Developers build on green concept.

• Author: Beck, Cathie
• Position: Attitude at Altitude - Dorado Developers on their green design construction

DORADO DEVELOPMENT'S three partners--Steven Chavez, brother John Chavez and Jon Harbour--all think big. Not about building big, necessarily, but about thinking larger than the project at hand.

Their work, says the all-under-30 trio, is as much about a commitment to enhancing a community as it is about pleasing a homeowner. "We work to separate our projects from the pack by only building 'green,'" says Harbour. "It is common sense to us, a timely 'building ethic.' To do otherwise goes against our professional credo, and against what is best for the community."

ICFs (insulating concrete forms) are, literally, at the heart of Dorado's projects. "ICFs are made with a recycled byproducts of oil production," says John Chavez. "Those byproducts would otherwise be discarded, so the ICF installation produces little to no waste material to add to our landfills--20 to 30 trees are saved every time we use ICFs.

"It adds up to about a 10 percent price increase over traditional wood framing," says Chavez. "But the cost is quickly offset by lower utility bills, lower insurance costs and lower mortgage rates."

Dorado Developments' latest projects--Flats 15, Phases I and II--are a residential town-home development located in East Highlands in Denver. Phase I includes three duplexes, with the six units priced from $599,000 to $699,000. Half are pre-sold. Phase Two involves one duplex and a seven-unit town home structure, priced from $575,000 to $725,000.

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"We've worked hard and we've been lucky," says Chavez. "For each of the last four years, Dorado has realized a 100 percent annual revenue growth. Based upon our current pre-sales and projects on board, we're looking at over a 100...