Willow Glen Resident

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Green house could be a tax break, but city needs to ease process

By Eli Segall

Would tax credits ease the cost of home construction? What about low-interest loans? Could fast-tracked permits help, too?

All these and more might be offered by the city of San Jose. The catch: The house must be "green."

City staff proposed 26 initiatives and incentives for green building practices to the city council's transportation and environment committee June 4. The list applies to both city projects and private developments. Five incentives offer direct financial assistance to builders, including loans and tax exemptions.

"People want a wide range of options," said Mike Foster, the city's green building coordinator. "We need to look at all of them to see what's in the best financial interests of the city and the developers."

The incentives package was formulated after several months of outreach to private developers. To gather more input on effective enticements and, more broadly, to preach the gospel of green, the city held a residential green building summit at San Jose City Hall on June 7. More than 170 developers, contractors and architects from across the Bay Area­some in suits shooting off e-mails on BlackBerrys, others in blue jeans and work boots­discussed trends in green-home construction and renovation.

Almost every speaker was a private developer, and they all touched on several issues, including the use of recycled building materials and energy-saving tips. Vice president of San Mateo-based Webcor Builders Phil Williams said prior to his presentation that green building is a necessity in today's real estate market.

"It's a market trend, whether you personally believe it or not," said Williams, whose company was a co-sponsor of the summit.

The trend is not limited to "granola-crunching, tree-hugging whale-kissers," he added. "You have to deliver a sustainable building today."

The San Jose City Council in March voted to require all future municipal buildings 10,000 square feet or more to achieve at least Silver certification from Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), with the ultimate goal of gold or platinum. Similar requirements do not exist for private developers in San Jose.

Building a green home from the foundation up is becoming easier as more developers adopt LEED principles, according to Williams. However, renovating homes in an environmentally friendly faces some hurdles.

One issue is the lack of products, such as low-flush toilets or efficient showerheads at retail stores, according to city officials and developers.

"I think it's a real problem," said Bill Ekern, director of project management for the San Jose Redevelopment Agency. "It's not off the shelf at Home Depot. You've got to be a pretty hard-core environmentalist to some level to pursue this."

Another hurdle is San Jose's permit process, which some builders describe as confusing and frustrating due to the need for constant inter-departmental coordination.

To ensure green projects don't get stuck in the pipeline, the city's planning, environmental services, general services and public works departments issued a joint request that more staff be devoted to these developments in next year's operating budget scheduled for adoption on June 19, said Mary Tucker, a city environmental services specialist.

"Government needs to stay out of the way and not put too many hurdles in front of these opportunities," Ekern said.

For more information about green building practices and the proposed incentives, call 408.535.8550 or visit www.sanjose ca.gov/esd.