National construction codes are revised every three years. Typically, it takes 2 to 3 years for the entire package to be reviewed for adoption by the city. The current code review is underway. The City of Houston is considering the codes in the following sequence : 1) 2006 International Building Code – nearly complete , 2) 2006 Uniform Mechanical Code – at the halfway mark, 3) 2006 Uniform Plumbing Code , 4) 2006 International Fire Code, and 5) 2006 International Residential Code. Note that the City already has a new energy code which was a priority for the Mayor, and the State of Texas currently requires cities to adopt the 2008 electrical code.

Blake asked members to assist with 3 requests:

First, share your experiences with Code Barriers. Have you run into barriers that didn´t seem to make sense or delayed a LEED project to the extent that credits were dropped or the project decided against going green? What are your ideas and recommended solutions?

Second, can you volunteer to serve on a code committee? No one is expected to know every aspect of the code but there is a need for a variety of perspectives. Be prepared for exhaustive discussions on minutiae as this is a technical review process designed to incorporate the best thinking and expertise available from volunteers in the industry. These volunteers are invaluable to the successful development of local codes and greatly appreciated by the City of Houston.

Third, Blake serves at the national level on the US Green Building Council Codes Committee. Ideas and comments are being requested to identify where national model code changes may be proposed that encourage green practices while meeting the health and safety mission of regulatory standards. Associated with this is an effort to create “Compliance Packages” for alternative methods to strict code compliance. They are issuing a call to design and development teams to share their successes in achieving acceptance by jurisdictions for green strategies that may not be specifically allowed in existing building codes.

If you have questions or comments, or would like to participate, Sheila Blake can be reached at 713-535-7525 or by email at Sheila.blake@cityofhouston.net. Code Subcommittee meetings, open to the public, are held on Wednesdays at the City’s Code Enforcement office at 3300 Main St.

Promoting green design, construction, renovation, and operation of buildings could cut greenhouse gas emissions more deeply, quickly and cheaply than other methods, according to a report issued yesterday by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation. The commission was set up by the United States, Canada and Mexico to address environmental concerns raised by the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Buildings in the three countries cause the release of more than 2,200 megatons of CO2 every year, about 35 percent of the continent’s total emissions. However, green buildings routinely reduce energy usage by 30 to 50 percent and the most efficient buildings perform 70 percent better than conventional properties, according to the report.

However, green building accounts for only two percent of the new commercial building market in the United States and Canada (less in Mexico), and less than half of one percent of the residential market.

The report said that substantial changes to planning, development, and financing of construction are needed to overcome significant barriers to the widespread adoption of high-performance buildings. The report’s recommendations include:

Set clear targets to achieve the most rapid possible adoption of green building in North America, including aggressive targets for carbon-neutral or net zero-energy buildings, together with performance monitoring to track progress towards these targets;

Enhance ongoing or new support for green building, including efforts to promote private sector investment and proper valuation methods; and

Increase knowledge of green building through research and development, capacity building, and the use of labels and disclosures on green building performance. Read the report, Green Building in North America: Opportunities and Challenges.

Houston is second only to Los Angeles in the number of environment-friendly commercial buildings in the country, according to the Houston Business Journal. It cites a report released in January by the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate at the University of San Diego that said that Houston has 46 buildings that are LEED certified or Energy Star. The buildings total 21.1 million square feet.

The City of Houston is currently building or planning 21 city buildings that will be LEED certified. Mayor White has formed an advisory panel to assist him in educating Houstonians about the benefits of high performance buildings. Its projects include tours of local LEED buildings and development of a green building page . That page is the precursor to a separate website dedicated to educating Houstonians about green building.

Also, in April, the city and Gulf Coast Green are hosting Houston Green Expo: A Sustainable Energy and Green Building Consumer Event. It is free and open to the public. It is the only show in Texas featuring only certified green products, materials, and services. The exhibitors must adhere to specific green building criteria so that the Expo is free of green misinformation. The event is Saturday, April 5 and Sunday, April 6, from 10 am to 5 pm each day, at Reliant Park, in Hall B. For details, visit the website at http://www.gulfcoastgreen.org.

