Presentation on Green Building Slated in Lenox

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LENOX, Mass. — A public presentation on the LEED for Homes ratings system will be held at Town Hall on Wednesday, Oct. 5, from 9 to 11 a.m.

The presentation is appropriate for building contractors, architects, individuals, nonprofit developers, and others interested in the residential rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. The presenter is Beth Paulson from the Center for EcoTechnology.

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system incorporates high-performance and green features into residential projects to create healthier, more comfortable and more durable and resource-efficient homes. LEED certified homes require third-party oversight and technical assistance through a LEED for Homes provider such as CET, which conducts inspections and performance-testing for each home.

"CET is pleased to provide thought-provoking education for the public, home builders, and architects about the features and collaborative process of building green-certified homes," said Peggy MacLeod, green building marketing representative for the CET.

A Green Building Open House tour by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 1.

No two of three dozen single-and multifamily LEED certified homes in the four counties of Western Massachusetts are alike said Paulson.


"The scoring system offers a variety of ways to earn points for green features," she said. "But the individual points selected and the techniques used by homeowners and project teams make each project really interesting and unique."

In addition to being a certified home energy rater (HERS) at CET and working with a wide variety of both LEED for Homes and Energy Star projects, Paulson teaches home-performance contractor trainings for CET and the MassGreen Initiative. She has a broad knowledge of green building principles and practice and received a master's in landscape architecture and a bachelor's in environmental design from University of Massachusetts.

Registration begins at 9, with a continental breakfast. There is a suggested donation of $10 to $20 for the presentation. Architects may receive one continuing education credit in health, safety, welfare (HSW) for the American Institute of Architects for attending the session.

For more information about the program, contact MacLeod at peggym@cetonline.org or 413-586-7350, Ext. 226. For more information about LEED for Homes, visit www.thegreenhomeguide.org.

Tags: CET,   LEED,   

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A Boutique Hotel is Bringing Guests a Luxury Stay in Lenox

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

LENOX, Mass. — A new Inn is bringing a boutique-style stay for visitors and locals to enjoy.

Owners, Sullivan Capital LLC, purchased the property, located on 135 Main Street, in 2024. After a year or renovations, Garden Gables Inn is open for business. 

"Garden Gables started off as one of the many Berkshire cottages, 1790 was the date on that, and it's always operated as an inn," said Hospitality Manager Yvonne Walton. "It's just a great gathering place and relaxation spot for people to come and get the feel of Lenox, and just slow down and enjoy the nature and the surrounding area...get culture and art and see some great concerts. I think it'll be a wonderful place, definitely does more of the upper-scale hospitality." 

Owners Niko Giallouis and Eric Sullivan bought the property from the former owner. Sullivan had his eye on Lenox since attending a wedding almost 10 years ago.

"I came to a wedding in Lenox, probably six or seven years ago. Personally, just kind of fell in love with the area, and I guess that's kind of how it got on my radar. So you know from that perspective, as we got into the hotel business out towards an area, it was a place I was kind of monitoring and waiting for the right property to show up."

After purchasing the two underwent a full renovation, a project that cost around $1.5 million. The building, first built in 1780, required some TLC. Sullivan's wife, Jessica, who owns Jessica Sullivan Design, designed the inn.

Sullivan said they installed a new roof, repainted everything, renovated the bathrooms, installed new floors, a new HVAC system, and new plumbing.

"We really touched everything from the outside...I mean, all the aesthetics and layouts changed a bit," he said. "As I said, put about a million and a half into it. All new furniture, fixtures, everything. The design's completely different. It wasn't a full gut, but it was a heavy, heavy renovation."

The two like to collaborate with local businesses, and they make a point to direct visitors to local restaurants, businesses, and attractions.

"If guests are asking for recommendations, our customer service team, our guest services team, will relay that kind of information. Even if we can call and make a reservation for somebody, happy to do it," he said. "We aren't doing breakfast, but what we do is we have partnerships with a lot of the breakfast places downtown. We actually purchase a gift certificates for each person each day, so that they can use that to go downtown."

Sullivan hopes that guests don't see their inn as just a place to sleep and dump their bags, but make it an experience for anyone who stays.

"We really focus on kind of the experience side of things, so again, we want to give you the best experience you can have here...and we want that not just to be the place you put your bag and go do things. It's important to think of everything," he said.

Sullivan said partnerships are important to their business and are a way to connect with locals.

"The local partnerships, I can't stress that enough, because no matter how much and how great the room is, people are still going to want to go do other things," he said. "So, I think it just benefits everybody if we're all working together and so forth, and supporting the community, being neighborly too, because we are surrounded by residential homes...But we really try to put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, a lot of love into the building, all the details, really care about the senses," Sullivan said.

The Inn's check-in and reservations are completely online. When guests arrive, all they have to do is check in online and receive their code that they will use to enter their room. Sullivan hopes this helps create less stress for guests and gets them to their room as fast as possible, especially after a long trip.

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