San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, one of the nation’s leading advocates for green and sustainable building practices, held a press briefing to showcase the city’s new green building policy at Parkwood by SummerHill Homes in West San Jose on Monday, October 6th.
SummerHill Homes’ Parkwood is a new home community that has received certification of a 90-point rating by Build It Green.  The Berkeley-based non-profit organization has developed the GreenPoint rated program to audit, evaluate and rate new home construction based on a variety of green and sustainable factors.Â
These factors include resource conservation, energy efficiency, indoor air quality and environmentally responsible and sustainable building practices.
SummerHill’s commitment to sustainability has long been evident in the our construction practices in the San Francisco Bay Area. These include extensive construction waste recycling, tree preservation and integration of energy efficient features.
These measures are incorporated into SummerHill’s new home communities contributing to the long term quality, durability and livability of their homes.
“By leading industry change, SummerHill is demonstrating that it is feasible for a large homebuilder to construct green homes,” says SummerHill President and CEO Robert Freed. “Building green starts at the early stages of design, continues through home ownership, and entails continuous employee, contractor, and homeowner education about new materials and technologies.â€Â
“San Jose has a long history of environmental stewardship,” declared San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed. “With San Jose’s 15-year Green Vision Plan, our city, the capital of Silicon Valley, is leading the way towards becoming the world’s center of innovation in clean and green technologies.”
“Parkwood is an excellent example of SummerHill’s focus on green and sustainable building practices,†continued Freed “We are pleased that Build It Green has recognized our efforts here.”