Green Takes Root

According to Roy O. Bonnell Jr., executive director of the nonprofit, independent FGBC, the coalition will publish a magazine in 2007 with relevant articles and resources, and a series of community workshops is planned to bring together builders, affordable-housing proponents and government officials. "Builders are starting to realize that green building is no longer a niche market," Bonnell says, "but the direction the market is taking. Builders who provide green homes will have a marketing advantage over builders who continue to build nongreen homes."

The arrival of green building at 12-year-old Lakewood Ranch reflects the evolution of the concept. Bob Sisum, chairman of FHBA's subcommittee on green building and director of builder programs for LWR communities, recalls how it started at the 33,000-acre property straddling the Sarasota and Bradenton county lines. Homes range from the high $200,000s to more than $3 million. "In 2003, we decided to investigate what was necessary to gain certification for development land," Sisum says, "and we earned Florida Green Building Coalition certification first for 9,200 acres and then another 5,000.

"Next, we called in our 20 builders and announced plans to initiate green building into our homes," he says. "We got some resistance at first. Builders were mainly concerned about the costs, but we told them we'd arrange for consultants to review their plans and keep costs to a minimum."

Sisum says that some builders who were reluctant were surprised at what happened once they were committed to building green. "Once the builders were ordering the low-voc paints in large quantities, the price came down," he says.

When Sarasota County started offering incentives to green builders, such as expedited permits and permit rebates, even reluctant builders jumped on the bandwagon-now all 20 participate.

Sisum says the experience has had an unexpected ripple effect. "Now the developer is looking into establishing green building for the commercial construction taking place at Lakewood Ranch," he states. "And the builders who build here also build at other sites throughout the community. Since they tend to build the same way wherever they are, green building practices are spreading throughout the community."