Perhaps one of the biggest knocks on green building, and LEED certification in particular, is that it is unattainable for so many. Despite costs that have dropped for sustainable materials, the extra costs associated with achieving LEED certification can be a financial barrier to building green homes and structures. Some see green building as elitist [...]
Archive for the ‘Green Building’ Category
Out with the New in with the Old
January 8th, 2012 
Eric Wilson A few months back I had the opportunity to tour three LEED certified projects on three consecutive days. All three projects achieved LEED gold and were located in the greater Denver area. The following op-ed is a bit of a reflection on these visits and what it means to build green. They are listed in [...]
Posted in Energy Efficiency, Eric Wilson, Featured Posts, Green Building, Op-Ed, Recylcing, Site Visits 
Tags: Denver, EPA, LEED, Waste 
No Comments »Starbucks Store Made from Recycled Shipping Containers
December 14th, 2011 Chris DeArmond Though it seems like you can get Starbucks coffee just about anywhere, only one store (located in Tukwila, WA) can serve it to you from inside old cargo containers. A little over a week ago, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported that construction is underway to build a Starbucks out of four repurposed shipping containers (40′ long, 8′ [...]
Nest Thermostats Sold-out, Ship Today
November 11th, 2011 Justin Manger Shipping a few weeks ahead of schedule, Nest thermostats that learn from your interaction and program themselves, will soon be appearing in homes around the country. Even at $249 a pop, the devices are sold out and currently on back order. It’s a sleek, smart device that people are clamoring for in their bid to save money, [...]
Site Visit: Denver Public School’s First LEED Gold Campus
November 8th, 2011 Eric Wilson A week and a half ago, I attended the US Green Building Council Colorado Chapter’s Green School Summit. For my notes on the conference, click here. Held on the 35-acre Evie Garrett Dennis E-12, early childhood through 12th grade, though there is also a 2 year program on the campus (for nursing and other career [...]
Posted in Energy Efficiency, Eric Wilson, Featured Posts, Green Building, Renewable Energy, Site Visits Tags: Colorado, Denver, Food, Green Schools, LEED, Net Zero Energy, Photovoltaic No Comments »USGBC Colorado’s Green School Summit Wrap-up
November 7th, 2011 Eric Wilson Although I did not “live blog” the US Green Building Council Colorado Chapter’s recent Green School Summit, here are my notes from the event: There are numerous free resources for energy efficiency available in Colorado. Two key ones are the Governor’s Energy Office and the Community Office of Resource Efficiency. Sangre de Christo School District [...]
Posted in Business, Conferences, Conservation, Education, Eric Wilson, Green Building, Green Economy, Live Blogging Tags: Colorado, Green Schools, LEED, USGBC No Comments »Site Visit: EPA Region 8 Headquarters
November 3rd, 2011 Eric Wilson Located in Denver’s Lower Downtown (LoDo) neighborhood, the EPA’s region 8 headquarters occupies a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certified commercial building which they moved into four years ago. Sitting at the corner of Wynkoop St and the 16th St. Mall, the building is adjacent to Union Station, Denver’s future home of [...]
Posted in Eric Wilson, Featured Posts, Green Building, Site Visits Tags: Energy Star, EPA, Green Roof, LEED, Photovoltaic, Public Transit No Comments »Apple’s New Headquarters: A Spaceship in the Woods?
October 12th, 2011 Justin Manger In the video below, Steve Jobs presents plans for Apple’s new massive corporate building to be built on 150 acres in Cupertino. The speech before the Cupertino city council was given June 7th, one day after his final Apple keynote presentation (introducing iCloud) and what may have been his final public presentation. Though he is [...]