Kermit the Frog lamented, “It’s not easy being green,” but it’s getting easier all the time. Every day, there are more choices, products, and technologies that make “going green” more practical. Here are some helpers to make 2008 the greenest year yet.

Keep your eye on Wagner Hardware on 6111 Kirby (in Rice Village). This Houston icon has become the home of New Living, which bills itself as a green essentials store. New Living is taking space in front of the store, while the traditional Wagner hardware store will remain in business.

New Living stocks environmentally responsible products such as lighting, paint, flooring and cleaning supplies. New Living’s founder, Jeff Kaplan, said, “We promote a ground-up approach to green living by helping people make adjustments to the way they shop for basic home essentials, items they might not necessarily think about replacing with green alternatives.”

I dropped by yesterday to browse and found familiar brands like Ecover and Dr. Bronner’s, but also saw brands I hadn’t encountered before like Yolo Colorhouse and AFM Safecoat. Yolo Colorhouse offers green seal certified paints and AFM Safecoat has a line of paints, finishes, and carpet cleaners that are free of VOCs and other hazardous materials like formaldehyde and heavy metals.

Since my Christmas money was burning a hole in my pocket, I bought some weird and wacky items such as Maggie’s soap nuts. Used for laundry, soap nuts are the dried fruit of the Chinese Soapberry tree, which posses a natural cleaner called saponin. Since I’m trying to phase paper towels out of my life, I bought Twist sponge cloths, each of which claims to replace 17 rolls of paper towels. And, the package can be turned into a charming little bird feeder!

Momentum Bay Associates, a consulting firm that focuses on green building and green business, is conducting two “Eco Boot Camps” on Saturday, January 19 at St. Catherine’s Montessori School.

The morning session is for real estate professionals. This course is an intensive and customized overview of today’s most important “green” topics for commercial and residential real estate brokers, developers, contractors, homebuilders, lenders, and appraisers. Attendees will come away understanding sustainability and green building, particularly how to sell ‘Green’. This session is approved for continuing education by the Texas Real Estate Commission.

The afternoon session is about households, and is for anyone who wants to learn how to go green at home profitably and practically. The class will look at all the ways to go green at home, including: health, food, shelter, beauty and fashion, finances, travel, and gadgets and gifts.

Register online or by phone at (877) 326-8392.

The City of Houston is opening a new green building resource center this spring. Architect Steve Stelzer has been hired as its director. It will be housed at 3300 Main. Services will include optional plan review services for energy efficiency and green building opportunities. The center will also provide both hands-on and online information regarding green building materials and practices with a focus on the Houston climate and local providers. Stelzer will develop educational curriculum for a variety of groups to be presented at the center and in the community. The center will also serve as a clearinghouse for related events.

Stelzer was accredited as a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Professional in 2001. He serves on the USGBC-Greater Houston Area Chapter Board of Directors, teaches informal classes on the “Low Carbon Diet” program, and serves on the Recycling and Solid Waste Reduction Board in West University place.

And, last, but not least, for lots of energy saving tips, see Houston Power to People.

The U.S. Green Building Council-Greater Houston Area Chapter has announced its endorsement of the Houston Independent School District $805 million bond package because it provides for high-performance buildings that will provide cleaner and healthier classroom environments for students.

The bond package contains plans to build high-performance, green schools that will be measured by the non-profit organization’s Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design certification program. LEED is a nationwide certification program recognizing buildings that have an integrated eco-friendly and energy-efficient design. USGBC administers the program.

“We believe HISD’s continuing commitment to build LEED schools is a powerful testament to the district’s intention to build for future generations,” said Tim Murray, chairman of the USGBC-Greater Houston Area Chapter. “Not only are LEED buildings sustainable, they are healthier. Studies have shown that students learn better when their classrooms have LEED features. Students perform better when they have good daylight to read by, cleaner air to breathe and more opportunities to incorporate their environment into the lessons teachers give them.”

