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Monday, June 9, 2008
Photos of Weatherford Place: a solar community in Roswell
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
For those who are interested, here are photos of the solar community that’s being built in in the city of Roswell.
The first photo (left to right) is of Denise Donahue, Simone du Boise and Dan Downey, all business partners in Weatherford Place.
The other photos show the first home that’s been built with a focus on some of the detail.
When complete, the development will have eight solar, net-zero-energy homes on 1.6 acres of land. Roughly a third of the site will be preserved as green space.
Photos by Frank Niemeir, AJC photographer
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Perdue has transportation problems on his mind
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue spoke of the need to have an “action plan” for transportation improvements at a luncheon speech today at the Atlanta Rotary Club.
In fact, he unveiled a catchy name for his yet-to-be-released transportation initiative — I.T. 3 (to the third degree). That stands for “Investing in Tomorrow’s Transportation Today.”
Perdue said he would be meeting with members of the Georgia Board of Transportation later this week to talk about a “new partnership” between the various agencies and “what we can accomplish together.”
But the governor did not unveil any details of what that transportation plan might be.
Perdue, however, did say he was optimistic about Georgia’s future as an international hub. He said traffic through Georgia’s ports is experiencing dramatic increases, which calls for better transportation in and out of Savannah and Brunswick.
“We don’t have any choice of developing a strong transportation infrastructure in the future,” Perdue said.
Later Perdue told me that the state is conducting a freight and logistics study. “Both rail and roads are becoming congested,” the governor said.
During the question-and-answer period, one Rotarian asked Perdue specifically about metro Atlanta’s transportation needs.
Perdue said he had passed the Fast Forward transportation program that doubled transportation spending, but that “our delivery method was ineffective in delivering that.”
He said that’s why the new governance at GDOT with Commissioner Gena Abraham at the helm has been so important in restructuring the funding and implementation of projects.
“We are not done with the bad news over there,” Perdue said of GDOT.
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Home Depot’s Blake finds Atlanta an easy sell
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Compared to other places he’s lived and worked, Home Depot CEO Frank Blake finds it easy to recruit people to move to Atlanta.
“Recruiting for Atlanta is easy,” Blake said in an AJC editorial boarding meeting this morning. “I have not had a person yet where moving to Atlanta is an issue.”
Some might mention traffic problems, but Blake will then mention Boston, New York or Washington D.C., cities where there are bridges you need to cross.
Blake also is impressed with the working relationship between local governments and the business community. He serves on the board of the Atlanta Committee for Progress, a blue-ribbon panel of business leaders who help advise Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin on her key initiatives.
“The business community and political community sit down and talk about challenges facing the region,” Blake said, adding that executives are asked: “What do you think you need to attract jobs. I’ve seen it more in the Atlanta area (than in other places he’s lived, such as upstate New York).
Blake also repeated one of his favorite quotes, which he said holds great truth on a personal and professional level. “If your memories exceed your dreams, the end is near.”
For Home Depot, that means looking forward. And he’s relied on two of the founders — Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank — to help spread that forward-looking message.
“Both Bernie and Arthur, every time they go into a store, they tell store managers and associates: ‘This is not a trip down memory lane. Your best times are ahead of you,’” Blake said. “The organization has to believe that. “
But that doesn’t mean Blake has turned his back to the company’s origins — including the creed that Marcus and Blank (who he called “phenomenal”) practiced for Home Depot’s first 25 years in business.
“Reconnecting to our culture is a critical part of our future,” Blake said. “It’s more reconnecting with that culture and showing it’s continuing relevance to our company.”
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Creating incentives to build green communities
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Many states around the country offer builders and homeowners incentives to install solar energy panels in homes and developments.
Georgia, however, is not among them.
So it takes an extraordinary dedication to the environment for developers and homeowners to install solar energy devices.
That’s the story of Weatherford Place, a community being built in the city of Roswell. Read more …
Should the state of Georgia and/or Georgia Power provide incentives to promote greater use of solar energy in our region?
