The Riverland Community College Carpentry program received a check $20,000 on Friday, Feb. 12 from Austin Utilities to be used for the construction of their first Minnesota GreenStar home.

Jerry McCarthy, general manager of Austin Utilities, and Kelly Lady, energy services consultant of Austin Utilities, presented the check to Dr. Terry Leas, college president, Dr. Langrell, Riverland’s executive vice president, Steve Bowron, dean of academic affairs – career/technical education, Walt Alms and Tom Wilker, both carpentry faculty members.

“Building a home with energy efficiency in mind provides the greatest long term value to the homeowner,” said Lady. “When a home is MN GreenStar certified it not only provides energy savings but a benefit to the environment as well.”

Each year, Riverland’s carpentry technology and construction electrician students construct a home through a unique learning opportunity. Students build and wire the home under supervision and in cooperation with local sub-contractors. The home is available for sale to the public through a bidding process at the end of the academic year.

This year, the home located on 1404 29^th St. SW in Austin, has been registered with MN GreenStar, a leading residential building standards and certification program created by Minnesotans for Minnesotans. The program promotes healthy, durable, high-performance design and construction for both new and existing homes. Fundamental to the program is an objective, third-party verification system that assures consumers that the new home or remodeling project performs as designed.

With over 450 professionals trained, over 100 projects registered, 20 certified and dozens in the final review process, MN GreenStar is quickly gaining momentum in Minnesota. MN Greenstar homes have five key principles:

1)      Energy Efficiency - Reducing the amount of energy required to operate the home

2)      Resource Efficiency - Reduce resources used in building, modifying and maintaining the home

3)      Water Conservation - Maximize the efficient use of water both in and around the home

4)      Indoor Environmental Quality - Creating a healthier indoor environment for the occupants

5)      Site and Community Impact - Consider the impact of the materials and the home building process on the land and the immediate community as well as the global community and environment

“Learning these green principles in construction will make our carpentry more marketable when they graduate and seek employment,” said Walt Alms, carpentry instructor. “We are incorporating a number of techniques into this year’s home project and Austin Utilities’s donation will help us reach these goals.”

Austin Utilities is a municipal electric, gas and water utility serving more than 12,000 business and residential customers in Austin, Minn.  They market and promote energy efficiency programs through their “Conserve & Save” branding. For more information about their residential and business energy, efficiency rebate programs visit their website at www.austinutilities.com