The LEED for Schools design is meant to create a building that does more than house children for an average of six hours per day so they can be taught. The building itself is designed to be used as a teaching tool.

Through LEED for Schools, we have the opportunity to see that children learn from the building,” Murray said. “We hope HISD will encourage students to use math skills and the features of LEED to track way the school is saving money in energy efficiency. By using the school site for gardens, students will learn about natural conservancy. We want teachers to see the schools as an additional teaching resource in math, science and related subjects. Nothing would please us more than for teachers to understand that a LEED school is designed to support them in their teaching curricula.”

Other benefits off LEED schools include reduced absenteeism and less teacher turnover, Murray said. He also said some school officials in other districts who already work in LEED schools feel that discipline problems are reduced.

The local USGBC chapter has worked previously with the Houston ISD Board of Trustees and administration to create pilot LEED buildings within the district. These buildings are still in the process of becoming certified but the commitment to building LEED-certified schools has been made.

Murray said he is pleased to see the district has found that LEED certified buildings are beneficial to the learning environment.

He said he hopes that voters will show their support for better learning environments by approving the bond package and inviting leaders from the school district and USGBC to educate them about the benefits of green building.

“Green schools are healthier for students and teachers, better for the environment, and cost less to operate and maintain,” Murray said. “But most of all, it shows students that they can raise their expectations about how they experience the environment around them.”

Early voting ends today at 7 pm. Any registered voter may vote at any early polling location in the county he or she is registered in. For a list of Harris County early and election day voting sites, see www.harrisvotes.com. In other counties, the County Clerk is usually the election administrator.

On Tuesday, November 6, voters must vote in the precinct where they are registered to vote.

There are lots of issues for voters to decide, from a state constitutional amendment to repeal the office of county hides inspector to local option elections to allow liquor by the drink.

Although the CEC does not endorse or oppose any candidate or ballot measure, our member groups have taken the following positions on ballot initiatives:

Lone Star Chapter Sierra Club – For State Proposition 4 (Funding for many projects, including state parks and historic sites)

Planned Parenthood of SE Texas – For State Proposition 15 (Cancer research funds)

The Park People and the Cypress Creek Flood Control Coalition – For State Proposition 4 and Harris County Proposition 2 (County park funding)

U.S. Green Building Council-Greater Houston Area Chapter – For Houston ISD bonds.

The programs, narrated by Brad Pitt, explore the social, political, cultural, environmental, and economic issues of sustainable architecture.

On Wednesday, July 19, in the episode called “The Green Machine”, Richard M. Daley takes viewers on a tour showcasing his mission to make Chicago “the greenest city in America.” Mayor Daley built the city’s most prominent green roof atop City Hall and created an entire municipal office charged with overseeing the city’s many environmental initiatives. This episode demonstrates the many ways that green technologies are being adopted in Chicago, from the residential to the corporate sectors.

The following Wednesday, the episode “Gray to Green,” takes the notion of the three Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) to grand proportions by looking at Boston’s “Big Dig” and the massive amount of waste created by the $15 billion project. Paul Pedini, a civil engineer on the dig, had the idea to build his own home from Big Dig waste. The success of this project has sparked plans to create an office complex in Massachusetts from the same recycled material. These innovative projects serve as prototypes to demonstrate to city officials that there is value in recycling on such a grand scale.

As an aside, this past Tuesday, July 11, an apparent construction failure in a Big Dig tunnel killed a woman Tuesday. Four concrete slabs, each weighing at least three tons, fell from the ceiling of the tunnel and crushed her car.

On August 2, the series moves to China, where soaring population and rapid industrialization have created a boom in urbanization that is unprecedented in human history. In an attempt to tackle this global issue, “China: From Red to Green?” explores design solutions in both theory and practice, including architect Steven Holl’s “Linked Hybrid” project, which when completed will be the largest residential, geothermal heating/cooling, and greywater recycling system in the world. Also featured in this episode is William McDonough – architect, designer and winner of three US Presidential Awards. Recognized by Time magazine as a “Hero of the Planet,” McDonough talks about his innovative plans to make China entirely sustainable and how it will demonstrate the ways architecture can be both profitable and environmentally intelligent.

