Legend Homes - Sustainable   Solar Product Launch

Brief Project Description and Proposing Firm's Role

We have performed other work over the years with Legend Homes regarding public education and representing this Oregon company in public involvement meeting regarding land use, planning commission meetings and presentations and land use board (LUBA) support.

Our PI/O/C Services of this program was to manage a process, involving multiple partners, build pubic understanding of sustainable building science and simultaneously provide outreach to other environmental groups for third-party evaluation of a new completely sustainable and photovoltaic single family residential community of 138 affordable homes, the first production-built sustainable home community in Oregon.

Tools and tactics employed:

• Relationship marketing
• Social media
• Traditional media

Our initial event on January 28 exceeded attendance goals, over 120 environmental and industry experts attended. Total attendance was 120 industry folks including:

• Sustainability Representative from Metro,
• Energy Trust of Oregon,
• The Mayor of Tigard, and
• representatives from Northwest Energy Star,
• Westside Transportation Alliance,
• Clean Water Services,
• Tualatin Riverkeepers,
• Tualatin Soil and Water Conservation District and the
• Metro and State presidents of the Home Builders Association.

Response rate to the survey was 38 percent.

Key Findings of the evaluation survey

• What are the top three development practices that you believe make up the core of environmentally responsible home building?
  50 percent chose refurbished natural features while building neighborhoods, and the walk-ability of the neighborhood.
• What top three energy efficiencies do you think are the most important features to build into a home?
  45 percent choose high efficiency heating and cooling systems.
• What top feature of this model do you believe are the most valuable to environmental conscious homeowners?
  43 percent choose affordability, and the thermal bypass unit resulting in a 50 percent reduction in air leakage as measured by EarthAdvantage testing.
• If you were in the market to buy a home right now, how likely would you be to buy an EarthSmart Home?
  61 percent said they absolutely or very likely would buy an EarthSmart Home.