Kickoff Meeting – 5/28/09 @ Amnesia Brewing

Intros 

19 Attendees, of diverse backgrounds in the industry

Where Industry Is Now

Most points discussed here related to lack of education on vegetated roofs, especially on the economic benefits for the building owner, also successful installation and maintenance procedures (commercial and residential)

Industry-wide need for quantifying the return on investment and added value to real estate

Homeowners have a lack of reasonably priced structural engineers to report on smaller scale projects, also issues of insurance, and no quantified property value changes with ecoroof installation

Operations and Maintenance: need for better maintenance of existing vegetated roofs to maximize function, and also to improve the public perception.  Forming a volunteer maintenance group was suggested

Aesthetics vs. Function: issues discussed related to different perceptions of what a green roof should look like; whether it should be thriving all year; and again, better education is needed on function vs. aesthetics of ecoroofs

Where We Want to Be

  • All new/restored roofs consider ecoroof option
  • Quantify the benefits (return on investment, energy reduction, stormwater quality, extended roof life, etc).  This means more research
  • Put Portland back on the cutting edge of the green roof industry
  • More sharing of what had led to successes and failures

 Future Topic Suggestions

  • Incentives / Policies Affecting Ecoroofs
  • Reasons for Ecoroof Failures
  • Historic Landmarks and Green Roofs
  • Real Costs, Lifecycle Costs
  • Growth Media and Plants
  • Warranty Issues
  • Irrigation and Maintenance
  • Products
  • Function vs. Aesthetics
  • Marketing
  • Ecoroof Market Development
  • Fire ratings and other standards
  • Maintenance – commercial and residential
  • Rooftop agriculture

Meeting Format Suggestions

  • 2 hour meetings, located near ecoroofs (and bars)
  • Guest presentations on different topics
  • Debate sessions over products/systems
  • Monthly meetings held the last Wednesday
  • Green Roof Work Team – volunteer maintenance of existing ecoroofs
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