Let me hear from you.
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Roswell residences a new definition for a green, solar community
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Weatherford Place in Roswell is not your usual residential community under construction.
For one thing, there are no Dumpsters on the site. There’s no need because nearly all the excess construction waste is put back to use.
From top to bottom, inside and out, Weatherford Place is developing a new definition for a green residential community. It eventually will have eight homes on 1.6 acres of land bordering Crossville Creek.
The three visionaries behind the development call it a “solar community of net-zero energy homes,” built to the greenest building standards. They call their home designs EcoCraft: designed and built to nature’s code.
“This is the first of its kind,” says Simone du Boise, an architect specializing in environmental design. “There’s not another neighborhood like this.”
Each home is designed to a platinum LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) level and the entire development will be platinum LEED —- the first in the United States, according to business partner Dan Downey.
But it’s the solar power that really sets the development apart.
“Think of each one of these homes as a little power plant,” du Boise says. She explains that the solar energy generated immediately gets put on the power grid. Georgia Power credits each home for the power it generates, and du Boise says design specifications show that each home will generate more power than it needs —- which is how they become net-zero energy homes.
“This home will use two-thirds less energy than the typical home,” Downey says. “We are using the heat generated from the solar panels to heat the water.”
One house, already purchased by an investor, has been built as a model for how the other seven homes will work. Attention was given to every detail: the location of the windows, the wood used, the carpet, the paint, the fixtures (both light and plumbing), the 1,880 gallon cistern placed underground to capture rainwater, and even a manually-operated dumbwaiter to help move groceries, meals, laundry, suitcases and other stuff from floor to floor. The list is endless.
The third visionary behind Weatherford is designer Denise Donahue. She has integrated the project’s themes and philosophy at every level.
For example, there was a “ground blessing” instead of a groundbreaking, held on the summer solstice last summer —- the day with the most light.
The first part of the development was to restore one-third of the land to green space. Workers also stabilized the embankment next to Crossville Creek to prevent runoff of dirt and containments.
Other features include a community gazebo, a back-up generator for the neighborhood in case all the power goes out and a garden overlooking the creek.
Each home will be a living laboratory, equipped with monitors and sensors to track how environmentally friendly these homes will be. Developers are partnering with Georgia Power and Kennesaw State University to collect information for energy management and efficiency studies.
Donahue, du Boise and Downey are nontraditional in another way. Their company is called Cadmus Construction, but it actually is a one-stop shop of architectural design, landscape, construction and development.
“We take ownership of doing everything to ensure the integrity of the project,” Donahue says. “We don’t think the world needs another developer or builder or general contractor or even another architect. We think the world needs environmental stewards.”
These homes are on the market for about $750,000 each and have 2,500 to 3,900 square feet if a homeowner desires a finished basement. According to Downey, the first home already has been appraised at $1 million.
“We are trying to prove that you can profitably build a state-of-the-art green home and sell it at market price,” Downey says.
“We really do believe we can do these homes for the low-income, affordable homes so people don’t have to make a choice of heat or eat,” du Boise adds.
“We’d like to start a non-profit organization to do affordable homes,” says Donahue, looking to the future.
The project is named after Louis Weatherford, who originally owned the property. He was a gardener/farmer who annually would recycle seeds from vegetables and fruit he grew.
Every homeowner will receive a bag of seeds from Weatherford’s garden to continue the cycle of life. The gazebo is in memory of Weatherford’s late wife, Cora, who had always wanted one. It’s built partly with wood from the barn that used to be on the property.
Donahue says every homeowner automatically will become lifetime members of the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper (she’s on its board).
Clearly, du Boise, Donahue and Downey have put their hearts and souls into this project. As du Boise said: “Right now, we have put everything we have into this.”
Donahue says Weatherford Place is the culmination of their careers.
“When you believe in something, you risk everything,” Donahue says. “This is the beginning of a movement. It’s about making something good happen in the world.”
For more information, go to www.weatherfordplace.com.
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