The visitor center at the Bernheim Arboretum in Clairmont, Kentucky, which was completed in 2005, continues to garner attention.  In 2007, it was awarded LEED Platinum certification.  Most recently, the visitor center has received the EPA's prestigious Lifecycle Building Challenge Award.  This is the third year that the EPA has held the challenge where entrants are judged on their building's ability to minimize waste, reduce energy consumption, and be disassembled for material reuse.  The visitor center took an award in the Building–Professional Built category and an Outstanding Achievement Award for Best Greenhouse Gas Reduction. 

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It's time to follow up on a project a cool project, the Zero Energy Idea House, that we mentioned at ground breaking in July 2008.  Located at Bass Cove near Bellevue, Washington, the 1,630 square-foot, two-bedroom Zero Energy Idea House was designed by Clinkston Brunner Architects and built by Shirey Contracting.  Overlooking Lake Sammamish, the home is planted into the hill as a demonstration of energy efficiency — the goal is to show that it generates as much energy as it uses.  

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Since we first mentioned Stillwater Dwellings in March, the new company has been extremely busy.  Not only have they lined up plans to build green prefabs in Portland (Or.), Santa Barbara (Ca.), and Healdsburg (Ca.), but they’ve recently completed their first prefab home in Bend, Oregon.  The company was kind enough to send us a few photos of the inside and outside, and the modern home is just stunning.

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