Being Green in Toronto – Everyone Can Participate!

Collage: Being Green with Wo-Built

Being environmentally conscious is a topic that is very much in the forefront today and is a concern to everyone. In today’s eco conscious world everyone can do their part for the environment.

In the City of Toronto alone everyone from school-age children, large corporations and ordinary citizens are learning to be environmentally friendly. Most of us do the usual things such as recycling and using compact fluorescent bulbs but as the Green Toronto Winners and Finalists list proves, many people are thinking of new and innovative ways to be environmentally friendly and saving our resources. Highlighted on this list, you can read about the "Now House™ Project Inc.", a green design award winner for a home with a near zero energy retrofit that will hopefully be modeled for future "green" homes. Also highlighted is Campbell Company of Canada, a winner for the water efficiency award. They have implemented a water recovery program that saves 25 - 40 million liters of water a month. To read more about the many other creative ways that some people in our great City of Toronto have come up with to being environmentally friendly, please follow the link to Green Toronto Awards Winners and Finalists.

Although we didn’t make the list (maybe next year!), we at Wo-Built always try to do our part as green builders. One initiative that we strongly believe in is the donation of reusable items from our building projects. One such worthy cause close to our hearts is Habitat for Humanity. They will reuse most items in their building projects or they will be put up for resale at Habitat Restores to raise money for much needed supplies for their ventures. Follow this link Building Homes - Leading Women into Construction to read about Wobuilts’ adventures at Habitat for Humanity.

You can also join us on our twitter page for regular updates and links to some interesting reading. As well as saving resources for future generations, being green can be fun!

Lonya is the staff writer for Wo-Built Inc.

youtube.com: Future City Toronto
This video is being shown at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. Mayor Miller will be attending to represent Toronto as Chair of the C40 at the Climate Summit for Mayors and continue to champion the leadership of cities in fighting climate change. Watch the video to see what Toronto is doing to fight climate change.
Find out what you can do at www.livegreentoronto.ca
Credit: livegreentoronto

links:
City of Toronto: Solid Waste Management: ReUseIt: Minimize the waste through reduction and reuse strategies
City of Toronto: Green Toronto Awards Winners and Finalists
City of Toronto: What's the City doing to shrink its footprint?
City of Toronto: Zerofootprint Toronto

Wo-Built: Going Green in the City: Building and Renovating with "Being Green" in Mind:
Part 1 - Eco-Friendly Home Improvements
Part 2 - Going Green Is Becoming Mainstream
Part 3 - Living Rooftops - An Environmental Alternative for "Green" Building
Wo-Built: Our Green and Eco Tweets to Follow

examiner.com: Toronto Mayor David Miller - Copenhagen climate change summit 2009
"The Toronto Mayor promises a plan to extend the Transit City plan with over 120km of light rail transit. In an attempt to restore and reuse, a plan to strengthen the economy and to create green jobs includes building construction to retrofit old high-rise concrete apartments fighting climate change in the process."
by Tomitheos Linardos
thestar.com: Toronto struts its stuff at Copenhagen climate conference
by Paul Moloney

Kitchen Upgrade – Plan Yours Today!

Collage: Kitchen renovation project: The kitchen before... and After
These kitchen cabinets were redesigned to give the kitchen
a more streamlined and contemporary ambiance.

We all know that a kitchen upgrade can add maximum value to your home, especially in the resale market.

In today’s tight economy, many people are on the lookout for relatively inexpensive updates for their homes. Aside from adding new and trendy paint colours (please follow the link to our article Colour for Your Home and Your Life for this years’ "in" colours) which is one of the least inexpensive ways to freshen up a kitchen, nothing else will renew a kitchen more than a new countertop.

Your countertops are one of the most outstanding features in your kitchen, and modernizing them is a smart and reasonably inexpensive way for an update. There are many materials used in the modernizing of countertops today ranging from inexpensive to costly. Some of the more widely used substances are: Granite, Marble, Plastic Laminate, Slab Plastic, Ceramic Tile, Slate and Soapstone just to name a few.

Nothing outdates a kitchen more than an old countertop and nothing will give your kitchen more oomph than a new one. A new kitchen counter is one feature that can add instant value to your home. We at Wo-Built Inc. specialize in kitchen upgrades of all kinds and can help you get the most value from your upgrade.

For more ideas call us today at 416-354-2555 or please go to our website www.wobuilt.com for more information. Whether you are thinking of just an upgrade or a major renovation we can help!