Design: e2 concludes with a look to the future. “Deeper Shades of Green,” showing on August 9, focuses on three remarkable thinkers and designers of our time, Kenneth Yeang, Werner Sobek, and William McDonough. Each is radically changing the face of not only of architecture, but of environmentalism.

The series airs on Wednesdays at 11 pm on Channel 8 in Houston. The local sponsor is pioneering green-architect LaVerne Williams and his firm, Environment Associates.

3000 Richmond, Suite 500
Houston, Texas 77098
info@aiahouston.org

www.aiahouston.org

Barrie Scardino, Executive Director
(713) 520-0155
barrie@aiahouston.org

Jeffrey Brown, President
(713) 224-0456
brown@powersbrown.org

Publication: Monthly e-newsletter; annual membership directory.

Programs: Continuing education (see website); April Architecture Month.

Major Events: Design awards, Jan.; Celebrate Architecture Gala, April; Sandcastle Competition, June; Green Symposium, Sept.; Home Tour, fall.

Speakers Bureau: Barrie Scardino.

Volunteer Opportunities: Codi Stennett (713) 520-0155

Susan Cita, ASLA Section-Chair
c/o TBG Partners
4710 Bellaire Blvd., Suite 390
Bellaire, TX 77401
(713) 838-7965

www.asla.org

Publication: Quarterly newsletter.

Major Events: Educational seminars and social meetings; Golf Tournament, fall; State Convention, Mar.

Meeting Time: Varies by month; call to be placed on mailed notification list.

712 Main Street, Suite 110
Houston, Texas 77002
(713) 216-5000/fax: (713) 216-2143
info@ghpa.org

www.ghpa.org

Ramona Davis, Executive Director
rdavis@ghpa.org

David Bush, Director, Programs and Information
dbush@ghpa.org

Thomas McWhorter, Director, Historic Neighborhoods Council
tmcwhorter@ghpa.org

Publications: For Preservation, quarterly newsletter; Historic Neighborhoods Council e-newsletter, monthly.

Programs: Preservation advocacy, Good Brick Awards, Historic Neighborhoods Council, architectural walking tours, realtor programs, Heritage Education Program, heritage tourism promotion.

Major Events: Cornerstone Dinner presenting the Good Brick Awards, Jan 28, 2005; National Historic Preservation Week, May 9-13, 2005.

Speakers Bureau: GHPA can provide speakers to discuss the economics of historic preservation and the value of preservation in enhancing Houston’s quality of life.

Meeting Time: Historic Neighborhoods Council, last Saturday of each month. Architectural walking tours, fourth Sunday of each month. Annual membership meeting, Oct. See Web site for details.

Volunteer Opportunities: Architectural walking tour docents and ticket sellers. Historical research and photographic documentation of historic buildings for the Historic Neighborhoods Council. Periodic cleanups of historic neighborhoods and cemeteries. Other opportunities may be available. E-mail info@ghpa.org with any questions.

3015 Richmond, Suite 201
Houston, Texas 77098
(713) 523-5757/fax: (713) 523-3057
crossley@gulfcoastideas.org

www.gulfcoastideas.org
www.livablehouston.org

David Crossley, President

Strategy: Leads and facilitates the quality of life movement known as Smart Growth/Livable Communities. GCI seeks a dynamic economy that revitalizes neighborhoods, protects green space, increases mobility choices, improves air and water quality, and encourages safe, comfortable, interesting pedestrian environments.

Publications: Website, Bi-monthly e-mail newsletter called Gulf Coast Growth News, and a quartery journal called Houston Tomorrow.

Major Events: Community-wide stakeholder conferences.

Speakers Bureau: Contact David Crossley

Meeting Time: Fourth Wednesday, 11:30 am, Houston-Galveston Area Council, 3555 Timmons Lane, 2nd Floor.

Volunteer Opportunities: Contact David Crossley.