Austin Energy Green Building 2008 Seminar Notes

May 2009
Guided Tour of the LCRA Redbud Center
The tour was a chance for attendees to explore the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) Redbud Center. The center has received an AEGB four-star rating and is LEED Gold certified. Lauren Goldberg of BGK Architects, Guy Dawes and Larry Walker with LCRA, and AEGB staff provided a brief overview of the project. They then created smaller groups from our 120+ attendees and led guided tours. Each tour group saw Redbud’s green building strategies in action, including:

• Rainwater and air conditioning condensate used to flush toilets, which results in an estimated 83 percent potable water savings indoors
• Passive solar design, high-performance lighting, and efficient mechanical systems, which results in a 32 percent energy savings
• Local materials
• Light-colored concrete paving for all parking surfaces to mitigate the heat island effect

View AEGB’s case study of LCRA Redbud Center.

April 2009
New Infrastructure Opportunities for Sustainable Building
The April seminar examined two significant infrastructure developments in Austin: the Smart Grid and the reclaimed water system.

Andres Carvallo, CIO for Austin Energy, spoke about the Smart Grid and how it will help customers better understand and manage their energy use.

Dan Pederson, P.E., highlighted the City of Austin's Reclaimed Water program.

Aide Fitch is a member of the Austin Sustainable Infrastructure Group (ASIG). His presentation on ASIG looked at how infrastructure affects our health, quality of life, environment, and economy.

March 2009
Designing for Food Resources
Food production, transportation, consumption, and disposal each have a huge impact on our carbon footprint. Food travels an average 1,500 miles between production and consumption. This seminar explored how our planning process, building infrastructure, and operating policies can incorporate goals for creating a more sustainable, reliable, and environmentally responsible “foodprint.”

Bryan Bomer, AEGB staff member, began the seminar with an overview of how our food choices affect us locally and globally.

Pamela “Sweetpea” Hoover, Natural Gardener’s assistant grounds master and a certified teacher of the square foot gardening method, shared garden planning ideas for single-family homes. Pamela’s presentation focused on raised beds and the importance of keeping things simple and manageable.

Marla Camp, owner/publisher of Edible Austin magazine and board member of the Austin Food Policy Council, spoke about local food production, as well as community consumption and education.

Justin Doak is CEO of ecoxera, a sustainability guidance firm for the retail industry, and a partner in Austin Refuel, a local company that has developed a closed-loop, waste-to-resource network. Justin discussed Designing for Food Waste. His ten step-by-step tactics included:

• Conducting a waste assessment
• Minimizing wasted food
• Replacing plastic and Styrofoam disposables with their biodegradable and compostable counterparts

February 2009
Show Me the Green: Tax Deductions and Rebates for
Energy-Efficient Buildings
Energy-efficient designs and retrofits offer an often untapped financial benefit in today’s tight economy. This seminar focused on the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, which extended tax credits and deductions available through the 2005 Energy Policy Act for energy-efficient homes and buildings.

Austin Energy Green Building (AEGB) staff member Patricia House, P.E., CEM, LEED AP, presented an Overview of Tax Deductions and Rebates for Residential Buildings. She discussed federal and local incentives for energy-efficient buildings and covered Austin Energy rebates for residential and commercial structures.

Julio Gonzalez, CEO and founder of Engineered Tax Services, Inc., gave an in-depth look at the Energy Tax Policy Act of 2005 and discussed how to qualify for the tax credits.

January 2009
Interior Design for Health and Productivity
Indoor environments can seriously impact our health. They also affect our ability to learn and concentrate, our productivity level, and our quality of life. For these reasons, people are more interested than ever in creating healthy indoor environments.

Adele Houghton, AIA, LEED AP, presented Interior Design for Health & Productivity, an overview of how to ensure a healthy indoor environment during the building process. Adele covered common indoor environmental quality issues, as well as design solutions and their health and productivity benefits. She also discussed practical strategies, included designing for day lighting, minimizing finishes, creating connections to nature, and reducing noise at the source.

December 2008
“Watts Up” in Lighting
New standards for lighting in federal regulations and energy codes are encouraging the development of new lighting technologies. This seminar explored new ways in which lighting designers, architects, and builders are illuminating residential and commercial buildings. Presenters addressed upcoming changes in codes and regulations, energy efficient lighting design, new lighting technologies and applications, and best practices in retrofitting existing buildings with efficient lighting.

John Umphress, Conservation Specialist at Austin Energy outlined Austin Energy Green Building Requirements for Lighting in residential, commercial, and multifamily projects. Mr. Umphress also explained the 2009 residential code changes and offered insight into future trends in efficient lighting.

Brian Johnston of Lighting Inc.’s presentation, Green Building: Residential Lighting, evaluated efficient lighting options for residential applications including fan kits, LEDs, landscape lighting, and dimmers. Mr. Johnston’s product analyses considered energy efficiency, along with availability, flexibility, and cost.

Bret Anderson, LC of Austin American Light/ FSG presented New Lighting Technologies. Mr. Anderson’s discussion defined technical terms and outlined criteria for lighting and compared new products on the market.

