Page 42 - Green Builder July-August 2019 Issue

WHAT’S SO EXCITING ABOUT THE

®
VISION HOUSE SEATTLE CASCADES?

“It’s not often that the opportunity
comes along to redefine sustainability
and set a new standard for building
green in the current marketplace—to
design and build a template that can be
replicated across the country—but
that’s precisely what Green Builder®
Media is aspiring to do with the next
project in our VISION House®
demonstration series.”
Sara Gutterman, CEO,
®
Green Builder Media

“During the economic downturn from
2007 though 2016, I was able to take
the time to conduct a lot of research on
various aspects of energy-efficient
home construction. During those years,
COURTESY OF ENVIRONMENTAL DYNAMICS House® project offers us an opportunity
we were able to test and prove our work,
but only on our own projects. The VISION
to work closely with other top industry
professionals in a manner we can all
learn from. This project is as much about
sharing knowledge as it is about building
a house, not just between ourselves, but
with the greater world of homebuilders
Cooking with class. The open kitchen will boast energy-efficient appliances from Whirlpool, high-efficiency windows from Western Window System, and and homeowners.”
an LED lighting package.
Ted Clifton, builder, Clifton View Homes
experts and incredible minds that we have SIMPLE WORKS a reasonable price point and create some-
brought together.” One lesson that unfolded as the project thing that is replicable across the country,
But, as most projects do, the VISION launched is the importance of keeping we had to make hard choices and reduce
House Seattle Cascades project experi- things simple. “Herro’s initial sketches the bells and whistles.”
®
enced some unexpected setbacks, includ- incorporated simplicity of design and This made for some difficult decision
ing lengthy delays in the permitting pro- economy of scale, so it was easy to trans- making, but was important to keep the proj-
cess. It doesn’t matter who you are in King late them into an excellent example of a ect on track—particularly with some of its
County—leading production builder or “rst- modern-day high-performance, healthy out-of-the-mainstream precepts.
time homebuyer—you wait in the queue. home,” says Stace McGee, the project’s “Anytime you’re trying to do something
But it’s important to talk about these issues architect and founder of Environmental di erent, the usual systems break down in
and others that may cause delays or added Dynamics, Inc. “However, all of our part- terms of permitting, contractor channels
costs, because it is what typical builders and ners, understandably, wanted to put their and the like, so you can’t follow a normal
homeowners also face when embarking on best foot forward and showcase their most process, which e ectively doubles the cost
a new home project. advanced products. To keep the home at continued on page 43

40 GREEN BUILDER July/August 2019 www.greenbuildermedia.com

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