Public invited to open house Nov. 15
Arbor Homes of Seagrove is raising the bar for local home construction standards by being the first project in the Walton County area to achieve a gold-level Florida Water Star certification for water efficiency and a platinum-level green home certification by the Florida Green Building Coalition (FGBC).
For many years, builder Rod Joly and his wife, GREEN REALTOR® Michelle Joly, understood the importance of green home features and how to communicate its value to homeowners. The couple’s passion for sustainability eventually led them to create Arbor Homes of Seagrove LLC.
Their vision began with the wisdom to formally develop a core group of green professionals to ensure that a systems approach to the construction process was taken. This collaborative process considers the house as one system with interdependent parts, each of which affects the performance of the entire system resulting in optimized building performance.
The green team of 74 Greenway Park Avenue consisted of builder Rod Joly of Arbor Homes of Seagrove Development, Michelle Joly of Davis Properties of Northwest Florida, Developer Greenway Park LLC, green consultant and FGBC certifier Pattie Glenn of Green$mart®, Inc., energy-rater Todd Trusty of Energy Services LLC, and permaculture designer Chandra Hartman of cfhdesignstudio.
The home achieved a score of 200 points, aided by a HERS index of 51, to earn the platinum-level certification by the Florida Green Building Coalition. This energy efficient home features a tight building envelope using 2×6 frame construction with combined open cell in the floor, closed cell insulation in the attic, and cellulose insulation in the walls. Indoor air quality and comfort was achieved by using a zoned 17 SEER heat pump featuring a passive fresh-air ventilation system. The piered home site incorporated pervious driveway materials with innovative storm water treatment to reduce runoff.
The gold-level Florida Water Star certification was achieved through incorporation of both indoor and outdoor water conservation measures. Its zero turf yard features native plantings and edible landscape of fruit and herbs, with only 15 percent of the landscape served by micro-drip irrigation from a community non-potable, shallow well water piped from the development.
What exactly is a Green Home?
A green home goes beyond energy efficiency to also save water, natural resources, reduce waste, protect health & safety, and promote durability through disaster resistant technologies.
How do you know if a home is really green? Look for 3rd party energy, water, and green home certifications whose primary purpose is to measure and quantify the actual sustainable performance of a compilation of green home features.
Arbor Homes will be officially recognized at an educational GREEN OPEN HOUSE on November 15th 2012, 3:30-5:50 p.m., 74 Greenway Park Avenue, public is invited.
To learn more about the Florida Green Building Coalition visit www.floridagreenbuilding.org.