Dennis Lilley, Project Coordinator Austin Energy presented Best Practices for Retrofitting Existing Buildings with efficient lighting systems.

David Deming, a Registered Accessibility Specialist and consultant, presented Universal Design application to parking and accessible routes and problems in the accessibility portion of design applications.

Susan Welker, AIA, LEED AP, is an architect and interior designer with Harris Welker Architects. Ms. Welker has a broad practice of residential, commercial, and institutional projects in which she emphasizes Universal Design. Her presentation offered Practical Measures You Can Incorporate Now.

David Webber, AIA focused on Universal Design’s role in common design practices. His presentation explored broad benefits and limitations in acceptance of Universal Deign concepts.

Ron Menard is Acting Chief Plans Examiner for the City of Austin Watershed Protections and Design Review. Mr. Menard presented a case-study of his custom designed home. The presentation highlighted successful design elements and offered broad use application suggestions.

October 2008
Networking Event
Every October, Austin Energy Green Building hosts a networking event for building professionals. The networking event takes the place of our regular monthly lunchtime seminar. This event is an opportunity for our participants to share information and meet other green building professionals, including some of AEGB’s SIX new staff members, in a relaxed atmosphere.

With interest in green building growing exponentially, we were not surprised that this year was our largest turnout to date. And it is Austin, after all, so we even had two dogs attend!

The event also celebrates Austin’s thriving green building community. We had a lot to celebrate this year, beginning with Austin's adoption of a greener energy code. In particular, HVAC testing, once a voluntary green building measure, is now an accepted part of the building process. AEGB's Single-Family Program rated 67 5-Star homes, compared to just a handful in past years. They included many spec and even production homes, not just custom homes. One of the Commercial program's high rated projects this year is the 4-star LCRA Redbud campus, which transformed an urban brownfield site into an educational showpiece for water conservation. The Multifamily program hit its stride in 2008: working closely with developments all over town, they rated over 1600 apartment homes.

To ensure we include your company in next year’s presentation, email your project photos to us anytime.

September 2008
Innovative Stormwater Quality Controls
The City of Austin Watershed Protection and Development Review Department (WPDR) recently adopted design criteria for several new types of stormwater treatment systems, including biofiltration, rain gardens and rainwater harvesting design criteria, among others. Presenters Mike Kelly, P.E., Manager of WPDR's Stormwater Treatment & Stream Restoration Section and John Gleason, Landscape Architect with WPDR and City of Austin IPM Program Coordinator, provided information and answered questions about the design of these innovative systems.

View the Innovative Stormwater Quality Controls presentation>>

August 2008
Roofing—It’s Not Just for Shelter Anymore!
Michael McElhaney of Jackson & McElhaney Architects covered design considerations for solar orientation, photovoltaic systems, and rainwater capture.

James Allen and James Fountain of GAF/Elk Manufacturing gave a presentation on the importance of cool roofing, roof reflectivity, emissivity, and the LEED points available for roofing and ENERGY STAR-rated roofing products that reduce heat island effect.

Mark T. Simmons of Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center discussed opportunities and applications for green roofs in Central Texas.

July 2008
No Seminar—Summer Vacation

June 2008
Green Remodeling
This standing-room only seminar included case studies from Residential, Commercial, and Multifamily projects. Presenters discussed the challenges and rewards of green remodeling.

Mark Lind, a senior designer with Design Build firm CG&S, opened the seminar with two examples of new construction and one renovation/addition. He discussed their latest project, the total remodel of a 1950s concrete home, and addressed the project’s issues and complexities.

Next, Scott Shippey, Design Director for Chipotle Mexican Grill, discussed how the Sunset Valley location earned a 3-star rating in 2002, and the Eighth and Congress location earned a 4-star rating in 2004. Chipotle added two more green stores in 2007—one at Southpark Meadows; the other at Mueller.

Finally, Michael Gatto, co-founder and Executive Director of the Austin Community Design and Development Center (ACDDC), spoke about his company’s green building efforts. ACDDC is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is to improve quality of life by providing sustainable design, planning, and development services to low and moderate income individuals, families, and neighborhoods. Since 2003, ACDDC has incorporated numerous green building design elements into new construction and renovation projects. For example, they reconstructed Spring Terrace, a former suites hotel, into single room occupancy residences that provide a comforting environment for people one-step away from homelessness.

May 2008
Here Comes the Sun
This Solar Energy in Green Building seminar featured five speakers:

• Tim Harvey, of Austin Energy’s (AE) Solar Rebate Program, discussed what AE is doing to encourage solar installations in residential and commercial buildings.
• Eric Rauser of Rauser Architecture, Roger Jennings of Avail Energy, and Doug Marcis, a developer with 30 Degrees North, gave a presentation on design approach, goals, and lessons learned in building solar homes
• Andrew McCalla, President of Meridian Energy Systems, made the case for commercial solar installations

April 2008
Mueller Today—A Sustainable Urban Village in the Heart of Austin
Catellus Development Group, in partnership with the City of Austin, discussed the creation of a compact, walkable, high-quality community in central Austin.

