Sustainable Design Blog

Jay Lockaby, CEO of The Wellness Community of Southwest Florida (www.wellness-swfl.org), has been named to a new position by the organization’s national headquarters in Washington, D.C. Lockaby will become Senior Vice President of Affiliate Relations and Strategic Growth for the Cancer Support Community, a network including 50 local affiliates and more than 100 satellite locations. Jay will begin the transition to the national headquarters staff on September 7, but will maintain his role as CEO of the The Wellness Community of Southwest Florida until December 1 to help shepherd the organization through the grand opening of the newly-constructed facility scheduled for November 12th.

The announcement is just the latest recognition for Lockaby and The Wellness Community (TWC) here. The local organization previously received national’s Center of Excellence award with the highest score across 116 critical indicators of success. In 2007, Lockaby received the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce’s Young Professional of the Year Award, and last year TWC was a finalist for the local chamber’s Non-Profit of the Year Award.

In September, TWC plans to open a state-of-the-art facility for cancer patients and their families on a five-acre campus in Lakewood Ranch. Surrounded by healing gardens and serene nature preserves, this model of an optimal healing environment incorporates the latest in green technology and will be a worldwide prototype for other cancer support organizations.

“This exciting initiative will have a far reaching impact that will help change the face of psychosocial care for people affected by cancer,” said Kim Thiboldeaux, CEO of the international Cancer Support Community, in speaking about the new facility here.

Lockaby will remain in this area in his new position, supporting all the local cancer support organizations created by the recent merger of The Wellness Community with Gilda’s Clubs Worldwide.

The Wellness Community provides hope, education and support to people affected by cancer, and all of its programs are provided free of charge. Through participation in support groups, informational workshops and mind/body classes, people affected by cancer learn vital skills that improve the quality of their lives and make them better partners with their medical professionals. TWC is now part of the largest professionally-led network of cancer support in the world.

For more information, please contact Carol Ann Kalish, Board Chair, The Wellness Community of Southwest Florida, 941-329-6626.

In the current issue of the Gulfcoast Business Review, Carlson Studio's Gateway Bank renovation is featured as one of the 1st LEED certified banks in Florida.

Gateway Bank goes green

by Carl Cronan, Tampa Bay Editor
Gulfcoast Business Review

Numerous smaller buildings along the Gulf Coast, particularly single-tenant office and retail structures, have sought and achieved LEED certification.

Sarasota-based Gateway Bank of Southwest Florida recently got the green stamp on its 4,500-square-foot Lockwood Ridge Road location, a former Regions Bank branch that opened in 1996.

Shaun Merriman, Gateway Bank president and CEO, says the decision to seek LEED certification was made while the building was being retrofitted for compliance with new state building codes designed to withstand hurricanes. He says the bank worked with Willis A. Smith Construction Inc., whose president, David Sessions, is on its board, as well as local architect Michael Carlson, a strong advocate of LEED design.

Changes to the building range from improved insulation to a new roof that absorbs less heat, with total payback estimated over four years. "It's saving us roughly $4,000 a year on our power bills," says Merriman, who has also calculated that the LEED branch uses at least 40% less energy than its comparable Manatee Avenue office.

An added benefit, he says, comes from being able to maintain a comfortable office setting with the thermostat set at 77 degrees - a seemingly magic number for air conditioning.

"We're not as focused on the economic return as we are on environmental impact," Merriman says. "It makes a huge difference. Not only that, but our employees like it."

Gateway Bank, which launched its own green commitment nearly two years ago, decided to pursue basic LEED certification instead of metal-named levels because gold or platinum is more difficult to achieve with existing buildings, Merriman says. Its next attempt at certifying another branch may be another two years away, he says.

In the meantime, he adds that bank customers are being offered various incentives for making changes that consume less paper, such as converting to e-statements and performing other banking functions online: "This business sure kills a lot of trees."

Read the rest of the arcticle

www.gatewaybank.com

The Florida Gulfcoast Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council awarded its highest honor, Chapter Leadership Award, to Michael Carlson of Carlson Studio Architecture during the group's annual award program December 8 in St. Petersburg.  The annual award recognizes the chapter member who has demonstrated exceptional leadership, active involvement and service to the organization and has helped to advance the green building/design profession.

Earlier this year, Carlson established and led a new division of the Florida Gulfcoast Chapter, the Myakka River Branch, which serves the Manatee-Sarasota area.  In addition, he was appointed chair of the Green Business Leadership Council of the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, a recent initiative for the organization.  In 2009 Carlson was also selected by HGTV to design the production company's second Green Home which earned LEED Platinum certification from the USGBC and is located in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Carlson Studio Architecture is located at 1613 Fruitville Road in downtown Sarasota, Florida.  The studio headquarters became the fourth project in Florida to earn LEED Silver Certification for Commercial Interiors.  The architectural firm has been a member of Sarasota County's Green Business Partnership since 2008.

Josh Bomstein, USGBC Chapter President & Michael Carlson

Michael Carlson & Rick Fedrizzi, CEO USGBC

The Learning Gate Community School in Lutz, FL earned a "U.S. Green Building Council's Excellence in Green Building Education" Recognition Award for its commitment to the environment and green building education.

Award Website