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August 20, 2010 |
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| The 2009 Building Code Books are expecting to be published
in late 2011 or later. If you are interested in purchasing the
2006 Code Books for $75 plus tax, please contact Mary Baak at (616)
281-2021ext. 249.
Be sure to make a note to register during the month of August and save!
FREE SPOUSE REGISTRATION FOR ALL During the month of
August only all spouse registrations will be free! Beginning September 1, this fee will jump to $20. Click here for more information! The Board of Directors from Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, and Battle Creek have all submitted a resolution to NAHB strongly opposing the raise of membership dues and are pleased to announce that a proposed dues increase is not anticipated for consideration at the Fall Board of Directors Meeting. Congratulations to our Board Members and the Michigan Association of Home Builders!
DTE has 25 reserved tickets to giveaway for the West Michigan Whitecaps Baseball game, 1st come 1st serve. Limit 4 per builder. The ballgame is August 30, 2010 @ 7PM. Please contact Doug Koessel @ 616-954-4618 or email koesseld@dteenergy.com to reserve your tickets!
The Home & Building Association of Greater Grand Rapids (HBAGGR) Board of Directors consists of 15 members. Ten are builder members and five are associate members; all who serve three-year terms. Six positions will be opening up in December of this year; four builder and two associate members.
This offers an excellent opportunity for you to hone your leadership skills as you become part of the leadership team of this organization, as well as a chance for you to make a difference and be recognized by your peers.
How the Election Process Works:
APPLY: Applications to serve on the HBAGGR Board are due to the HBAGGR no later than Wednesday, September 15, 2010 by 5 p.m. Any active Builder or Associate member can apply!
CANDIDATES: We will run a minimum of eight builder candidates for the four open builder positions and four associate candidates for the two open associate positions.
BE INTRODUCED: You have the opportunity to be introduced as a candidate at Hunt & Sport Night on Tuesday, October 28, 2010.
BALLOT: Applicants are listed with a brief background history and photo on a Board Ballot that is mailed to the entire HBAGGR membership.
VOTING: These ballots are mailed by the end of September and members' ballots are due back to the HBAGGR office by Friday, November 5, 2010.
ELECTION RESULTS: The returned ballots are then counted by the Governance Committee and the positions are filled for the 2011-2013 HBAGGR Board of Directors positions on the basis of the most votes. It is important to note that even if you are not elected this year; your name will be more recognized by the members.
Deadlines have passed and the 16th Anniversary of the Fall Parade of Homes will have the following builder companies showcasing their work in this event! Thank you so much to all the builders!
Click here for a complete list of all the 2010 Parade Homes!
Fall Parade of Homes - September 24 - October 9 Remodeled Homes - October 8 & 9 Friday & Saturday: 1-8 p.m.
Interested in advertising with the Parade? ORDER NOW!
The HBAGGR is pleased to introduce to the membership a change for the Parade of Homes going forward. Starting in 2011, the Parade of Homes will now become an exclusive event for all HBAGGR members – both builders and associates. This change will require a membership for all companies advertising within a Parade home (i.e. Landscapers with a yard sign, business cards of interior decorator, etc.)
Although builders are not required to use a member when building their Parade Homes, this new policy strengthens the Association and directly promotes the philosophy “Use a member.”
More information will be available to both Builder &
Associate members at the Parade Table Top Breakfast in December.
Questions? Please contact Danielle at (616) 281-2021 ext. 254. The 2009 edition of the Michigan Residential Code will not contain mandatory fire sprinklers for one- and two-family homes and townhouses. Additionally, mandated arc-fault circuit interrupters will not be expanded beyond the current requirement for bedroom circuits.
Neither of these victories would have been possible without the help of many of you and of the staff at NAHB. Besides helping us turn back mandatory fire sprinklers, the NAHB played a major role in defeating the expansion of AFCIs.
The AFCI story in a nutshell. Michigan’s Administrative Procedures Act requires all proposed rules to have a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS). In the RIS for the residential code, expansion of AFCIs was justified by statistics provided by the Bureau of Fire Services. ”Per the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS), for calendar year 2009, Michigan has had 1,239 fires due to electrical arcing. This has resulted in 20 civilian deaths and 20 fire fighter injuries with total property and content loss of $122,274,894.”
Paul Emrath of NAHB’s Survey and Housing Policy Research Department and Steve Orlowski of NAHB’s Construction Codes and Standards Department provided me with a study they had done showing from 2002-2006 there was an average of 20.7 structural fires per year involving branch circuits and outlet receptacles in Michigan’s one-and two family, Over that five-year period there were no deaths, an average of 0.4 injuries a year and the total damage in both content and property was $771,305 in 2006 dollars. Additional average cost per year to residential construction was $16.5 million.
NAHB’s statistics were disputed by fire services who said the NFIRS system didn’t allow for data to be mined that fine and gave a new estimate of 500 fires a year, no deaths but $17 million a year in damage.
