Homes certified in the Built Green Colorado program, such as this project by Building Alternatives, must conform to a rigorous checklist of more than 180 features in 22 categories, including energy efficiency, health, and resource conservation. Because of the range and number of options available under the checklist, participants have flexibility in how they want to build a green home.
Credit: Building Alternatives
Program: Built Green Colorado
Year founded: 1995
Offered by: The Home Builders Association of Metro Denver
Director: Kim Calomino
Number of participating builders: 220
Number of homes certified: 36,000
Since Built Green Colorado’s founding in 1995, the sustainable home building industry has grown by leaps and bounds, but the organization’s focus has stayed the same: to offer an easy-to-implement green building program for Colorado builders. Director Kim Calomino insists on keeping it simple.
“Green building is something that all builders should take a look at and realize they are able to do it,” she says. “We want to make it accessible and attainable to all builders.”
This sensible approach has helped Built Green amass a broad and loyal following among Colorado home builders, from small custom-home firms to mid-volume builders to multifamily developers. Because the organization offers only one level of certification, there is less paperwork than with national green building programs, Calomino says.
“Our program is un-bureaucratic; there’s not a lot of layers of submittals, reporting, or meetings,” she says. “To some people, [national] LEED or NAHB programs may be daunting and that may keep some people from participating.”
Built Green Colorado is one of oldest and largest green building programs in the nation, second only to Austin Energy Green Building in longevity. A voluntary program of the Home Builders Association of Metro Denver, the organization’s mission is to encourage home builders to use technologies, products, and practices to build well-constructed, eco-friendly houses. Hence the slogan: “Built Green; maybe we should have called it Built Better.”
To achieve the Built Green distinction, homes must be designed and constructed based on a rigorous checklist of more than 180 features in 22 categories, eight of which are required. The 22 categories include energy efficiency, materials, health, and resource conservation.
Program fees are low, at $40 per home plus $200 annual dues. Homes must be third-party verified, at a cost of between $500 and $650, Calomino says.
Builders in the program appreciate this no-nonsense, low-cost approach. “It’s pretty flexible; there’s not a strict list you have to work with,” said Ken Matthews, a SIPs builder in Woodland Park, Colo., who has been involved with Built Green since its inception. “It’s more like there’s a menu to choose depending on what type of home you build.”
Calomino contends that the local nature of the organization means it can be customized for Colorado builders.
“I always said that green building is local; it’s not a case where you have a national green building market,” she says. “There are different levels of understanding, commitment, products, and resources in different markets.”
Built Green Colorado director Kim Calomino.
Credit: Built Green Colorado
In the current housing market, Built Green is giving Colorado home builders an edge. “We have a lot of market awareness,” the program director says. “Consumers recognize the brand.”
Matthews concurs, saying that his customers are extremely concerned about saving energy, and the Built Green label gives them peace of mind.
“I tell people it’s like having an EPA rating on a car’s gas mileage. It’s not the car salesman telling you that this car gets good gas mileage, it’s a third party,” says the owner of Building Alternatives. “Consumers can trust what they’re being told about the product.”
In what is an unfortunate sign of the times, Calomino notes with regret that only 1,000 homes were registered with Built Green in 2008, down from 6,000 in 2006.
“In this terrible market, our builders have been suffering for so long and we don’t know when it’s going to end,” she says. “Many are using this downtime to educate themselves about building green homes.”
Although the program is open to all Colorado builders regardless of size, Calomino says Built Green does not currently have any high-volume members. The two largest builders in the market, Richmond American Homes and D.R. Horton, have never been members of the program, and other large-volume participants, such as Shea Homes, have developed their own in-house green brands.
SIPs builder Ken Matthews, whose Built Green Colorado project is shown here, says the program adds an element of trust for consumers.
Credit: Building Alternatives
With fewer homes being built and national green building programs competing for pros’ attention, it could be a challenge to keep Colorado builders loyal to the Built Green program. But with a staff of three, a streamlined, low-cost certification process, and a self-supporting budget, the non-profit organization is unmatched in its ability to be flexible and responsive.
For example, in response to some Colorado builders’ interest in building super-high-efficiency homes, Built Green will launch a BG High Performance House rating later this year. “We want to set that next level for our builders,” says Calomino.
In addition, the organization is piloting a new program for multifamily developers and builders. The Built Green Multi-Family program will provide technical and marketing support, Calomino says.
Colorado multifamily builders and developers looked to Built Green to help them develop the program, according to Matt Mahoney, vice president of construction for East-West Partners in Denver. He says the program’s local focus is one of the reasons. “It is tailored around the Colorado climate and our available resources,” he explains.
Another reason is Built Green’s strong reputation for providing a user-friendly single-family program. “They’ve been very successful in Colorado with their single-family residential green building program, so I’m confident the multifamily program will be a natural fit,” Mahoney says.
What's Next
Built Green provides a range of technical support and training opportunities to assist all builder-developer members in making their checklist choices, as well as follow-up support. New for 2009, the organization will offer training for raters as well, Calomino says.
Calomino is confident Colorado green builders—and Built Green Colorado—will come through 2009 stronger than ever and with many new converts. “I often hear that green building is the only bright spot in the market right now,” she said. “I think other builders are noticing that the green builder down the street is still selling houses, so they start to think, ‘Maybe I will follow his lead and move into that green arena, too.’”