Lonya is the staff writer for Wo-Built Inc.

links:
Wo-Built: Home Design Workshop: Get Your Smart Kitchen & Bathroom Design Ideas
Wo-Built: Kitchen Design Trends
Wo-Built: Kitchen Design Tips
Wo-Built: Kitchen Style Trends
Wo-Built: Kitchen Color Trends
Wo-Built: Kitchen Lighting Trends
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Wo-Built: Invest in Your Home Renovations and Be Eligible to Receive up to $1,350 in Tax Relief
The Home Renovation Tax Credit will provide a one-year, temporary 15% income tax credit on eligible home renovation expenditures for work performed, or goods acquired between January 27, 2009 and February 1, 2010. The credit may be claimed on eligible expenditures exceeding $1,000 but no more than $10,000.
Wo-Built: Home Renovation Tip: Donate Reusable Items to Non-For-Profit Organizations
Please consider donating your used items when renovating!

Canada's HomeBuilder & Renovator Expo Begins Tomorrow

Screenshot: The 13th Annual Residential Construction and Renovation Trade Show
Merto Toronto Convention Centre, December 2 - 4, 2009
Credit: HomeBuilder & Renovator Expo

To mark the beginning of a new business year for our company, we are going to attend the big 5 Canada's largest construction industry shows that will begin tomorrow (Wednesday, December 2, 2009) at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre under one roof at one time:

[ V ] Construct Canada: Building, Design and Construction
[ V ] HomeBuilder & Renovator Expo: Residential Construction and Renovation
[ V ] PM Expo: Property Management and Real Estate Operations
[ V ] DesignTrends: Commercial Interiors Design
[ V ] Concrete Canada: Concrete and Masonry Construction
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[ V ] National GreenBuilding Conference & Exposition

Joining over 23,500 builders, renovators, constructors, architects, engineers,and specifiers, we are going to learn about new green products and materials that will improve a building’s efficiencies; explore new technologies and services, meet with suppliers and manufacturers, and network with leading experts in building design, construction, and renovation fields.

Just from a glance at the program, some of the promising sessions and demonstrations:

Professional & Personal Skills Development
Strategies for Building and Maintaining Your Brand with Social Media
Speaker: Jon Goldman, President Brand Launcher LLC

Master Speakers
Greening the Gardiner: Toronto's Green Ribbon is a Viable Option

Design Trends for Residential Buildings
Bringing Cost-Effective Natural Lighting Systems to Reality
Speaker: Lorne Whitehead, Chair, Board of Directors SunCentral Inc.

Improved Project Delivery & Profitability
Project Management Strategies for Builders, Contractors, and Renovators
Speaker: Tom Stephenson, Coordinator, Centre - Construction & Engineering Technologies, George Brown College

Design Trends for Residential Buildings
Creating a Functional Kitchen
Speakers: Tanya Rentzos, Kitchen Designer, Andros Kitchen & Bath Designs

Technical Updates
New and Innovative Products for Homebuilders and Renovators

Hands-On Demonstrations for Energy Efficient and Greener Building Products and Technologies
Green House Under Construction

See you at #HomeBuilder09 Show: www.homebuilderexpo.ca

links:
LinkedIn Event: HomeBuilder & Renovator Expo 2009
Wo-Built: Impressions of the Toronto Fall Home Show

The UK's Homebuilding & Renovating Show: Self Build, Renovation and Home Improvement Show: House Extensions, Remodelling, Converting
facebook.com: The Big 5 - International Building & Construction Show

dcnreport.com: Developing Social Networking Opportunities
Vol.1, Issue 2, Fall 2009

construction Marketing Ideas: Surprises
"Ideas sometimes emerge in crisis that solve other issues.
Next week is the major annual construction show in Ontario, and I've always attended..."
Posted by Mark Buckshon, November 25, 2009

Interesting Reading: Renovation Is Like 'Whitewater Rafting' ... and Not Just for the Home Owner

Screenshot: Yourhome.ca: Renovation is like 'whitewater rafting'
"Even well-run renovation projects don't always look that way"
Article and Photo by Steve Maxwell
Credit: thestar.com: yourhome.ca

yourhome.ca: EXPERT ADVICE
Renovation is like 'whitewater rafting'

Building and renovation takes longer than you imagine, costs more than you expect, and (if you care a great deal about the outcome) involves more mental anguish than seems reasonable. But if you've chosen your contractor well, braced yourself for a sometimes wild ride, and are willing to keep things flexible, then it's all going to work out just fine.

by Steve Maxwell
October 24, 2009
SPECIAL TO THE STAR

This article came to my attention via clients of ours who saw it and remembered what we said before we embarked on ripping their home apart. We used words such as thrilling, heart break, apprehension, fun, excitement, rollercoaster of emotions and hopefully satisfaction and this is not just for the home owner.

We try to prepare people on what is going to happen, reduce the stress and manage expectations, but unless the home owner has been involved with something similar before, some aspects of the project will still come as a shock, disappointment or mental anguish.

