Alex Mordas - Green Building Consultant

I thought i would start my blogging on AR with a post about my city and some of the exciting green developments...

Tallahassee, FL, just became listed as a "green city" with the Florida Green Building Coalition, making it only the second city in Florida to achieve this prestigious designation.

What does this mean for real estate professionals and folks in the building/housing products/services industry?

For starters, it means that we have a favorable environment for green development. In today's housing market, green is one of the only areas that is not experiencing a significant downturn. In fact, green building is on the rise, and green developments are often still sold before they are finished being built.

In Tallahassee, numerous builders are getting on the green train and riding it to success. K2 urban corp has received significant publicity for its commitment to develop only green homes that are LEED certified. While developer Mike Rogers has committed to using the Florida Green Building Coalition's Green Home Standards for ALL homes being built in his new Southern Oaks development.

LD Callaghan Construction is another company building green, and committed to obtaining FGBC green home standards for all future development. But perhaps the most exciting green building going on is that of Al Simpler, from Simpler Solar. Al has a home being built out in Carrabelle, Fl that is one of the greenest homes i have ever seen. Capable of supplying all of its own electricity from a combination of solar trackers in the front yard and solar shingles on the roof. This home not only has incredibly beautiful coconut floors, and sustainably-harvested mahogany cabinetry, but includes LED light fixtures, energy star appliances, passive solar, solar screens, solar hot water, and a solar-powered water pump/aerator for a tilapia pond in the front yard.

Appraised at over 1.3 million this green jewel is going to be the model home for what might just be one of the most exciting high-end green developments in the country. Six more lots border this one, all with boardwalks linked up to provide boat dock access, and all with plenty of natural habitat remaining - the developments are going to be minimally invasive and built with preservation of the areas wetlands in mind (Eagles can often be seen overhead). Soon to go on the market, these future green homes can be owner-financed, and will be built to FGBC standards, with solar galore! Anyone interested here should contact Al directly at al@simplersolar.com.

Other green Tallahassee builders of note are Stan Derzypolski of 3Rivers Realty and Tom Veith of Vieth Construction.

So what do these builders know that others don't? ...perhaps nothing special, yet. But one thing that they are currently benefiting from is the growing interest in green, not just from a feel good perspective, but also from a practical bottom line green-saves-green (dollars) perspective. In addition, they are setting themselves up to stand apart from the crowd, to develop a reputation of quality, to develop the experience, knowledge and professional connections to build green, and when this market turns around, will be sitting ready to reap the benefits of this hard work.

Tallahassee is the perfect place to take a leadership position in the green movement. With its nationally award winning park system, its extensive system of canopy roads, and fantastic access to natural areas, it is a green lovers paradise. As the State Capital, with two major universities: Florida State University and Florida A & M - it is a small, but growing city with a vibrant, young, educated and relatively affluent population. That said, one of the most important aspects of Tallahassee's green growth, is the commitment to support energy-efficient and home health improvements for the low income residents of this city.

With a few more-established green cities currently catching national attention: notably, Austin, TX; Chicago, IL; and Seattle, WA, Tallahassee has its work cut out. However, I highly recommend that you keep your eyes and ears in this direction, because with a favorable climate in the city government we may soon be leading the way.

Please feel free to contact me if you would like information on anything green in the Big Bend area:

Alex Mordas, M.Sc.
EcoBroker® & REALTOR®
LEED for homes, Field Agent
Green Home Certifying Agent, FGBC
www.tallahassee-ecobroker.com
alexmordas@kw.com
(850) 559-4976