Moving can really add to your Carbon Footprint. Ways to move green!
Moving is one of the most stressful things you can do in your life. Especially when you are downsizing and you have too much stuff. Trust me- I am going through it now. Newly married (to a wonderful, loving, PACK-RAT) and moving into a slightly smaller home that is under construction staying green was not at the top of my priority list for once. In fact, I wasn’t really even thinking about it until I started packing and my mother called to suggest that I use the shredded paper from my office as packing material instead of the bubble wrap and Styrofoam peanuts. Genius, I thought! I mean, naturally I was reusing old newspapers and packing material from our wedding gifts, but that was second nature. I decided it was worth some further brainstorming:
1. Start getting rid of your stuff! (THINK GEORGE CARLIN!) By giving away or consigning rather than trashing your unwanted items, they will get reused by others- reducing the need for manufacturing new items. In addition, reducing the amount of things that you put on the moving truck will reduce the amount of packing material and of gas you use!
2. Get free boxes! I know first hand that UHAUL has a free box section. This is kind of like the leave-a-penny, take-a-penny jar at the corner store and the boxes are pretty picked over. If you don’t get lucky there, stop by your local liquor store. Not only do they have a plethora of boxes, but they are just the right size for books, dvd’s, glasses, small appliances, your own wine collection, and more! When you are done with your boxes, reuse or donate!
3. Packing material can be made of almost anything: old newspapers, shredded office paper, plastic grocery bags, those lonely socks from the dryer you never found the match for, old t-shirts, dish towels, the pages of your senior thesis- be creative!
4. Rent the smallest moving truck that you need. This will save on gas and emissions.
5. When cleaning buy the non-toxic stuff. In most cases it works just as well as the harmful products. In fact, when you are forced during the move to come face to face with all of your stuff, audit yourself and see how you can integrate more eco friendly products into you new life in your new house!
I hope these tips were helpful. A few more would include
a. if you are packing up the UHAUL at night, don’t leave the light in the truck on too long. A UHAUL battery will die faster than a car’s battery. Believe me. I know. And I was shopping for jumper cables at 12:30 in the morning the other night!
b. be extra mindful of your pets. Moving is even harder on them since you can’t explain to them what is going on. They need extra love and care and a close eye while that door is left ajar when you are loading up your things. They can escape, and in my case they did- but we caught those little buggers!
Over and out.
It IS Green to watch TV some times!
Hello Philadelphia. When you think about the changes that you can make in your life to realize your more sustainable self and reduce your carbon footprint, one of the first and easiest things to do is use less electricity. In my own home, I let that be the straw that broke my inner camel’s back [...]
Philly’s New Director of Sustainability
After announcing that both Andy Altman and Mark Allan Hughes were stepping down from their respective positions as Director of City Planning and Commerce and Director of Sustainability for Philadelphia, I have to admit that I was feeling a bit deserted. I had high hopes that both of these men would be leading this city into greener pastures. I realize, though, that it is not the individuals who will get us to the next phase, but the city working together as a team, led by our great Mayor and his team.
Mayor Nutter has appointed the next Director of Sustainability to replace Hughes. Click on the link to read more. My high hopes will be transferred to her!
http://greenworksphila.wordpress.com/2009/07/17/nutter-names-new-sustainability-director/
State Incentives for Greening your Property
It’s taken a while, but now there is a great source for finding state incentives, rebates, and grants for projects aimed at lowering the carbon footprint of a building. These are not just for individual residential renovation, but also for industrial, commercial, and educational institutions. The improvements that need to be made to qualify can be as small as buying a low energy consumption washer and dryer to building a factory that uses zero energy to maintain itself.
Check out the website http://www.dsireusa.org/ and click on your state to learn more about statewide and local programs!
Just Listed: 3 Bedroom Gem in South Philly!
414 Wolf Street
3 bedroom, 1 bathroom, 950 SF: $215,000
Enter into this beautiful South Philadelphia 3 bedroom home rehabbed in 2006. Walk through the spacious living room and dining room with original molding, built-in mirrored closets, and wall to wall berber carpeting to the brand new kitchen with ceramic tile floor, decorative square tile backsplash, modern [...]
The IceHouse Warms Up Fishtown
Introducing The IceHouse – Philadelphia’s premiere sustainable condominium complex. This cutting edge development has 10 New Construction and 3 rehab Condos all Registered for LEED Certification. Located in the heart of Fishtown, directly adjacent to a large park, these condos boast wide plank hardwood flooring throughout, bamboo cabinets, Caesarstone quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances, secure [...]
10Year Tax Abatement Debate- Could Going Green be the Common Ground?
If you have been following Philadelphia’s budget crisis and/or the local real estate market, I am sure you are aware of the tax abatement argument. Those in favor argue that the abatement (which is applies to both majorly rehabbed properties and new construction and the purchasers of those properties are either taxed on the unimproved land or previous unimproved structure- paying those lower taxes for 10 years and can transfer this abatement once to another buyer) spurs development and improvement in this city where there would otherwise be none. Those against argue that it’s unfair to the rest of the homeowners in the city who have to pay their existing taxes and those benefiting all fall in the higher economic brackets of wealth.
Neither side has shown any evidence of a desire to meet somewhere in the middle, but recently a few bills have been proposed by Councilman Darrell Clarke to keep the abatement, but increase the purchasers taxes annually by 10%, and some variations on that idea. I have read the bills. I guess there is common ground in there, but still just more of the same. Councilman Curtis Jones Jr, though, has stolen my hear with his answer to the tax debate! In order to stay on track, in these tough economic times, to be the greenest city (Michael Nutter), Jones says, why not keep the full 10 year tax abatement but apply it only to structures that meet strict sustainable guidelines such as those set forth by the US Green Building Council for LEED Certification. This way, the onus is on the developers to step up their game and start building more eco-friendly buildings. In the end we all benefit. Attention to our city. Cheaper bills for the residents of these homes. More “green” homes on the market will most likely result in lower price tags. The list goes on!