Paul then did a second run using NFIRS data from 2004-2008. The new data proved there were no deaths; 18.2 fires attributable to the types of fires AFCIs are intended to prevent taking place in Michigan’s 4,527,655 residences; and annual combined damages in 2008 dollars of $892.5111. Paul also provided all of the information on the method used by NAHB to calculate this information and I passed it on to the Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth (which promulgates Michigan’s construction codes.) Below is the result of NAHB’s assistance:
“In checking we found that the data we received was not specific to one- and two-family dwellings in Michigan and that there were no deaths. Upon review of the data presented by the MAHB and the method by which it was derived, we accept it and the conclusion. We have amended R408.30537b to maintain the arc-fault circuit interrupters at the current level of on the bedroom circuits only.”
It’s pretty simple really. Without the information from NAHB arc-fault circuit interrupters would be mandatory on all circuits in new homes in Michigan and millions of dollars would have been wasted trying to prevent a danger that really isn’t there. This is what belonging to a federation is all about.
Lee Schwartz Executive Vice President for Government Relations Michigan Association of Home Builders
Visit a member’s businesses for an After Hours Social! Starlite Kitchens & Bath. will have refreshments, door
prizes and an opportunity to network with
other fellow members. Starlite Kitchens & Baths 365 84th St. SW Suite 1 Byron Center, MI 49315
Date: August 24, 2010 Time: 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. Location: Starlite Kitchens & Baths
Cost: FREE!
RSVP by August 20 at
(616) 281-2021 ext. 249 or by clicking
here.
Training will be held at Home Repair Services of Kent County. You need to take only one course and pass it to receive your Certified Renovator Certificate. The curriculum for these courses is very specific and meets all requirements set by the State of Michigan. Date: August 25 Time: 8 am - 5 p.m. Location: Home Repair Services of Kent County - 1100 S. Division Ave, Grand Rapids Cost: members [$135] nonmembers [$185] Instructor: Mike Charest, ETC
Training Institute
Looking for new ways to gain business, and improve the efficiency of your hard-earned dollars? Date: August 31, 2010 Time: 4 p.m. Location: HBAGGR Office - 3196 Kraft Ave. SE Suite 300
Cost: FREE!
Maybe you have hard of this new thing called “BidFusion” and you still are not sure how to access it, how to use it, and what it is exactly! This is training you won’t want to miss.
BidFusion is a new simple, smart solution for builders and their subcontractors to request and submit bids for building projects. This is a tool you will soon not be able to live without.
Sign up for one of our
regular, monthly trainings! The last Tuesday of each month you can
attend a FREE training on how to use BidFusion.
Click here to sign up!
The
continuing competency requirement became effective in 2009. During
future renewal periods, individuals will be required to certify the
number of continuing competency hours earned according to the number of
years the individual has been licensed. Courses taken prior to becoming
licensed cannot be used or counted toward meeting the continuing
competency requirements. Note:
Builders who have obtained their license after January 1, 2009 are
required to have six hours of continuing competency before the 2011
licensing cycle. After the 2011 license cycle, 21 hours are
required per license cycle. Date:
September
8, 2010 Time:
9am - noon OR 1pm - 4pm Location: HBAGGR Office Cost:
members [$49] nonmembers [$99] At the very heart of the Home & Building Association of Greater Grand Rapids is an amazing community. To show our appreciation to a community that supports us, the HBAGGR, in partnership with Home Repair Services, will be hosting the 19th Annual Community Repair Day on Saturday, September 11, 2010. Volunteers will work on home repair projects that are imperative to low income and elderly homeowners in our community.
The HBAGGR is looking for volunteers to help make as many repairs as we possibly can. If you're available and would like to help we'd love to have your added support! If September 11 doesn't work, but you would still like to contribute to this worthwhile cause, we can set up a project for you on a different day. Financial and material donations are always appreciated. For more information contact Danielle Latack at (616) 281-2021, ext. 254 or by email.
More and more homeowners are seeing the need for green and a growing number of homebuyers are asking for green building technologies and techniques. In a recent survey, homebuyers rated location, floor plan, and energy efficiency as the three most important criteria in selecting a home. Learn how you can increase home value, reduce operating and maintenance costs, and increase quality of living, all while having a smaller impact on the environment. Date: September 14 Time: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. Location: HBAGGR - 3196 Kraft Ave. SE Suite 300, Grand Rapids Cost: [$60] (including lunch at 12 p.m.) Instructor: Arn McIntyre of McIntyre Builders
Green Built Michigan has created a the Advanced Builder Training, offering anyone who is already familiar with the basics of Green Built Michigan and green building an opportunity to delve deeper into the science of residential green construction. An in-depth course offering specific applicable building practices to build greener, better homes. All members of Green Built Michigan are strongly encouraged to attend the Advanced Builder Training. Date: September 14 Time: 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. Location: HBAGGR - 3196 Kraft Ave. SE Suite 300, Grand Rapids Cost: [$85] Members and [$105] Nonmembers (including lunch at 12 p.m.) Instructor: Arn McIntyre of McIntyre Builders
TO REGISTER: To
register for any of the events listed above, call (616) 281-2021 ext.
249, or e-mail homes@hbaggr.com.
Payments may also be made online at www.hbaggr.com.
Reservations made after the RSVP date are subject to a $5 late fee. Thank you for your membership and support of the Home & Building Association of Greater Grand Rapids! Sincerely, Emily Lubbers, Member Services & Development Director Danielle
Latack, Events & Communications Director Bobbie Talsma, Office Coordinator
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Upcoming Committee
Meeting Dates
Thank You Year Long Partners!
Industry Links
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