Water Conservation @ The Annex

Laura Blaylock, has been a Hydrologist for the Tarrant Regional Water District for 13 years. The building was completed in 2009 and was the first LEED Gold certified building in Tarrant County. It garnered a great deal of attention due to its certification and the fact that it had the largest roof mounted solar array in Texas. The TRWD is a large non-profit well water facility that serves 11 counties, which is a majority of North Texas. After...

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Reorganization - How to Make Existing Spaces More "Green"

Our fourth presentation of the day was Jerry Burbridge. He has taught at the University of Texas at Arlington in the Real Estate program and is currently a Project Manager for the Cherokee Nation assigned to the Department of Homeland Security - Customs and Border Protection Division. Mostly he assists in building ports and border patrol stations under the Facilities and Management organization and works with the US General...

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The Growth of a City

Our second on-site visit of the day was to the Fire Station No. 1 Museum in downtown Fort Worth. Geoff Reiner and Bill Peterson from Jacobs Engineering met us on location to give us an overview of how Fort Worth became the city that it is now. Fire Station No. 1 is a museum that traces the city's development from its beginning as a frontier outpost, through its youth as a cattle town, to the current city it is now. The museum was created...

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Trinity River Vision Authority

Our second presentation was from Shanna Cate who is the Planning and Development Director at the Trinity River Vision Authority. The TRA has numerous partner agencies that are assisting in funding and developing the waterways of Fort Worth. The Trinity River Vision Authority was created to handle the development of areas around the Trinity River. The TRA is focused on creating a more safe and clean river for the city of Fort Worth to enjoy....

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Tactical Urbanism

Our first presentation of day 3 was over an interesting and growing sustainability effort known as Tactical Urbanism. Our first presenter was Rik Adamanski from Team Better Block. Team Better Block works with cities, developers, and stakeholders to create inexpensive and positive changes that improve and revitalize underused properties. Team Better Block creates a series of “quick win” projects that bring attention to developments prior...

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Green Ox Energy

Our last presenter of day 2 was Mark Thompson from Green Ox Energy which is a commercial, residential, and renewable energy solutions provider based out of Dallas, Texas that makes solar energy more accessible and affordable to the public. The company takes a full service approach to the renewable energy process using multiple products, financial advice, installation services, and assistance throughout the process. Deregulation is...

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The BRIT - An Icon of Sustainability

Our first on-site tour for day 2 was to The Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT). The BRIT is a scientific research center and education endeavor that takes botanical specimens and attempts to understand the interaction between people and plants. The Institute  performs research throughout state of Texas and Internationally in areas such as the Amazon. The sustainability project currently under way, Andes to Amazon is...

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