A History of Rewarding High Performance Builders

August 8, 2018 | By: Erik Cathcart

For seven years the Earth Advantage Green Builder of the Year Awards has been celebrating the extraordinary efforts of builders and developers who certify to our standards. All of the builders who work with Earth Advantage are interested in building quality, low-energy, high-performing single family and multifamily residences. They’re committed to providing their clients with well above-code dwellings that are healthier, more energy efficient, durable, and sustainable than code-built homes. We’re extremely proud of all the businesses that certify to our standards and who are doing their part to make Oregon a better place to live, both for their customers and everyone who lives here.
 
Every year we recognize the cream of the crop of the people who build to Earth Advantage standards by employing a group of three independent judges with expertise in the energy efficiency and construction industry to select award winners in 10 separate categories. Three additional categories reward those builders who sustain high standards while building at production levels. Over the years we have expanded the number of categories and refined others in order to fully recognize the breadth of work being done.
 
In 2015, we added “LEED® for Homes,” “Lowest EPS® Score,” and “Construction Manager” along with our three volume awards. In 2016, we added “Zero Energy” to the list as a starting point to what we envision as the inevitable code standard for residential construction by 2030. Last year, we refined our two multifamily awards (“LEED®” and “Earth Advantage Multifamily”) to include all of the key participants on those projects, not just the developers. Now we look at the complete project team of architects, developers and general contractors when making our award selections in multifamily.
 
10th Annual EA Golf Invitational

For even longer than the awards themselves, we have been hosting an annual golf outing at McMenamin’s Edgefield. This year, 2018, will be the 15th year we’ve hosted our outing. To show our appreciation for the work all of our builders and clients demonstrate, we provide a luncheon with the awards ceremony and then invite everyone out to the Par 3 course to enjoy an afternoon playing golf in the beautiful Oregon late-summer weather. It’s a way for all of our clients to share stories and anecdotes over a beer and maybe even a hole-in-one!
 
We’re excited to host this year’s seventh annual awards ceremony and spend another afternoon golfing with the people on the forefront of better buildings in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, not to mention leaders in the entire country. Mark your calendars for our event on September 27, 2018–invitations will be sent out soon!