Wharton’s Bluff Earns 1st NAHB Research Center 4-Star Green Land Development Certification in East
July 14, 2010 - The site of a waterfront townhome community located on the banks of the Indian River in Millsboro, Del., is the first on the East Coast and only the fourth nationwide to earn a four-star land development certification under the new National Green Building Standard, according to the National Association of Home Builders and the NAHB Research Center (NAHBRC), which developed the standard and certified the project.
Developed by Craftsmen Developers, a Glen Burnie, Md.-based land development firm, the site known as "Wharton's Bluff Parcel B" will complete the waterfront Sussex County community that will have a total of 130 homes when finished. Wharton's Bluff features walking trails, a community swimming pool and pool house, a gazebo and direct access to the water from a crabbing and fishing pier, and a nature preserve located at the tip of a peninsula. Phase 1 of Wharton's Bluff is fully developed with the majority of the 84 homes and townhomes now occupied, while the 49 waterfront townhomes in Phase 2, or "Parcel B," which received the four-star land development certification, are currently under construction, and had a grand opening of a model during the July 4th 2010 weekend.
"Developments like Wharton's Bluff are playing a key role in extending the growth of green not only to the homes and apartments built, but also to the land and community area involved in those projects," said Bob Jones, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a builder and developer in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. "This an accomplishment of which Craftsmen Developers, Wharton's Bluff residents and the entire state of Delaware can be proud."
Developed by NAHB and the International Code Council, the National Green Building Standard is the first such system to be approved by the American National Standards Institute and is recognized for its stringent benchmarks in lot and site design, as well as energy, water and resource efficiency and indoor environmental quality. The certification covers single-family homes, apartments and condos, residential land development and home remodeling projects and is administered by the NAHB Research Center, which also accredits local verifiers around the country.
"The National Green Building Standard provides a rigorous and verifiable definition of residential green construction, whether it be for single-family homes or multi-story apartment buildings," said Michael Luzier, president of the NAHB Research Center. "As the first and only existing national green building rating system that can be used for every type of residential project, the standard allows the Research Center to be a 'one-stop shop' for builders, remodelers and developers who want third-party validation for their green projects."
In planning Wharton's Bluff, the project team from Craftsmen Developers protected environmentally sensitive areas throughout the site, including a buffer zone around the habitat once occupied by a bald eagle, preservation of existing trees and vegetation, creation of a 60-foot tree buffer and three-acre conservation area, avoidance of steep slopes to minimize erosion and the impact on the river, and creation of bioswales and a trench infiltration system to capture and channel rainwater.
"Achieving the four-star certification is an important industry recognition of our core values and mission to be an environmentally sensitive green land developer," said W. Dennis Gilligan, president of Craftsmen Developers. "It's an honor that the way we do business has been documented and verified by a program with such high standards."
Subdivisions and developments can be rated from one to four stars, depending on the environmental challenges of the site. The first single-family home – in Tucson, Ariz. – was certified under the standard in January 2009, while the first four-star certified development – in Burns Harbor, Ind. – was certified in March 2009. The two other four-star certified residential developments in the country are located in Arkansas and Michigan.
