Try searching for images that combine green building with new urbanism.  It’s not easy.  Both movements are lead by visionary developers with strong public interest, yet creating an energy-efficient walkable community has mostly proved a bit too sophisticated to date.

Thankfully, developers like Solar Village (profiled previously and The Lander Group are breaking new ground with just that - green buildings in new urbanist environments.  Some of the green building features in The Lander

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The Northwest is already considered the Silicon Valley of green building, and industry experts say 100% of all new Class A office buildings will be green building certified (LEED) within ten years.

So, unless you want your city or development firm to be branded as ‘uncool’, it’s time to realize the short and long term benefits of green building now to gain a competitive edge.  Why?  Because green building is on the priority list of trend-setters - the people who create jobs, breathe life into

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Is there such a thing as development that’s good for the environment?  It’s all relative, and if there’s any authority on the matter, the Sierra Club is as good as it gets. Thus, it’s worth taking a close look at their recently pubished Building Better: A Guide to America’s Best New Development Projects.

Leaving out the projects that are a bit too suburban for what this site’s about, here are their favorite developments that benefit the environment by ‘recycling’ urban land and buildings in a

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For progressive, community-oriented individuals like yourself, one way to identify a like-minded restaurant is to see if it’s gone green.  Restaurants are no small impact either, they actually represent 10% of the U.S. economy.

What are the signs of a progressive cafe or coffeehouse?  It varies, but the Green Restaurant Association (GRA) is trying to make it easier for you.  The best thing is to look for the GRA seal.  Here are their most visible guidelines (full list and details here):

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The next generation isn’t just interested in green building, it’s a requirement.  It isn’t about having a ‘green building’ expert on the development team, it’s a collaboration of the entire team being knowledgeable on it.  As far as people putting money where their mouth is, the US Green Building Council has national standards; the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system for just that.  It’s no coincidence that these trends are converging - the demand is there.

So,

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Just remember - ‘big and alive with five by five’.  We’ll get back to that shortly.

You ever notice that the most expensive homes are simply the ones on streets with the biggest trees?  Or that the trees on most streets rarely seem to grow, and when they do, they eventually fall over in a major storm?  You would too if someone tied your ankles together.

Here’s two things that don’t add up:

1. A trees roots naturally extend as far apart as its canopy.
2. Tree roots cannot grow under

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When’s the last time you came across a real estate developer with these principles, in this priority:

1. Progressive, livable communities
2. Comfortable, engaging, healthy homes and workplaces
3. The lowest total monthly costs to own on the market
4. High quality for the price and low maintenance
5. A commitment to the environment we all live in
6. Renewable energy-powered whenever possible

These are word-word from Solar Village, as CoolTown-oriented a developer as you’ll ever find.  It

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