Anyway, I would like to applaud this proposal and urge you all to write letters is support of such legislation to your local councilman. Frank Decicco can expect a letter from me!
Feel free to contact me if you have questions about green building, LEED certification, or anything else that exists in the real where real estate meets environmentalism!
Great Mixed Use Property For Sale in South Philly!
2501 S. 11th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19148
Just Listed: Commercial Space with 2 Bedroom Apartment Above: 9,900
This is the perfect investment and great for someone who wishes to be an owner occupant in South Philly! The first floor is currently occupied by a security and PI business. The office is fully outfitted with reception area, kitchenette, [...]
The Litter Summit- Citywide cleanup on April 4th
Yesterday I got up extra early, rushed to the United Way building at 8 in the morning, and paid $24 to park for 3 hours and attend the Litter Summit hosted by Keep Philadelphia Beautiful. It was well worth all the trouble.
Keep Philadelphia Beautiful (KPB) is a non profit, local division of the national Keep American Beautiful organization. I would go into their mission, but it’s spelled out in their name. The board of directors includes the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of the streets department, a representative from Philadelphia Green, the director of Project NEAT, and a few others. The Executive Director, the face of KPB, and the woman behind much of the progress made in the last couple of years is Phoebe Coles.
Phoebe, besides the help of one intern, is more or less a one woman show, as many pointed out yesterday. Her main goal is to reduce litter and keep the streets clean. My favorite Mayor, Michael Nutter, also attended as well, and accepted an award for Philadelphia for our success in last year’s citywide cleanup.
It’s important to understand that just cleaning up other people’s litter will not keep the city clean. It’s most important to understand why people throw trash on the ground and educate people on the issues that arise from such behavior.
There are three major reasons that people litter, Mayor Jenny Stultz of Gastonia South Carolina explained at the Summit. The first is that he or she has no sense of ownership of the place they are littering. This would refer to someone who doesn’t take any pride in their own yard, neighborhood, or city let alone responsibility for the way it looks. The second is that he or she assumes there is someone who’s job it is to pick up the trash. A good example here would be people that leave their trash at their seats in a movie theater or sports arena. The third is that there is already existing trash there so instead of feeling like they are causing a problem, instead they are just adding to a problem that already existed.
In Philadelphia I believe we suffer from all three of these.
On April 4th we have our 2nd annual Citywide clean up. I urge everyone to come out and help. I will be at South Philly High School painting the fence and planting trees from 10-2 if you would like to join me.
If you have any questions or concerns about litter in your neighborhood, send them along.
In addition, there is proposed legislation about banning plastic bags and Styrofoam from our great city. Talk about a great solution to reducing litter. I hope you will all support!
Philadelphia Sustainability Awards at the Flower Show
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Yesterday was the type of day that you wanted to stay inside, under a blanket, sipping hot chocolate and venturing out only to, perhaps, shovel your sidewalk and deice your car to make the following day bearable. And, although schools and offices closed as well, it didn’t stop people from filling the seats at the convention center to attend the Pennsylvania Environmental Council’s Sustainability Award ceremony.
Hosted by an charismatic Patrick Starr from our local branch of PEC, the audience also welcomed local celebrities in the green community like Mark Alan Hughes, Philadelphia’s director of sustainability, and Jane Pepper, President of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. Starr wanted to stress that though we are in the midst of major budget cuts and job losses, our city has lots to be proud of and is already in the top 10 in the nation of “green” cities. ( www.SustainLane.com )
From 70+ nominations of sustainable projects throughout Philadelphia and surrounding areas, we were presented with 12 finalists, and awards were given last night to the 5 winners. We are so proud to announce that Onion Flats won for their residential multi unit LEED Platinum Thin Flats, which we are currently in the process of listing. If you would like more information on Thin Flats, Onion Flats, or LEED Certified projects, email me at rlipton@phillycityspace.com!
The other winners are:
Philadelphia Eagles Go Green Project- Both Lincoln Financial field and the NovaCare Complex are running on 100% clean energy, the employees of which get reimbursed from purchasing clean energy from Peco. They also have replaced 1,000,000 plastic cups and 16 tons of plastic and foam flatware with corn based alternatives that easily biodegrade. Finally, they are actively recycling both in the field and supplying tailgaters with recycling bags for before and after the events.
ECA Environmental Coordinating Agency- offers to both commercial and residential consumers energy audits, installation of cool/green roofs and solar panels, insulation, and can help coordinate projects that strive for LEED certification.
Bob Pierson of Farm to City- Operates 15 farmers markets throughout Philadelphia and offers CSA (Community Sponsored Agriculture) projects that connect Philadelphia residents with our local farms all year long.
Schuylkill Banks Greenway- Almost an extension of the Kelly Drive/West River Drive walking/jogging/biking loop, this stretch of path along the Schuylkill River from MLK Boulevard to Locust Street also offers movie nights and water sports in the summer months. They are plans to extend this even further south in coming years.
If you attend the awards, and I recommend you do just to stay on top of the amazing projects that will take our great city into the next generation of sustainability, an added perk is free entry into the annual PHS Flower Show. The theme is Italy this year, and it’s a warm, aromatic, and beautiful treat I urge you all to take advantage of in this icy tundra we are living in this week!
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