Altius Selected to Participate in 2009 Twenty + Change Exhibit PLEASE NOTE DATE CHANGE

Twenty + Change is an ongoing exhibition series dedicated to profiling emerging designers working in architecture, landscape and urban design. The exhibition will open in Toronto on June 11th, 2009, 6-9PM in conjunction with the City of Toronto’s Festival of Architecture and Design, and is scheduled to travel across Canada.

New for 2009: The Home Renovation Tax Credit

As part of Canada’s new Federal Budget and Economic Stimulus Plan, The Home Renovation Tax Credit was introduced for 2009 and offers homeowners a tax credit worth up to $1350.00 on eligible improvements and renovations undertaken between January 27, 2009 and February 10, 2010. Click here for the PDF.

Renewed for 2009: The ecoEnergy Retrofit Program

The ecoEnergy Retrofit Program has been renewed for 2009 and offers homeowners grants of up to $5000 for specific and targeted improvements to home energy performance.  These two programs are independent of one another and may be applied to the same renovation.  For more information on these programs please visit the Government of Canada’s ecoAction website.

Going SOLAR for 2009: Ontario’s Proposed FIT Program

Ontarians can now boast of the best incentives for the deployment of small and large, grid-connected renewable energy systems in North America. With proposed buyback rates of almost $0.80/Watt, the new FIT program nearly doubles the rate proposed in the former RESOP. (Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program). This bodes extremely well for a solar revolution in Ontario - with system payback rates of 8-10 years, green is making excellent economic sense. Together with the proposed sales tax on natural gas and other home heating fuels, we expect to see more emphasis placed on better design powered by renewable energy systems. Altius have become experts in Advanced building envelope design, passive solar, geothermal and BIPV (Building Integrated Photovoltaics). There has never been a better time to build your green dream! Contact Altius to find out how your next home can take advantage of all of the currently available incentives for Green Architecture. For more information, visit Generation Solar, our preferred PV and SDHW Contractor.

The Proposed 2011 Building Code

Altius and Sustain were recently invited to participate in the panel session of the the advisory workshop on the proposed 2011 Ontario Building Code. Here’s a quick synopisis; by 2011, all buildings built in Ontario will need to conform to Energuide80 - or a rating of 80 on the Energuide scale of efficiency and performance. What this means is almost every new residential project in the province will need to meet R2000 levels for energy efficiency and environmental features. All buildings will need to be modeled in the energy analysis software Hot2000, and tested for air-tightness with a door-fan - something Altius already does on many of our projects. Currently, only about 5% of all new residential construction meets Energuide80. While this will be difficult for large, conventional builders to accomodate, Altius is already ahead of the curve. We can perform R2000 energy modeling, carbon-footprint estimation and optimize your new home or renovation for maximum energy efficiency as part of our standard services.