GreenHomeNYC Announces the 2003 New York Green Buildings Open House

New York, NY August 18, 2003 -— The Crown Heights section of Brooklyn isn't the first place people would expect to find cutting-edge environmental technology. But in recent years, a trend in environmentalism called "Green Building" has quietly reshaped the city, even in unexpected places like industrial Crown Heights.

On Saturday, October 4, the 2003 Green Buildings Open House will give New Yorkers a chance to get inside Green buildings throughout the five boroughs and discover how they work with the environment. The event, organized by local volunteer group GreenHomeNYC along with the North East Sustainable Energy Association, is a part of the American Solar Energy Society's National Tour of Solar Buildings, taking place in 44 States.

"The 2003 Green Buildings Open House is an opportunity for home and building owners to demonstrate how they've been able to make decisions about their working and living environments in accordance with their personal values," says GreenHomeNYC founder Bomee Jung. "It's a particularly New York gesture in a year when energy and conservation issues have hit the headlines, in the context of both national security and lifestyle choices. New Yorkers already live lightly on our resources compared to our neighbors in the suburbs, and some of us are taking the extra step of making conservation a personal priority."

Take Brooklynites Benton Brown and Susan Boyle, for example. Among the warehouses and auto-shops of Crown Heights, Brown and Boyle are about to celebrate the birth of their first Green building at the former Nassau Brewery Ice House, currently being converted into six residential loft spaces. The building incorporates a host of clean and Green features, such as a 2,000-square-foot vegetated roof and rooftop solar cells, an energy-efficient in-floor radiant heat system, and wood and windows salvaged from the demolition of attached storage structures.

To be Green, a building must follow construction and building-management methods that are friendly to human health and the environment. Green methods include site selection that minimizes the environmental impact of the building and its inhabitants; energy conservation and alternative energy technology; energy and water efficiency; and the use of recycled and toxin-free materials.

Projects like the Solaire in Battery Park City, the first Green high-rise residential building in the country, have raised the public profile of Green buildings. But in the forest of New York's 900,000 buildings, you have to know where to look to find one.

GreenHomeNYC's 2003 Green Buildings Open House will map out walking tours and guided visits to more than a dozen homes, offices, and public spaces, including the Solaire and the Ice House. Participants will experience firsthand the features of Green buildings and have a chance to chat with building owners and designers about how they function, how they were implemented, and what they cost.

When all is said and done, New Yorkers will come away with a new expectation of what the comfort, livability, and impact of a building can be.

The 2003 Green Buildings Open House will take place from 10am to 4pm on Saturday, October 4. Information about the tour is available on the GreenHomeNYC Web site:
http://www.GreenHomeNYC.org.

About GreenHomeNYC

GreenHomeNYC is a community-oriented, volunteer-driven nonprofit group that supports environmentally responsible building in New York City. Its goal is to serve as a resource for people who are not trained building-industry professionals and enable them to take immediate action to Green their homes and working environments. GreenHomeNYC's programs seek to:

Raise the profile of Green building for renovations and small
buildings through grass-roots promotion

Promote the benefits of Green building

Act as a clearing-house for information about local resources and
services

Foster a supportive network for people undertaking Green building





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