Someone asked me recently how our company managed to grow its business building "green" in the heart of the Midwest. Truthfully, it never occurred to me that "green" construction was something out of character for the Midwest. In fact, I believe sustainable building fits hand-in-glove with our Midwestern values.

A frugal, no-waste approach reflects our roots. One of my first jobs as a teenager working for my family's business was to pull nails out of old studs so we could re-use the wood for concrete forms. It was an old-school approach to construction, but that thrifty attitude still works well today.

Midwestern values rooted in a German heritage tell us not to waste. We value the energy and effort spent in making something well; why would we want to toss it? So, we look for new uses for old things. If we remove an old window in a historic building to replace it with a new Low-E double-glazed window, we work harder not to throw away the old window. We re-use it, like we did in our HGC offices where old windows serve as interior walls.
Where knowledge and creativity collide is at the intersection of knowing when something is worth keeping and re-using, and when it should be tossed. That requires technical expertise. If you don't know how to apply the latest technology, you can't create the most efficient solutions for constructing sustainable buildings.

At HGC Construction, we employ creative thinkers and project managers, and we believe in giving them space to develop creative solutions. But we also believe you have to acquire technical training. That's why as a company we set out a couple of years ago to get more LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) training for our project management staff. SHP Leading Design provided us that training, and we're grateful for their leadership in the professional community.

The technical knowledge in LEED enables us to complete successful projects like the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden's Historic Vine Street Village, for which we won a national construction award and which was certified LEED Platinum. Who would believe that here in the heart of the Midwest we now have the "greenest" zoo in the nation?! This project at the Cincinnati Zoo can serve as a model for zoos in other Midwestern cities, like St. Louis, and across the United States.

What we've done in Over-the-Rhine also can serve as a model for other cities. There is little difference in the architecture of Cincinnati, Louisville, St. Louis and other cities settled by Germans along our great rivers. They have the same masonry construction, similar urban environments and energy demands. We've demonstrated here in Cincinnati that eco-friendly buildings will attract buyers to urban neighborhoods. The LEED-Silver condominiums -- the Lofts of Mottainai -- that we constructed from a pair of historic, four-story buildings in Over-the-Rhine sold out quickly. They are a model for what can be created in other Midwest cities.

Our German heritage and Midwestern values establish a solid foundation for the "green" revolution. What we have done at HGC is build on that foundation, acquiring strong technical training and on-the-job experience in green construction. In this revolutionary time, that -- and good old-fashioned hard work -- has been the catalyst for HGC's success.

Third Lesson: Work harder. If you're going to retrofit historic structures with tighter building envelopes, low-voltage lighting, low-flow plumbing fixtures -- like we did at the first LEED-Silver condominiums in OTR -- you've got to know your stuff. Re-using the old is creatively challenging. It's harder to salvage trim, to save window frames, to renovate while preserving the building's value.

We work harder to do that. Sure, it makes sense to harness sunlight by installing new windows in an old building, like we did at UC's Teachers College/Dyer Hall. But it takes know-how. It makes sense to reinforce public garages in Clifton and Uptown rather than having to tear down and rebuild, but it takes know-how. Technical precision is not an option.

Fourth Lesson: Get experience. How do you budget for the unforeseen complications in working with old buildings? Experience teaches you how. Nothing can take the place of the experience gained by working on venerable structures like Union Terminal, Hughes Center, Covington's Ice House and Cathedral Basilica. That's how you learn. Sure, there are many ways to fix a cornice. But how do you fix it the most efficient way? What's the most efficient way to hoist structural steel 11 stories high above busy downtown streets as we did in the Mercantile Library's renovation downtown? Nothing prepares you for the next challenging job more than experience.

Those are four lessons to get started in the new economy. Not easy work, perhaps, but rewarding.
Still, are you weary and wary of "green"? Do you believe "sustainable design" is simply a catchphrase that will soon fade.

I can tell you -- after our company has completed a number of LEED projects in the past 18 months, including two that earned the highest LEED-Platinum certification -- that the revolution is real. It's here to stay.

So, be frugal; be cool. Engage in the future

Learn about Huseman's midwestern values in Thursday's blog.

Frugal is the new cool. Re-use, retrofit and renovate. Take the old and make it new. Make it green and sustainable, too.

Some of us are naturally inclined this way; part of the fabric of our own company, in fact, is not to throw things away. We are frugal by nature, but even those who are not so naturally inclined can learn. If you can't be green, cost-effective and productive in the new economy, however, you just might be left behind. Because there is a revolution at hand, and the changes go beyond being cool. They go to the heart of finding success in a radically new landscape.

There is no better example of this than what's happening in the real estate development and construction industries. It is no longer an option to throw up building after building in the far reaches of the exurbs -- if for no other reason than because financing no longer exists. The money is gone. The industries have to adapt, or fail.

What to do? First lesson: Know green. Building green is everyone's responsibility -- not simply the prerogative of an architect. It means knowing the best sources for local materials. It means understanding geothermal and water harvesting, like the systems we installed at the Cincinnati Zoo. It means creating green roofs in unexpected places, like the one at Newport Central Catholic High School. It means training subcontractors and suppliers. It means recycling waste and knowing how to use every dollar spent for more than one LEED credit, as we did at Emersion Design's LEED-Platinum offices in Cincinnati. Building green is simply not an option anymore. The revolution is real. 

Second Lesson: Embrace urban. Uptown, downtown, Over-the-Rhine, Covington, Newport. These are the neighborhoods of the new economy. If you're still looking somewhere out past King's Island, you're missing the show. Turn your attention to the old structures and new opportunities of the urban neighborhoods. When we built the Lofts of Mottainai condominiums in OTR last year, we believed they'd sell out, and they did! The key to that success can be used for others: Renovate existing structures economically to create expansive and affordable eco-friendly spaces in a convenient urban setting.

Stay tuned for Lessons 3 & 4 in Wednesday's blog!