Do you have ideas/input into the questions below? Well then heads up that the next Unified Development Ordinance public input session is next Wednesday, April 18th at City Hall from 7-9p. According to DecaturNext, here are the big questions being asked…
How does the community feel about incorporating “green standards” into buildings and sites?
Are we willing to accept increased costs to achieve certain environmental goals? If so, how, and under what circumstances?
I take issue with the idea that “green” = more expensive, and am disappointed that the city continues to couch the discussion this way. High performance (aka “green”) building certainly can cost more, but it doesn’t have to. For reading, I recommend “The Cost of Green Revisited”, available here: http://www.usgbc.org/resources/cost-green-revisited
there should be a third big question- are we willing to incentivize use of green building standards? i.e. will we give credit for stormwater retention for green roofs, cisterns, and preservation or addition of large tree canopy coverage numbers. I don’t think we do right now. I am also hearing from a lot of residents that they would rather have incentives than mandates on their property use.