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ORANGEVILLE - First ENERGY STAR qualified home - Berkshire Homes - Environmental Communication Options/Huff Strategy

ORANGEVILLE - First ENERGY STAR qualified home - Berkshire Homes

Nov 20th, 2006 5:27 AM

(Orangeville, November 20, 2006) On Saturday, 85 people celebrated the grand opening of Orangeville’s first ENERGY STAR® qualified home with a ribbon cutting and tour. Built by Berkshire Homes in a new development called Credit Springs, the new model home is 30% to 40% more energy efficient than a home built to the Ontario building code minimum and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 3 tonnes per year. The luxurious model home, designed by Hunt Design with interiors by the design team of Jeanette and Melanie Alexson of Universal Interiors, has over 4500 sq. ft. of finished space and is situated on a ¾ acre lot surrounded by a spectacular landscape of rolling hills, meadows, forests and protected conservation lands. “ENERGY STAR was an important consideration because this development is part of Caledon’s Environmentally Significant Area,” says Laurie Gordon, President of Berkshire Homes. “We have integrated energy saving technologies and systems that are proven to minimize any environmental impacts, in order to help preserve both the natural functioning and beauty of the surrounding landscape. We’re very proud to have completed this home, and offer buyers the option of purchasing homes that are the most energy efficient on the market.” With ENERGY STAR as an upgrade, Berkshire’s homebuyers can benefit from high quality, tight construction that prevents air leakage, in addition to upgraded insulation throughout, Low E Argon windows, a high efficiency furnace with an ECM motor, a heat recovery ventilator (HRV), and a programmable thermostat, among other features. Berkshire’s cost to upgrade to an ENERGY STAR qualified home is $5,000, which is offset by monthly energy savings. “Homeowners generally find that it’s less expensive to operate an ENERGY STAR qualified home, since the monthly energy savings exceed the added cost to the monthly mortgage payment,” explains Corey McBurney, Managing Director of EnerQuality, which oversees ENERGY STAR for New Homes in Ontario. ENERGY STAR is internationally recognized as the highest energy efficiency standard on the market, making it a gold standard. The ENERGY STAR label is earned only by homes that have been independently tested, to ensure they have met the strict requirements, allowing homebuyers to rely on the government backed ENERGY STAR label to know they are buying the most efficient house on the market. “Berkshire Homes is to be commended for their progressive leadership. By providing the option of upgrading to an ENERGY STAR qualified home, they are making a bold statement about corporate environmental responsibility,” McBurney concludes. -30- For more information or high resolution photos of the grand opening and the home, contact: Laura McCulloch, Berkshire Homes, 416-485-7860 ext. 215, laura(at)berkshirenewhomes.com Brent Kulba, ECO (EnerQuality media relations), 416-972-7401 ENERGY STAR® for New Homes is a label given to homes that meet balanced, whole-house, energy-efficiency standards, guaranteeing their owners significant energy savings. The ENERGY STAR mark is administered and promoted in Canada by Natural Resources Canada.