For Immediate Release
EarthCraft Virginia Announces Winners of the 5th Annual Sustainable Leadership Awards
Virginia Builders and Developers Recognized for Leadership in Sustainable Construction in 2013
Richmond, VA – April 2, 2014 – Regional leaders in the advancement of sustainable design and construction were honored on Tuesday as winners of EarthCraft Virginia’s Annual Sustainable Leadership Awards. Winners were announced at the organization’s 5th annual awards ceremony on April 1st at The SunTrust Building in downtown Richmond. The event drew over 100 individuals representing home builders, non-profit and for-profit housing providers and developers, program sponsors, affordable housing advocates and those interested in creating green housing opportunities in Virginia.
Each year, EarthCraft Virginia presents awards in a variety of categories to builders, developers and other stakeholders throughout the region who demonstrate superior dedication to the advancement of sustainable housing. Winners are honored in a variety of categories to cover new construction, renovation, single family, multifamily and more.
Winners were awarded based on projects completed in 2013. This year’s award winners include:
- Single Family Builder of the Year: Southern Development Homes – Charlottesville, VA
- Single Family Project of the Year: “Near Net-Zero” home in Montpelier, VA – Bain-Waring Builders
- Newbie Single Family Builder of the Year: Abbott & Co. General Contractors – Charlottesville, VA
- Multifamily New Construction of the Year: Beckstoffer’s Mill, Richmond, VA – Better Housing Coalition
- Multifamily Renovation of the Year: Scottsville School Apartments, Scottsville, VA – Piedmont Housing Alliance
- Multifamily Developer of the Year: Fairfield Residential – San Diego, CA
- Habitat for Humanity Affiliate of the Year: Richmond Metro Habitat for Humanity – Richmond, VA
- Most Energy Efficient Project of the Year: “Near Net-Zero” home in Montpelier, VA – Bain-Waring Builders
- Visionary Award: Chuk Bowles, Co-founder of EarthCraft Virginia – Richmond, VA
“The 5th Annual Sustainable Leadership Awards recognize the best initiatives in sustainable housing in Virginia over the past year,” says EarthCraft Virginia Executive Director, K.C. Bleile. “In the five years that we have hosted this awards ceremony, we have been amazed by the dedication and growth of the individuals that we have been privileged to work with. This year’s nominees and winners are no exception, all of whom having gone above and beyond standard building expectations to become the leaders in transforming Virginia’s home building market with high performance, sustainable homes.”
Dennis Creech, Executive Director of Southface Energy Institute, founding organization of the EarthCraft program fifteen years ago, joined us from Atlanta, Georgia to deliver the keynote address. Creech shared his perspective on the future of the green building industry, trends and potential challenges within the market, and the value of EarthCraft Virginia’s achievements over the last seven years.
Event sponsors included: Virginia Housing Development Authority, Superior Walls of Central Virginia, American Standard Heating and Air Conditioning, Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, Habitat for Humanity Virginia, and Velux Skylights. Additional information about the Sustainable Leadership Awards can be found at http://www.earthcraftvirginia.org/events_annual/.
About EarthCraft Virginia
EarthCraft Virginia, a 501c3 non-profit, was established in 2006 in partnership with the Home Builders Association of Virginia and Southface Energy Institute with assistance from the Virginia Community Development Corporation. The EarthCraft House program, originally founded in 1999 by non-profit Southface and the Greater Atlanta Home Builders Association, serves as a blueprint for energy and resource efficient homes built in the Southeast. Throughout the Southeast the program has certified over 8,000 homes and 17,000 multifamily dwelling units. For more information on EarthCraft or EarthCraft Virginia, please visit www.earthcraftvirginia.org and www.earthcraft.org.
EarthCraft Virginia’s partners include Southface Energy Institute, the Home Builders Association of Virginia, Habitat for Humanity of Virginia, and Virginia Housing Development Authority.
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