Greenarama: Cincinnati Ohio's LEED Certified Home Show

Cincinnati, Ohio keeps coming up with innovative ways to show just how Green a city can be. The most recent idea is the Greenarama home show. The event will showcase a city development of LEED certified custom built townhomes. The homes are under construction on Strafer St. off Columbia Parkway in the city's Columbia Tusculum neighborhood. Greenarama will be the first home show of its kind.

Columbia Tusculum - Cincinnati's Oldest Neighborhood

The site of Cincinnati's new Green development lays claim to the title "Cincinnati's Oldest Neighborhood." When you pass through the neighborhood, old isn't a word that comes to mind. Most CT buildings are vintage, but they are well maintained and extravagantly colorful. No color combination is off limits in this up and coming neighborhood. Residences proudly display purple, pink, green and everything in between. Greener Stock Resource & Design Center, a Green neighborhood business, boasts a bold red, black and white Shephard Fairey mural on the side of the building.

It's easy to understand why Cincinnati Magazine recently named the neighborhood one of Cincinnati's top 10 places to live. Columbia Tusculum is thriving. With ongoing remodeling and new construction along the Columbia Parkway strip, the neighborhood has seen a recent growth spurt. Businesses, restaurants, office accommodations and a Starbucks are in walking distance of many homes. The neighborhood is minutes away from Downtown and the perfect place to showcase the city's newest Green residential offerings.

Green Residential Tax Abatement

The Greenarama Home Showcase will help promote the city's Green Building Residential Tax Abatement Program. The 15 year/$500.000. tax abatement is part of the city's Green Plan. It was implemented to encourage new construction of homes to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified silver, gold and platinum standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council. The abatement also applies to existing homes remodeled to meet LEED certification standards.

The Green Homes

The newly constructed Greenarama townhomes are being built with exteriors that blend in with area architecture. Builders are using Green building products and Energy Star appliances. All participating homes will strive for LEED certification that will make them eligible for the city's Green Residence Tax abatement program.

Greenarama participating builders are Andrew James Custom Builders, Black Diamond Construction, Carroll Custom Builders, Manndaly Home, LLC by Osterman Construction and Pinnacle Custom Building Group. Greenarama is a registered trademark of Cottage Hill Development, LLC.

The City of Cincinnati is a Green Partner

Cincinnati's Office of Environmental Quality is a participating Greenarama partner. A portion of the money from an OEQ energy efficiency block grant will be used to market the event. The Greenarama development will help implement some of the Cincinnati Green Plan recommendations that relate to energy efficiency.

Greenarama will be presented in June during National Homeownership Month. The event is scheduled for two weeks: June 17th to 19th and June 24th to 26th.

Source:
Greenarama:
http://www.greenarama.org/Default.aspx

Cincinnati-oh.gov:

http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/cmgr/downloads/cmgr_pdf41163.pdf

Columbiatusculum.org:

http://columbiatusculum.org/