In addition to the advice at the end of the article, we would add the following, stay focused on the end result – it is always worth it in the end.

Martina Ernst
CEO
Wo-Built Inc.

links:
Wo-Built: Turning Your Dream Home Into a Reality (Again !!!!)
Wo-Built: Renovations and Recession
Wo-Built: Getting Your Home Ready for Resale

The Future is Home Reno-Innovation

Poster: "The Future is Home": 67th National CNBA Conference
March 5-7th, 2010; Victoria, British Columbia

I just picked up the announcement of the CHBA National Conference for 2010 and I liked their slogan "The Future is Home".

I can’t speak on what it means for the Conference, but the reason I liked the slogan is that it implies lots of opportunity in the housing market. And for me the future is in the innovations and the design possibilities. We like to create spaces that are interesting, green, comfortable, livable, light and taking the ordinary to another level. We hope to inspire pushing the envelope in our discussions with the home owners and making their home unique.

"The Future is Home" – Maybe for us it is "The Future is Home Reno-Innovation"!

Martina Ernst
CEO
Wo-Built Inc.

links:
"Road To Recovery": Toronto Housing Outlook Conference 2009 — November 5, 2009, Toronto, ON: Facts — Analysis — Forecasts
Ontario Home Builders' Association
NewHomes.org: Where Smart Buyers Start
BILD.ca: Building, Industry and Land Development
Renomark - Renovate with Confidence
National Association of Home Builders (United States): Reshaping and Enriching Our Communities: Building Women Magazine

How About a Design Competition? Design Your Dream House

How About a Design Competition? Design Your "Dream House"

I would like to talk about a new idea we are toiling with at the moment.

We created the "Dream House Assessment" that helps the home owners to communicate their ideas of an ideal renovation and home; hence over the last year we had a lot of time to think about what a "Dream House" is. People spend a lot of money to have additions to their homes, but the situation, the existing house and the bylaws often result in constraints. So, do we really achieve "Dream Houses" or are we falling short?

My idea of a "Dream House" consists of a large greenhouse with living quarters and office space attached. Our supervisor’s idea is to have a tree house. One of our staff considers a condo her "Dream" environment. We all have stories to tell, why we have these visions of a perfect home.

Hence we are thinking of having a design competition which explores the concept of the "Dream House". And we are interested in hearing the stories about them.
Over the next few weeks we will announce the rules for the completion and there will be a price, a photo op and a byline at the end of the competition. So stay tuned.

Martina Ernst
CEO
Wo-Built Inc.

links:
guggenheim.org: Design It: Shelter Competition

"On the occasion of the exhibitions Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward and Learning By Doing, the Guggenheim and Google SketchUp invited amateur and professional designers from around the world to submit a 3-D shelter for any location in the world using Google SketchUp and Google Earth.

Winners for the People's Prize and the Juried Prize have now been announced. Congratulations to David Mares of Setúbal, Portugal, winner of the People's Prize for CBS – Cork Block Shelter; and David Eltang, hailing from Aarhus, Denmark, winner of the Juried Prize for his design, SeaShelter!"

metropolismag.com: 2010 METROPOLIS Next Generation Design Competition
The Metropolis Next Generation® Design Competition was created in 2003 to promote activism, social involvement, and entrepreneurship in young designers.

CALL FOR ENTRIES: DEADLINE: January 29, 2010

theArchitectureRoom.com: Architecture Competitions

Competitions: If you have details of a competition you would like us to publish, then please email us with brief details, the closing date, and the web address where further details can be found. We are happy to add your details free of charge: mail@thearchitectureroom.com

dexigner.com: Design Your Dream House Contest

"Dream House": You have traveled the world, seen wondrous sights, and still, when you approach this habitat, you have to stop and gaze! Never before have you seen such a well designed home. A house so aesthetically mesmerizing and completely at peace with its surroundings. This residence instills a sense of awe and you find yourself suddenly envious of its owners. Mentally your "creative drive" vows to design something equally as captivating! No, even surpassing! You set off to "Design Your Dream House".

Look out for New Pictures

Wo-Built's residential projects' web-page: extensions, additions, kitchens

I thought I give everyone a quarterly update about our progress. No doubt this has been and still is a challenging year for larger projects in the residential market. First the recession, then the long winter and wet summer and to top it all of: the strike by the City. But despite these issues we had our successes and are still going strong!! Over the next few months we will add photos of our new projects onto our website: www.wobuilt.com.

Martina Ernst
CEO
Wo-Built Inc.

links:

Wo-Built: Turning Your Dream Home Into a Reality (Again !!!!)
Wo-Built: Renovations and Recession
Wo-Built: Getting Your Home Ready for Resale