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12 October 5 • 2017 jn jews d in the lent of 246,994 pounds of coal each year. And, come this winter, instead of patrons seeking a warmer table away from drafty win- dows, the only chill they may feel is from the passing of David Whitney's ghost. Bud Liebler, owner of the Whitney, secured $863,130 in PACE financing at a 20-year fixed rate to revamp the building's energy efficiency. The PACE project involves replacing a patchwork of heating and cooling systems installed over the many decades since the 123-year-old mansion's 21 fireplaces ceased providing its heat, LED lights throughout, efficient storm enclosures on more than 200 windows, the latest building control systems and high-efficiency cooking equipment. The Whitney puts no money down and will pay back the loan through a special property tax assessment. (See box on PACE.) "All these green-friendly upgrades are a huge cost for a small business," Liebler said. "The PACE program enables us to take it on on a cash-flow positive basis. We couldn't do this all at once any other way. Besides actually making the restaurant more energy efficient, we'll have the added benefit of being able to promote ourselves as green. That's another big plus in today's environmentally sensitive market." While the Whitney may be the highest-profile business to enroll in PACE, Andy Levin, founder and president of Lean & Whether teaching courses as she did in the past at Lawrence Technological University in Southfield or guiding clients on projects as principal partner at DesignTeam Plus & Team4Community L3C in Birmingham, Shari Stein has always worked at keeping renewable energy solutions and sustain- able architecture practices at the forefront of each new project. Stein and her design and architecture team are committed to creating healthy environments with consideration to universal design principles and sustainable materials. The award-winning firm's projects include one brewery in Boyne City in an old railway station and another in Lyon Township using repurposed plaster lath and barn siding. The firm also designed the green- house at Yad Ezra in Berkley, and has joined the "little house" housing trend by repurposing shipping containers into afford- able housing. All the while, Stein guides clients on the benefits of simplifying one's lifestyle to get by with less. Through function and form, Stein said her firm uses the most conservation-conscious materials possible, from repurposed hardwoods to recycled glass, bottle caps and metal as well as paints free of volatile organic com- pounds. "Through implementing sus- tainable practices, we look out for the client's bottom line while keeping the global picture in mind on how our designs impact the environment," Stein said. "As a design and architecture firm, we are committed to be very mindful of what goes into our landfills. The more build- ing materials we can repurpose and the less that goes into our landfills, the healthier planet we leave behind." • Shari Stein: Design With Green Solutions. Shari Stein Bud Liebler, Jim Newman and Andy Levin look at lighting that will become more energy efficient with LED bulbs. continued on page 14 continued from page 10 JERRY ZOLYNSKY When barrels of Mediterranean olives and pickles reach American shores, they could wind up in landfills — or they can have a second life saving water and keep- ing our Great Lakes clean when they are repurposed into rain barrels. Joshua Rubin of Farmington Hills wants more Detroiters to "disconnect from their downspouts" that send storm water down the drain and overtax our sewers, lakes and rivers. Instead, he advo- cates storing the water in the rain barrels he designs for his company, MiRainBarrel.com. Rubin comes from a family of barrel makers. His great-grand- father Charley Rubin founded Detroit Beer and was once a wooden barrel cooper who dis- tributed barrels to bootleggers from Windsor to Chicago during Prohibition. Seven years ago, Rubin began working with food manufacturers to collect empty 55-gallon drums, fit them with nozzles and openings for downspouts and sell or give them away across Metro Detroit. In 2016, he partnered with the Sierra Club Great Lakes Program and the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy to cre- ate a scholarship to give away rain barrels to deserving organizations and urban farms in Detroit. This summer, he showed off his products at the Michigan Jewish Food Festival at the Eastern Market. The MiRainBarrel brand cen- ters around easy-to-assemble rain barrel kits. In the seven years he's been in business, Rubin also has developed prod- ucts such as compost tumblers and vertical gardening contain- ers. Each product is designed with conservation in mind and helps fulfill the company mis- sion of providing customers Joshua Rubin: Rain Barrels Catch Storm Water. