Green More Than A Color: Perfecting the Science Behind Green Building Construction

Two Trails Team walks away with 35 Aurora Awards. 11 Grand Aurora Awards, 1 Best in State (NC), and 23 Aurora Awards in Green Building, Energy, and Water Efficiency. Drew Smith, president Two Trails, named Florida Green Building Coalition Certifying Agent of the Year for the highest number of certified homes in the state of Florida. Drew Smith, president Two Trails and the First Appointed Green Building Commissioner for the state of Florida, was awarded the Sustainable Leadership Award by Sustainable Florida Best Practice Awards.

Sarasota, FL (PRWEB) August 6, 2009 -- SEBC (South East Builders Conference) prestigious Aurora Awards was once again the stage for setting a new standard of home building. Green Building has arrived in full force, with the Two Trails Team taking the awards by storm. Two Trails, Inc. Green Building Consulting and their clients swept up the awards in Green Construction, Energy Efficiency, Waterwise and Natural Gas totaling 11 Grand Aurora's, 1 Best in State and 23 Aurora Awards.

"I'm so proud of our clients and the commitment they have shown to promoting Green Building in their businesses," stated Drew Smith, President of Two Trails.

The atmosphere during the awards was buzzing with excitement as the Two Trails Team received one award after another. The recognition for a job well done, brought tears to many an eye. It has been a tough year for many of the winners, but they put their trust in the belief that science of Green Building would allow them to rise above traditional built homes and success beyond their expectations.

For Two Trails, it was the tipping point for over a decade of hard work. "It is hard to describe the feeling you get when your clients come up to you with such joy on their faces thanking you for helping them achieve their goals," stated Debbie Smith, Vice President of Two Trails. "We have worked so hard to build the company and have always acknowledged our clients as our biggest promoters, but nothing could have prepared us for the number of awards that would be achieved this year. We have always joked that the Two Trails Team was like a storm brewing, but we never would have predicted this!"

"Homebuyers are looking for quality and price, we hear it every day, and I just gave them what they wanted. I showed the homebuyers how they would save money with my design from day one and into the future. They didn't come in looking for a "green" home, they came looking to save money and they will!" stated Josh Wynne, President of Josh Wynne Construction, Inc. Mr. Wynne's Codding Cottage was the first U.S. Green Building Council LEED Platinum v.1 home in the state of Florida. The Codding Cottage Carriage House holds the title of the highest scoring Florida Green Building Coalition (FGBC) home. With a score of 267 out of 300 this amazing home easily surpassed the previous record of 234 by a large margin.

Many of the Two Trails Team are first time winners like Josh Wynne (Josh Wynne Construction), Ian McCook (Nvision Development), R.J. Doerrfeld (Nuline Building Systems), Michael Voigt (Voigt Building and Design), Josh Rosenbaum (Stajo Construction), and Thomas Panaseny (Newland Communities). They do not consider themselves competitors since each has developed their own unique list of green features that they build standard into their homes. This allow for their potential homebuyers to add additional green options while always knowing that their base home meets or exceeds the green standard they have chosen for their certification.

"We took what Two Trails told us to do to heart. We implemented their education ideas and developed tools for our potential homebuyers to learn what the green features and benefits were here, while they walked the home. At the Sage it's not just a color it's a way of living. We show people how they can live healthier and save money at the same time!" stated Ian McCook, Principle for Nvision Development.

Veterans of the Two Trails Team like Grant Castilow (MyGreenBuildings), Habitat for Humanity, Mark Dyer (DCI Homes), John Cannon Homes, Sam Rodgers Homes, Lee Wetherington Homes have established themselves in the field of green building. They continue to build to a third party certified standard providing proof that green building done consistently over time provides a means to develop a niche for the builder.

"I learn so much coming to this event. It really makes us feel like a team and not clients competing against each other. We are able to exchange ideas and walk away with a better understanding of how others are building green homes. I was amazed by the cistern system Bud Swindell incorporated into his home. I am definitely going to have to try some of these new techniques in my next home," stated Mark Dyer, President of DCI Homes in North Carolina, who also won Best-in-State.

The entire Two Trails Team raised a glass to honor Drew Smith for his outstanding contribution to Green Building having recently been awarded Sustainable Florida Best Practice Leadership Award, and was named FGBC Certifying Agent of the year for the highest number of homes certified in the state of Florida.

It was clear that all of those that were involved with Two Trails were delighted to be recipients of their Aurora Awards and the shouts of joy became even louder when the Grand Aurora Awards began. However, there were individuals present that did not receive any awards. They were not builders but admirers of what has been accomplished. "Oh, no we wouldn't have missed this for the world," stated Robin Bowman, a green fabric collage artist. "We have watched this grow from an idea to a well established business. We are proud of them." Dr. Donald Bowman, State College of Florida VP Student Development Enrollment Services. When asked why building green was important a shout from back in the crowd answered, "It's either Green or it's not Green! Hey, it's Two Trails!"

Two Trails Team Winners SEBC 2009!

35 Aurora Awards Total

11 Grand Aurora Awards

1 Best in State

Contact for the complete list by emailing twotrails (at) twotrails (dot) net