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Bringing Green Living Home A consumer survey conducted by The Haystack Group in late 2006 indicated that respondents generally thought of the environment and global warming when hearing the word “green” yet the vast majority were more likely to adopt green living habits much closer to home. Now Atlanta residents will have a chance to see for themselves how they can use their homes to impact climate change and help protect the environment and our natural resources. Greenhaven, Atlanta’s first Eco-Decorators’ Showhouse will be open to the public from July 16 through August 9. Located in east Cobb County, in the Chelsea Landing subdivision, Greenhaven represents a holistic approach to green living, incorporating green building strategies and furnishings so that homeowners can enjoy the personal benefits that green building affords while doing their part to protect our environment for this generation and beyond. Chelsea Landing is the company’s first eco-friendly neighborhood community and Greenhaven will carry the US Green Building Council’s LEED for Homes (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. Greenhaven is the brain-child of Richard Feis, one of the principals of Pace Homebuilders. Richard Feis and Paul Saffell founded Pace Homebuilders in 2004 upon the foundations that high-quality products and better building sciences produce exceptional homes and establish sought-after neighborhoods. Minimizing their impact upon the environment, Pace Homebuilders has been building energy-efficient homes to environmentally-healthy standards since the company's inception. Says Feis, “We’ve been using green strategies and technologies in our homes for over ten years and we’ve seen products come to market that don’t get sold because either the public doesn’t know about them or the consumer didn’t perceive a return on investment. Therefore the demand just wasn’t there. We conceived Greenhaven three years ago as a way to showcase and promote these new green technologies.” The timing of Greenhaven has worked out well in terms of bringing it to market just as public knowledge for green technologies has expanded. Emphasis on global warming and green living has accelerated over the last few years, entering the mainstream’s vernacular largely as a result of An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore’s documentary film of 2006. Now, with President Obama’s green agenda, green thinking is transforming just about every industry. Public awareness is causing a wholesale shift in purchasing attitudes and behaviors and astute businesses are responding to these growing demands. “We can’t continue to build yesterday’s house for tomorrow. There are many new building sciences and products available to the public to address global warming, energy conservation and healthy living,” Feis expanded in a recent phone interview. “When the housing market recovers, the value buyers place on sustainable amenities will be much different, much greater. If we can build a better home, while increasing energy and water conservation and reducing landfill waste, we are creating a prototype for the future – a smarter way to build. Pace wanted to pioneer this.” Greenhaven demonstrates an authentic commitment to eco-friendly standards rather than ‘me too’ green washing (false or exaggerated claims to capitalize on the growing market popularity for green products and services). Pace walks the walk, building their successful building practice on a green foundation, if you will, long before the concept had taken hold. Those attending Atlanta’s first eco-friendly decorators’ show house at Greenhaven will see everything from energy efficient appliances and foam insulation to LED lighting, no VOC paint, quartz countertops and a 3600-gallon rainwater pillow harvesting collection system. Attendees will also marvel at the beautiful design aesthetics created by the twenty eco-friendly interior designers throughout the home. LED lighting is under-valued as a dramatic but energy-efficient step homeowners can take to create appealing settings that are environmentally preferable and affordable. “We’ve just fired up the lights, using LED lighting throughout Greenhaven. It’s very attractive and budget-friendly as well,” Feis observed. Low VOC paints have made their way into mainstream building supply chains but now no-VOC paints are available in a broad color spectrum as well. These have been used wall to wall through the show home, and paint demos are scheduled several times throughout the month-long public event so that attendees can experience for themselves the lack of fumes and odors these paints introduce into the indoor environment. Designers, installers and product reps will also be on hand throughout the month to conduct product demos, answer questions and meet the public. Trunk shows, cooking events and other interactive activities are also planned. There are new products and fresh ideas in virtually every room of the show home and something for every member of the family to learn and enjoy. Tickets are $20 online and $25 at the door with a portion of proceeds going to the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, a non-profit organization dedicated solely to protecting and restoring the Chattahoochee River, its tributaries and watershed, for the people, fish and wildlife that depend on the river system. For more info:
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