Kelly Cheek at Renewal Design Build alerts us that team registration for this year’s Park Renewal Day in Dearborn Park is now open to the kudzu-ripping public!  Here are all the details you need…

On Saturday, November 6th, participants will return to Dearborn Park to root out invasive plants for the 3rd annual Park Renewal Day competition. Each year, this joint effort of Renewal Design-Build, the DeKalb County Parks Department and City of Decatur’s Active Living Division, has well over 100 participants – all competing for prize money sponsored by Renewal – clear more than an acre of English ivy and Chinese privet from the park.

Teams will compete for the grand prize of $1,000, while second and third place teams will take home $300 and $200, respectively. Each team’s assigned plot will be scored by County Park experts and local celebrities. Food, music and the awarding of prizes follow the competition.

Any group willing to come together to help the park and raise money is eligible and should register [at www.ParkRenewalDay.com] as soon as possible. Teams in past years have included school organizations, neighborhood associations, and Scout troops. Last year, the Decatur High School Close Up Club used its prize winnings to help fund a spring trip to Gettysburg.

Renewal Design Build announced yesterday that it had received a regional Whole House award from the National Association of the Remodeling Industry for its “green” renovation of 601 Third Avenue in Oakhurst.

During its construction in 2007-2008, the Third Avenue renovation was a media darling, from its feature on Discovery’s Planet Green, which helped fund some of the renovation, to its inevitable AJC spread.  The only other Decatur residence with such extensive media exposure in recent years is another eco-friendly home, Wilton Avenue’s RainShine House.

Though at the time of 601’s completion I wondered how REALLY eco-friendly a house twice the size of the old could be, Renewal states that the remodel “doubl[ed] the home’s existing square footage while cutting its energy bills in half.”

Not too shabby.

Disclosure: Renewal is a Decatur Metro sponsor

DHS teacher Chris Billingsley reports both DHS teams who participated in Park Renewal Day at Dearborn Park this morning won cash prizes.  I’m sure the good folks at Renewal will also report back soon with a full list of the winners, but few can match Chris in shear speed of turn around on a story!

He writes in…

More than thirty DHS students participated in the Dearborn Park Renewal Day. Most of the students belonged to either the DHS Close Up Club or the DHS Bulldog 13 (made up of 9th grade students). The DHS Bulldog 13 team, led by Mr. Beau Dominguez, won $100. This will become part of the 9th grade donation to be given at the end of the year to a local charity.

The DHS Close Up Club won $200 that will be used to help pay for a day trip to the Gettysburg battlefield during our week in Washington, D.C. The DHS Close Up Club dedicated their efforts in memory of Allan Calloway, a DHS and GA. Tech graduate who volunteered to serve in the Vietnam War. Mr. Calloway lost his life in that conflict. Through our work today, we honored his sacrifice and the sacrifice of all the veterans from the City of Decatur.

Most of the pictures are of the Close Up Club. Mr. Dominguez will post pictures later.

After the jump, you can view a few pics of the students hard at work, again courtesy of Mr. Billingsley. Read the rest of this entry »

Back during our discussion of what makes the Decatur Book Festival “independent”, DBF founder Daren Wang explained the importance of the “sponsor” as the festival’s major source of funding.

As an example of his willingness to sell naming-rights, Daren mentioned the DBF had even discussed selling sponsorship of the festival’s port-o-lets.

Well, if you thought he was joking, you be wrong.  This morning, Daren writes in to announce that Decatur’s Renewal Design-Build will sponsor the festival’s port-o-lets.

Sounds like a win-win to me.  DBF picks up another sponsor and Renewal differentiates itself from the other sponsors.  Just think of all the free publicity.  Look, it’s already happening!

Up next?

Next, I’m going to find someone to sponsor the extension cords we use to power the booths.

Kelly sends in a press release noting that Renewal Design Build’s renovation projects at 224 Barry Street recently won a Decatur design award.

May 7, 2009 – This year, Decatur’s Historic Preservation Commission presented the annual Decatur Design Awards on May 3rd at the Old Decatur Courthouse. These awards recognize projects that preserve, enhance and contribute to the historic character of the City. Recipients were given a certificate signed by Mayor Bill Floyd, as well as an honorary plaque. And, this year, one of the awards for Best Addition went to Renewal Design-Build.

The judging commissioners thought the scale of the winning project – a major two story addition – was very compatible to the adjacent properties, and that incorporating sustainable materials also added a great deal of value. According to Regina Brewer, the awards’ organizer, “They also felt you could discern that the addition was new, and that it did not create a false sense of history.”

Once a small home in disrepair, this completely remodeled home is now a Tudor style cottage with double the square footage. And, the homeowner of the winning project couldn’t be more pleased. “My home is beautiful; it’s my dream come true,” says Dr. Dallin Randolph.

The Renewal team is humbled by such an award. “It is such an honor to be recognized by the City to whom we owe so much of our success,” says Renewal CEO, Peter Michelson. “Our goal is to continually contribute to the beauty and character of Decatur.”

You can check out a few Before & After pics from the project over at Renewal’s website.