders' Bulletin is intended to provide a convenient way to track housing in our market and includes information from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, U.S. Census Bureau, Office of Financial Management and the Washington State Employment Security Department.

Download this month's report:

This week, Shannon talks to Kimberley Martin with Cyneburg Services about the benefits of networking at MBAKS.

Upcoming opportunities to network

Listen: The Dunn Lumber Podcast: How Contractors Can Protect Themselves From Litigation, recorded live November 17 at the Master Builders Association Remodelers Council Dinner.

Scott Noel is an attorney with AMS Law, focused on Washington State Safety Act (WISHA) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) citations. In this podcast, Scott provides insights into avoiding litigation in the first place and how to protect your business once litigation has begun.

Learn more about RC

By Everett Herald

Juli Bacon, owner of JB Consulting Systems and Bacon Maintenance Services in Woodinville, has been sworn in as the 2017 chair of the National Association of Home Builders Professional Women in Building Council. Bacon is also a partner in JJ BizWorks.

Read article

By Chris van Daalen, Anna Robinson, and Leah Missik

Since Built Green’s inception almost twenty years ago, the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild and its members have been collaborating with the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties to transform the built environment toward long-term sustainability and that partnership is only improving with time. From the first 5-star Built Green certified home in Seattle (built by Guild founding member Jon Alexander) to ongoing work on the Code Innovations Database, the Guild and Built Green have a long history of successful collaboration.

Eric and his wife, Alex, in front of their net zero energy Built Green home.

On April 29–30, the Guild will host the Northwest Green Home Tour for the seventh time, which will feature many Built Green homes in Seattle and the surrounding area. Eric Thomas, the Membership Programs Manager at the MBA, Built Green homeowner, former Built Green Executive Committee member, and former Tour organizer, cherishes the Tour and its impact. According to Eric, “the Northwest Green Home Tour is a chance for the local green building community—from builders to architects to homeowners—to come together for one weekend to give their Seattle-area neighbors an up-close look at our region’s healthiest, most efficient homes. In my experience, nearly everyone taking the tour or showing a home on it comes away inspired by the beauty and innovation on display. Being involved with the tour as a tour-goer, a volunteer, a homeowner, and eventually an organizer, has been a transformative experience for me.”

This month, the Guild and the MBA/Built Green are teaming up to train builders and other professionals on how to effectively combine energy efficiency with indoor air quality at the Healthy Home Training for Building Professionals course from February 16–April 6, 2017. Instructors are national and regional field experts and the course material will give participants a better understanding of building science and indoor air quality benefits to best meet customers’ needs. The collaboration between the Guild and the MBA/Built Green not only enables this important class, but helps it reach a broader audience.

The Clearwater Commons Community, which is a featured case study in the Code Innovations Database.

In addition to collaboration on tours and trainings, the Guild and Built Green have worked together to document precedent-setting breakthroughs in the green building realm. An example is “zHome First Rainwater Harvesting for Indoor Use in Issaquah,” a case study in the Code Innovations Database written by Leah Missik and Chris van Daalen, that describes one of Built Green’s demonstration projects, zHome, in the Issaquah Highlands. Other groundbreaking Built Green projects in the Database include Positive Impact Development at Clearwater Commons, the Solar-Powered Grow Community and the Dwell Emerald Star Home in Ballard. Database authors are now expanding this effort to document green advances: in addition to describing successful projects, they will also document policy profiles and incentives adopted in some communities that should be adapted and implemented broadly. As experts in the field of green building, both Built Green and the Guild feel a responsibility to share proven practices and policies to a broader audience. As local governments adopt these and similar policies and increase incentives for builders, there are more opportunities for those in the green building sector to partner on projects with far-reaching benefits. Many of these projects would not have been possible without the policies such as Priority Green, which Built Green helped to establish.

Chris has seen the impact these incentives can have on the growth of green building. “In 2009, Guild President and Built Green Executive Committee member Ben Kaufmann of Greenworks Realty was the first to publish data showing the competitive advantages of Built Green certified homes. Since then, the program has grown from a thin slice of the market, to 2016 which saw 58% of new single-family homes in Seattle be Built Green certified. This phenomenal success is in part due to successful incentives in Seattle that other cities can learn from to transform markets around the region. I’m excited to work with Leah to share these policy innovations as we advocate for our industry and expand our impact!”

Another example of important policy adoption is the City of Shoreline’s adaptation of the City of Seattle’s “Living Building Pilot Ordinance,” which was first adopted in 2009. This ordinance has been built upon by the City of Shoreline to establish a Deep Green Incentive Program (DGIP) ordinance, which will be considered by the City Council on March 27. “This is a tremendous opportunity for us to make progress toward our carbon reductions goals by reducing our footprint in the built environment,” Miranda Redinger, Senior Planner for City of Shoreline, explains. “We’ve done a lot of work in the transportation sector through light rail station planning, but if the areas that redevelop do not use green building, we will have lost our chance.” Shoreline’s proposal expands on Seattle’s precedent to include incentives for Built Green 5-Star and Emerald Star projects. Leah and Chris will publish a policy profile on the Shoreline DGIP as soon as the Council approves it, so it can serve as fodder for other cities that are considering similar actions. Another great incentive example is the Housing Design Demonstration Program on Bainbridge Island that rewards amazing projects like the Grow Community with additional density and code departures in exchange for high-performance building.

Kudos to leaders in both groups that have leveraged their unique qualities to harness the power of partnership! With Built Green and the Guild’s history of collaboration, and the strength of the regional market for sustainable homes and buildings, the future is looking really green!

We encourage you to invite your staff, subcontractors, homeowner clients, as well as friends and business partners to enjoy the evening with you. We especially encourage you to make sure your T-REX recipients attend. This is an opportunity for all to show their appreciation and support for the exceptional group of remodelers who are part of the oldest Remodelers Council in the nation.

I look forward to celebrating with you on May 13!

Your 2017 REX/T-REX Chair,

Luellen Smith
Rhino Wine Cellars & Cooling Systems