The R3build Design Competition – from a Chapter Member's perspective
By Sebastian Downs, (EIT, LEED GA, Boston Green Schools Volunteer Management Coordinator)
In the end, Brian and Boston Green Building are “dragging poorly performing homes kicking and screaming into the 21st century and hopefully addressing all the issues to keep from killing the occupants.” Originally, only one utility company participated in Mass Save DER, but now there are six participating utilities. Conspicuously absent from the list is NStar….but there is some carbonated bottle shaking going on to hopefully bring them back on board.
See you at the next Residential Green Building Committee meeting on Monday, March 10th at 5:45pm at 281 Summer St, Boston!
AtSite guides building owners, occupiers and operators with the design, construction, operation and optimization of buildings and spaces. The company utilizes smart building technologies, energy management tactics, sustainable best practices and integrated buildings strategies; these ideas are aimed to deliver high quality, low cost and environmentally responsible buildings. By combining its talented building experts, open technology platforms and best-in-class global industry partners, AtSite delivers measurable results to building owners across many sectors such as healthcare, commercial, education, and a number of other uses.
The Building Energy Reporting & Disclosure Ordinance is a Boston policy that could transform our city and make it possible to reach our climate change mitigation goals. Mayor Menino is calling for 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and the only way we're going to get there is if we can bring down the % of energy that our buildings consume. In Boston, it's a whopping 70% and most building owners don't have a great handle on their building's energy and water usage. The Building Disclosure Ordinance would require owners of buildings over 20,000 sq ft to report their energy usage in a free online EPA tool called Portfolio Manager that all sectors across the country use to manage energy.
Make your voice heard by making a phone call or sending an email to your City Councilor and/or to an at large City Councilor TOMORROW. (You have to have a City of Boston address). The Ordinance is up for vote by the City Council on Wednesday, May 8th.
If you want to send a letter, NRDC has put together an Action Page that has a pre-drafted (but editable) letter of support for activists to send to all Boston council members (supporters must have a Massachusetts address in order to send). Please feel free to push this link out in any way you can via mailing list, social media, etc:
https://secure.nrdconline.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=3055
Why BERDO is a good idea:
1) Tenants have a right to know. Without BERDO, prospective tenants and buyers can't get comparable information about the utility costs of buildings they're considering moving into. BERDO will help us avoid being stuck in cold, costly apartments. Community groups support BERDO.
4) Air Quality. Our neighborhoods are already plagued by high asthma rates and other illnesses associated with environmental exposures. More insulation means reduced demand for energy generated from dirty power plants — and that means we'll have cleaner air and improved health. Moms and kids support BERDO.
What BERDO is NOT:
Call Your City Councilor
Here is the breakdown of Councilor contact info and how to identify which district you live in:
Verify your district: http://www.cityofboston.gov/citycouncil/districts.asp
Look up your city councilor: http://www.cityofboston.gov/myneighborhood/
Salvatore LaMattina – District 1 (Charlestown, East Boston, North End) 617.635.3200
Bill Linehan – District 2 (South Boston, Chinatown) – 617.635.3203
Charles C. Yancey – District 4 (Dorchester) – 617.635.3131
Matt O'Malley – District 6 (Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury) – 617.635.4220
Michael P. Ross – District 8 (West End, Mission Hill, Back Bay)- 617.635.4225
Mark Ciommo – District 9 (Allston, Brighton) – 617.635.3113
Felix G. Arroyo – At Large – 617.635.4205
Stephen J. Murphy – At large – 617.635.4376
John R. Connolly- At large – 617.635.3115
Ayanna Pressley – At large – 617.635.4217
Photo credit: wikipedia.org |
to meet the Mayor's greenhouse gas reduction goal of 25 percent by 2020, Mayor Thomas M. Menino filed the Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance with the Boston City Council. This ordinance would require all large and medium-sized buildings to report their annual energy and water use to the City of Boston.
Here are some facts about the proposed ordinance:
1. All large and medium buildings or groups of buildings would be required to report annual energy use, ENERGY STAR rating (if applicable), water use, and greenhouse gas emissions through ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager or an equivalent mechanism.
2. The requirement would be phased in over 5 years and would ultimately apply to non-residential buildings 25,000 square feet or greater and residential buildings with 25 or more units.
3. Buildings with ENERGY STAR ratings below the 75th percentile and do not meet other exemption criteria (to be developed by the city, i.e. high performing buildings that do not qualify for any ENERGY STAR rating or that show continuous improvement) would be required to conduct energy audits or other evaluations every 5 years to identify opportunities for energy efficiency investment. Building owners would not be required to act on the audit.
(Excerpted from USGBC MA's April 2013 Newsletter)
Other winners inlcuded:
Special Recognition:
Sherman Fairchild Laboratory Renovation for Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University
Submitted by Payette. Notes: This project is an example of stellar energy performance in a lab.
Special Recognition:
One Boston Place
Submitted by CBRE. Notes: The judges praised this project for its enthusiastic spirit of the approach to recertification under EB O&M.
Award Winning Entries – Innovation in Green Design
Winner – Product, System or Technology Category
Shady Hill School in Cambridge, MA
Submitted by Richard Burck Associates, Inc. Notes: This project skillfully handled water absorption and discharge to the aquifer.