Welcome to the South Florida Chapter of the USGBC — a volunteer-driven organization dedicated to educating and promoting the benefits of sustainable, energy efficient buildings. Join us in transforming the way our buildings and communities are designed, built and operated, providing an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life of our citizens, children and visitors.

Treasure Coast Branch Newsletter


Upcoming Events

March 8, 2012 - National Green Building Code & ASHRAE -
Learn More - Code Today and Tomorrow
The Treasure Coast Branch of the USGBC South Florida Chapter jointly presents with:


April 21, 2012 - Generation Green - Green Apple Awards 

Rachel Gutter on the USGBC
Center for Green Schools

What Can You Do at Your
School District or Campus?



Webinar Wednesdays!
Free CEs for USGBC South Florida Chapter Members!

   

Chapter Members can attend online LEED courses for FREENon-members will be charged $40 per class. If you are a non-member, please join now and then sign up for your FREE LEED CEs!

LEED Projects in Our Region 
To view lists of LEED Certified and Registered projects, as well review a list of LEED APs, click here.

 USGBC Highlights

Third Public Comment Period for Update to USGBC's LEED Green Building Program to Open in March Read more»

USGBC Recognizes Greenbuild Exhibitors for Environmental Excellence Read more»

U.S. Green Building Council Selected as American Architectural Foundation's 2012 Keystone Laureate  Read the press release»

 Green Bites


2011 Green Building Opportunity Index
- National Overview of top U.S markets on the basis of real estate fundamentals and green investment considerations. Read More

Renewable Energy Tax Incentives Moving Forward - Homeowners and Businesses who invest in renewable energy could get a tax break under the plan. Read more 

Florida's Nuclear Power "Tax" Challenged Read more 

Earth using lasers or microwaves is technologically feasible and would provide a clean, long-term energy solution, researchers say. Read more


Treasure Coast Happenings .... and Beyond

Keep Port St. Lucie Beautiful - March 10, 2012 Click here for info

Pelican Island 20th Annual Wildlife Festival - March 17, 2012 Click here for info

TCBA Home & Garden Show - Treasure Cost Square Mall  Click here for info

Ongoing, -St. Lucie River Princess Eco-Historic Tours Click here for Schedule of Tours

Every Sat, 8am - 12pm -Green Market Downtown Ft. Pierce at the Indian River Lagoon Waterfront District 
Ft. Pierce Farmers Market

Every Sat, 8am - 1pm -Farmers Market Oceanside Vero Beach 2901 N. Ocean Drive, Vero Beach, FL 32963 Farmers Market Oceanside


Every Sun, 10am - 2pm -Farmers Market Historic Downtown Vero Beach 2140 14th Ave., Vero Beach, FL 32960 Farmers Market Historic Downtown Vero

Contact Kandi Phillips with your sustainable green Treasure Coast Happenings.

e4-environment-economics-equity-energy Sustainability Summit in WPB
(FYI, click on image)


Upcoming Chapter Events

23 Feb 2012 7:00 PM • 1451 South Miami Avenue, Miami, FL (Brickell)
24 Feb 2012 8:30 AM • MAPEI Americas Headquarters, 1144 E. Newport Center Drive, Deerfield Beach, FL 33442 (see Directions in copy)
25 Feb 2012 8:00 AM • City of West Palm Beach Waterfront Commons
29 Feb 2012 8:00 AM • Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Avenue, Fort Lauderdale-Davie, FL
29 Feb 2012 6:00 PM • Calvin Giordano & Associates, 1800 Eller Drive, Suite 600, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 33316

 Branch Recap


Jan 2012 Event Recap

“The Costs of LEED – Real World Case Studies” Presented by Rob Hink, LEED AP, CEO and Principal of The Spinnaker Group

It was a night of firsts!  This was the TC Branch’s first meeting of 2012.  And we were the first organization to hold a meeting in the brand new LEED Certified Brown Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship on the main campus of Indian River State College. (Register now for November tour of the Brown Center.)

Prior to the evening’s featured program, those in attendance were given a tour of the three-story Brown Center by Jan Pagano, Dean of IRSC’s Entrepreneurship & Economic Development Division.  


The Center opened its doors to students and faculty on January 5, and it will offer a broad range of programs, including renewable energy studies, net zero building construction, and the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the Corporate & Community Training Institute (CCTI).  

Program Feature Rob Hink, CEO and Principal of The Spinnaker Group (Weston, FL), presented a lively review of specific LEED project examples in the South Florida market.  The presentation was titled “LEED Costs and Returns – OR – How to Get a Lot of Green (LEED) for a Little Green ($$$)!”  Based on his examination of more than 100 LEED projects undertaken over 5 years, he had to admit “. . . it depends on the project.”

Although many people tend to think that “going LEED” adds significant costs to a project, Rob presented three Florida projects that debunked that myth.  The examples included St. Andrews School (LEED Gold, Palm Beach County), the Animal Care Complex at Palm Beach Zoo (the first LEED certified zoo animal hospital in the United States), and Republic Services (LEED Silver, Sunrise).  In each of these specific cases, as well as others, the costs generally associated with a LEED project – the USGBC registration fee, LEED consulting fees, building commissioning fees, and energy modeling fees – did not individually exceed 1% of the total project cost, and often were less than 0.5% each.  These upfront costs were more than matched with energy and resource savings to the owners and occupants after the projects were completed.

