Press & Awards

Awards

FSC® Leadership Award

Awarded by the Forest Stewardship Council®, the world’s most trusted forest certification system, that recognizes enduring commitment to forest conservation. Their Awards highlight uncommon excellence that advances responsible forest management. FSC Leadership Awards celebrate forest owners, builders, architects, retailers, paper mills, manufacturers, environmental organizations and many others who contribute to the movement toward responsible sourcing and forest management. JRA Green Building was recognized for using FSC-Certified wood as a core offering in every home that JRA builds and for certifying an entirely new construction home as the first FSC mix labeled product home in North America and second in the world - The Birdhouse.

Green Home Builder of the Year

JRA was awarded the Lowest Energy Performance Score for The Birdhouse by Earth Advantage, an organization dedicated to accelerating the adoption of sustainable homes across the Northwest. An Earth Advantage certification means energy efficiency, sustainability, and quality. Earth Advantage’s certification system provides a pathway for single-family and multifamily builders to achieve well-above building code results. This means an Earth Advantage certified home not only uses less energy and is better for the environment, it is also healthier and more comfortable than a standard code-built home. Lowering energy use while providing a better home is a win/win.

Gritty Pioneer Award

Awarded by Sustainable Northwest, a non-profit based in Portland, Oregon that works to forge solutions for people and natural systems. Sustainable Northwest places itself at the radical middle of community, economy, and ecology. This unique recognition was awarded to James Arnold for his extraordinary patience, grit, and commitment to sourcing sustainable forest products from our local and regional family forest owners. James continues to encourage other builders and designers to value and support sustainable, local wood.

Excellence in Concrete

Awarded by the American Concrete Institute and the Oregon Concrete and Aggregate Producers Association for the Fairsing Tasting Room.This award provides a platform to recognize concrete projects at the forefront of innovation and technology and showcases these projects to inspire excellence in concrete design and construction around the world. JRA Green Building owes a special thank you to James’s dad, Darrell Arnold, who’s unparalleled experience and skill brought this project to fruition.

JRA Green Building is up there with Oregon’s most progressive home building companies when it comes to green building and energy efficiency. I’ve worked with them on Passive House builds and certified Earth Advantage Zero Energy projects that push the building envelope to levels of airtightness and energy efficiency relatively unheard of in the United States. JRA’s attention to responsible material choices with respect to embodied energy content and the research they’ve done to procure red list chemical free materials is nothing short of incredible. Their dedication to making the homes of tomorrow today is self-evident.
— Ryan Shanahan, Zero Energy Certifications Manager, Earth Advantage
JRA, more than any of the other builders we bid with, was the most able to come up with ideas on the fly and run with things we would suggest. They were excited and got us really excited as well. JRA is very collaborative; we had a lot of conversations about process. And we really got into the details. We felt heard. The JRA team is as interested in the finishes and level of detail as we were. As soon as we met them, we had the feeling that they were going to pay great attention to detail.
—Owners of the Little Big House
The vibe of the crew is positive. I can tell everyone wants to be there. I enjoyed collaborating on problems with everyone on the team. It is clear that the people care about getting along and doing great work. They also seem to relish a challenge.
— Owners of Hampshire Street Remodel
JRA’s workmanship is exceptional. We’ve worked with them on a few projects. What truly sets them apart from other contractors we’ve worked with or received bids from is their creativity and willingness to find solutions. Instead of saying ‘no’ to ideas, they lean in with a ‘yes—and here’s how.’ JRA brings a collaborative, can-do approach that makes every project better.
—Owner of Oak Street Kitchen Remodel