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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Great Beer Great Responsibility

Our first tour of our second class began at the Miller/Coors Brewery in Fort Worth, Texas. Larry Johnson, Environmental & Sustainability Engineer, graciously welcomed us into the brewery early on a Saturday morning. He led us to a large meeting room on the right and gave us a a great deal of information regarding the sustainability efforts of the brewery and how they've become one of the leaders in the industry. You may be asking yourself,...

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Making it Relevant

Our final presenter of the day was Andre McEwing,  who is the Diversity Supply Manager for Tarrant County College and was previously the Executive Director at Southeast Fort Worth, Inc. Mr. McEwing was born and raised in Fort Worth and has a BA in Banking and Finance from Morehouse College and a MBA in Sustainability from The University of Texas at Arlington. He reports to the Director of Purchasing who requires that 20% of annual...

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A Change For the Future - Southeast Fort Worth Inc.

The fourth presenter to the class was Allen Smith who is the Director of Southeast Fort Worth Inc. Allen has a degree in Civil Engineering and a Masters in Structural Design. He has the very busy and daunting job of getting developers interested in the SE Fort Worth Area. According Southeast Fort Worth, Inc.'s website, the Vision for the company is to make the area "a great place to live, learn, work, play, invest, do business...

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Custom Homes - The Future of Sustainable Living

Our third presenter of the day was none other than Don Ferrier, the CEO of Ferrier Custom Homes. Custom building has been in his family for generations and the tradition is still going strong. His grandfather came to this country from Scotland in 1881 and assisted in the construction of the Texas State Capitol and his father's company constructed bridges and roads throughout Texas. Following in their footsteps, Don established Ferrier Builders,...

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