SARASOTA - A new home is open for tours this month. It's showing off it's "green-ness", because it's one of the greenest homes in the nation.
It's a remarkable home -- not only for environmental friendliness, but for it's down-home warmth as well.
The early reviews are in, and it's a smash hit. "A little bit overwhelmed by the response to it. People have really taken to it." Codding Cottage on Sarasota's Laurel Street opened to the public last week. The home has exceeded LEED platinum certification. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, the national standard in green building, and platinum is the highest green rating a home can receive.
Only a few homes across the country are as green as this one.
"The goal was to create a real home where real people would live with real character and real charm and do it intelligently with design and sustainability. And we feel like we definitely accomplished that, so I'm pretty proud of that," says Josh Wynne of Josh Wynne Construction.
We first showed this house last June, when workers sprayed soy-based foam insulation on the ceilings and walls. We visited again in early October - that's when the flexible solar voltaic panels were installed on the roof of the home's garage and office.
And that's not all it features. The gorgeous kitchen features both concrete and zinc countertops, water-saving dual-flush toilets, and the shower and tub in the master bath are built with rich-looking materials...all it friendly to the environment.
And in the family room, some of Sarasota's history is on display...used again in this new home. "What we've used as columns are the old cypress ceiling beams from the El Vernona, which later became known as the John Ringling Towers, which was torn down to make way for the Ritz Carlton."
Outside, the home uses rain water to irrigate its Florida-friendly yard. The rain travels from the gutters to the downspouts...and into the ground. From there, this free water from mother nature goes up another pipe and into two large cisterns. In fact, that rain we got on Saturday night filled the tanks more than halfway up. It's another of the details that make this house very green.
The Codding Cottage has so impressed its visitors, that several of them have approached Josh Wynne, wanting him to build them one too. "There's definitely been a Henry Ford assembly line approach to construction as of late. I think people are ready to get back to roots and to design homes that actually meet their needs."
The electric meter won't be getting a lot of use. Wynne predicts a $40 a month power bill for 4,400 square feet.
You can see the Codding Cottage and all the green technologies for yourself. It's open for tours through next week. For more information on tours and the house, click on the Josh Wynne Construction link to the left of this story.
