Wednesday, Apr. 13, 2005

 

Seville, Sessions win Natl. Green Building awards

Two longtime Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association members received awards last week to recognize their efforts in environmentally friendly construction.

Pam Sessions and Carl Seville are among the winners of the 2005 National Green Building Awards, which recognize development projects and advocates on the leading edge of green building. The winners were announced during the National Association of Home Builders' seventh annual National Green Building Conference last month which highlighted environmentally friendly, cost-effective homebuilding concepts.

Sessions, president of Hedgewood Properties, received the Green Builder Advocate of the Year Award. Hedgewood builds more than 250 homes annually and strives to adhere to smart growth planning and development concepts while making use of green building techniques. Her customers want a complete living environment, and Sessions builds communities that offer livable neighborhoods with a distinct sense of place. Sessions has been and HBA member since 1988.

"I'm very happy to get this award," Sessions said. "It's wonderful to be recognized for something to which I am dedicated."

Seville, founder and former vice president of SawHorse Inc., received the Green Remodeler Advocate of the Year Award. As a principal in SawHorse Business Services, Seville consults with builders, remodelers and home owners about sustainable and energy-efficient construction issues. Seville has been an HBA member since 1990.

"Atlanta is a great market for green building, and there are a lot of projects that can be models of green building to other areas in the U.S. I'm proud to receive this recognition from NAHB and hope the green building movement continues to gain momentum and spread throughout the country," Seville added.

"Green building is a way of life for these award winners," said Ray Tonjes, chairman of NAHB's Green Building Subcommittee and a home builder from Austin, Texas. "Their commitment to green building isn't just good for the environment; it's also a model for other builders, architects and programs to follow."

Both Sessions and Seville are active members of EarthCraft House, the HBA's award-winning environmentally friendly building program created in 1998 with partner Southface Energy Institute. The EarthCraft House program provides a model for healthy, comfortable homes that reduce utility bills and help protect and preserve the environment.

The EarthCraft House certification process follows a checklist designed to verify that each EarthCraft home addresses site planning, energy-efficient building techniques and equipment, waste management and indoor air quality. Approximately 130 HBA builder members participate in the EarthCraft House program, which was named 2004 Green Building Program of the Year by NAHB.

Other green building awards recognized include Custom Housing Green Project of the Year; Production Housing Green Project of the Year; Affordable Multifamily Housing Green Project of the Year; Luxury Multifamily Green Project of the Year; Remodeling Green Project of the Year; Outstanding Green Marketing Award; Green Building Program of the Year; Group/Organization Green Advocate of the Year; and Individual Green Advocate of the Year.

The Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association is a 3,800-member, not-for-profit trade association affiliated with the National Association of Home Builders and the Home Builders Association of Georgia. The HBA is the largest local homebuilders association in the nation and is dedicated to promoting, protecting and preserving home ownership by maintaining the housing industry as a viable economic force in the Atlanta area. The official charity of the HBA is HomeAid Atlanta, a non-profit organization that builds and renovates temporary housing for metro Atlanta homeless men, women and children.