Austin Energy Green Building’s Maureen Scanlon gave a presentation on the history of the Mueller development, an overview of the sustainable master plan, examples of Mueller's green infrastructure, and case studies of completed buildings.

Other speakers included:

1. Jana McCann, AIA, Principal of ROMA Design Group
2. Dylan Siegler, Senior Design Associate, Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems
3. Jim Walker, AICP, Mueller Neighborhood Coalition Chair, Envision Center Texas 2008 Chairman, and Central Texas Sustainability Indicators Project Executive Director

The Mueller development is achieving sustainability on a community-wide basis in several ways. The Mueller Austin website includes the following information:

1. Location, location, location—To reduce auto pollution, Mueller, an urban infill project, is developed away from surface and groundwater resources, and close to downtown and other dense areas to reduce auto pollution.
2. More trees please—One tree for every four parking spaces in retail centers is helping to reduce the urban heat-island effect and increase walkability. Catellus is planting a minimum of 15,000 trees, many of which come from a pecan farm outside Austin. The trees were destined for demolition to make way for another development.
3. Next stop Mueller—Mueller plans consider commuter rail service. Bike paths and walkways along every street reduce dependence on automobiles.
4. Recycle, restore, and reclaim—Mueller is recycling old runway materials into street construction, breaking down old hangers into recycled building materials, converting historic buildings into public spaces, and using local building materials whenever possible.
5. A park apart—20 percent of Mueller’s 711 acres are set aside for parks and open space. Playscapes are constructed from recycled materials, and a native and rare landscape is being preserved through a partnership with the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
6. New waterways —Catellus, homebuilders, and other developers at Mueller have pledged to use only native plants in all landscaping. To conserve water, community-wide irrigation will use reclaimed gray water.
7. Storm water management—The Mueller storm water management plan provides for the capture and treatment of storm water runoff from 90% of annual rainfall. A system of detention-wet ponds serves the entire 711-acre development. And the storm water management system includes 70 acres of perimeter greenways. These storm water management practices create a system that minimizes run-off, increases infiltration, reduces the potential for downstream flooding and erosion, and reduces contaminant loads into the watershed in order to achieve the City’s high standards for water quality.

March 2008
Downtown Austin Plan
Jim Robertson, Architect and Manager of Urban Design in the City of Austin’s Neighborhood Planning and Zoning Department, updated us on the Downtown Austin Plan. This Plan guides future growth and development in downtown Austin. In his presentation, Jim described how the recently completed Phase One of the Downtown Master Plan articulates the vision, identifies opportunities and challenges for achieving that vision, and recommends priorities for Phase Two. The Phase One report includes preliminary strategies for creating a more livable, diverse, and sustainable Downtown. Phase Two involves implementing the vision and findings of Phase One.

February 2008
Envision Central Texas—Making the Vision Real
Through an extensive two-year process, Envision Central Texas (ECT) compiled the input of thousands of Texans into its Vision for Central Texas. The vision addresses growth issues in our region and paints a compelling portrait of how we’d like to see our community in 20 to 40 years.

ECT Executive Director Sally Campbell and Chairman Jim Walker discussed how the Vision shapes the region and detailed several major implementation projects, including:

• Central Texas Greenprint for Growth—A planning initiative to help communities make strategic decisions about land conservation
• Quality Growth Toolbox—Over 100 tools and techniques for promoting quality growth
• Community Stewardship Awards—This program recognizes the people, projects, and processes that address our region’s growth challenges
• ECT Project Rating System—This will help local governments and other entities evaluate a proposed project’s alignment with the Vision
• Vision Progress Assessment—This will help us understand how to move more effectively toward the future

Austin Energy Green Building was a finalist in the ECT Community Stewardship Awards. Congratulations to all finalists and to the winner: Land Design Studio and Carter Burgess’ work on the North Burnet/Gateway Master Plan.

January 2008
Noise and Vibration Control
As our communities densify, Acoustics—the study of the effects of noise and vibration on our environment—is moving to the forefront of the building industry.

Green Building employee Sarah Talkington opened with a presentation on how Acoustics relates to green building and how noise affects people in a variety of environments, including work, school, and home.

Other speakers included: 

• Ken Dickensheets, of Dickensheet Design Associates, discussed how to address Acoustics early in the design process to increase efficiency and lower costs
• Jack Evans, P.E., of JEAcoustics, discussed LEED’s approach to Acoustics focusing on the points available for Acoustics in the LEED for Schools and LEED for Healthcare rating tools
• David Nelson, P.E., of Nelson Acoustical Engineering, Inc., discussed how typical Acoustics approaches can be made green, including controlling noise at its source and designing to absorb more sound using less material; he also explained the Sound Transmission Coefficient (STC) and how we perceive different noises
• Chad Himmel, P.E., of JEAcoustics, discussed how some basic tenets of green building create acoustical challenges and demand good design strategies, such as mitigating the noise with sound-insulating surfaces 

• Archived Seminar Notes