In fact, the cost to build a LEED Certified project today is fairly equal to a traditionally-built project.  The advantage of building a LEED project is that it yields far greater savings from resource conservation, energy usage, occupant health and productivity, and long-term marketability of the building.  Finally, the best indicator of a project’s long-term viability and profitability is having achieved a third-party LEED certification!

We want to thank Rob Hink for enthusiastically sharing his experiences as a seasoned LEED practitioner – the audience thoroughly enjoyed it!  We also thank Jan Pagano for her tour of IRSC’s Brown Center, and we extend our thanks to Bob O’Brien of IRSC’s Corporate & Community Training Institute for setting up the meeting room.

 

 Sponsor a 2012 Event


The Treasure Coast Branch invites you to support our Branch's activities by sponsoring one of our monthly GREENworking or educational events. Learn more about the outstanding benefits to sponsoring an event -- see 

TCSponsorship2.pdf or contact Kyle Abney.

 


 

Branch Governing Council


Elected Officers:

Committee Chairs:

Open Committee Chairs:

  • Education
  • Emerging Professionals
  • Leadership
  • Residential Green Building
South Florida Chapter Connections

Facebook   Linkedin   Twitter   YouTube


 New Members

We would like to welcome our newest members!  Please take the time to introduce yourself and welcome them to the Treasure Coast Branch.

Sheryl Barton (contact
Sorensen Office Solutions

Denise Arnold (contact
Arnold Surveying, Inc.

Laurence Davenport, Jr. (contact
D.C. Group of South Florida, Inc.

Howard Feldman (contact
Habitat for Humanity of Florida

Jordan Ford (contact
Ocean View General Contractors Inc.

Kara Johnson (contact
XIOS Solar

Dan Tarafa (contact
Thermal Concepts Inc.

Harry Zuker (contact
ComNet Energy

Amy Zwemer (contact
Entegra Roof Tile, Inc

 Volunteer Shout Out


Volunteers are regularly featured here with a link to their USGBC member profile. Contact David Phillips to volunteer.

 Note from Chair

On behalf of all the past and current Branch board members and chairs, members, volunteers, and friends, I would like to personally Thank Everyone for making the Treasure Coast Branch what it is today!
 
We are excited to announce that the Branch will be holding an inaugural 2012  Generation Green event to present the Green Apple Awards in April 2012 for all Treasure Coast public and private schools. Please contact us if you are interested in participating in this amazing high profile event. Also, our local GREENworking events have been a great success with our attendees spreading the word and anticipating future GREENworking events. With that, I want to personally invite you to join one of our upcoming events and place a request for what you would like our Branch to provide in the future. We encourage attendee's participation.
 
If you are looking for a fun group to interact with, then join us and check out what all the excitement is about. Feel free to learn more about program events, educational material, membership, and sponsorship opportunities by browsing the website.
 
If I can ever be of any assistance, please feel free to email me at dp@SED-eng.com I look forward to meeting you at the next Treasure Coast Branch event. 
~David Phillips, P.E. LEED AP BD+C

 History of Our Branch

The former Treasure Coast and Palm Beach Branch became an official Branch of the USGBC South Florida Chapter in October 2007.  

In the Fall of 2009, the Branch Governing Council of the TCPB Branch held meetings designed to sketch out a game plan to create a leadership group for a separate TC Branch. 

The Chapter's Board of Directors granted provisional status to the Treasure Coast Branch in July 2010. The Board approved the TC group to full Branch in August 2011.

      


 2011 Year End Holiday Bash

A magical evening was had by all during the December Treasure Coast Branch Holiday Party. Thanks to Cobb's Landing in Fort Pierce for graciously hosting the top floor of their facility. We had a spectacular view of the Indian River and much to our surprise..... the riverside show of lights, all lit to music.

   

We had 45 in attendance and collected a total of $585 in cash, checks, gift cards, and tool collections, all contributed to St. Lucie Habitat for Humanity.

The night began with our ever so popular GREENworking, followed up with a raffle of gifts provided by sponsor CALMAC, Kandi Phillips of Awaken Your Space, and Niki Gozdz of Crossroads Architecture. The evening truly felt like it was set in motion for St. Lucie Habitat for Humanity, as their table walked away with the most wins from the raffle. (Santa must have felt they were real good this year!) Great job St. Lucie Habitat for Humanity team!

Winners of Raffles:
BIG winner of the 50/50 raffle went to Nancy Bredemyer. She won $74!

Mimi Ewan - poinsettia and bottle of wine
Cheryl Stanley - bottle of champagne
Scott Anderson - poinsettia
Kyle & Harmony Abney - water fountain
Gale Cipra - natural herbal soaps
Dave Alker - 2 hr organizing consultation
Charlie Arnold - design plan tube
Mike McClung - poinsettia
Harold Tourjee - design plan tube

        

We were all blown away by our special guest, jazz singer Da'se from Vero Beach, FL. She volunteered her talented voice to those in attendance and a very special treat..... she lead us all with a group sing along of the 12 days of Christmas. Learn more about Da'se here!

We graciously thank our 2011 Sponsors for supporting the Treasure Coast Branch!
Learn more about these sponsors by clicking on their logo.

       

      

         


Volunteers in Action
"Volunteers don't get paid, not because they're worthless, but because they're priceless." ~Sherry Anderson
    

     

   


Educational Events

     
   

GREENworking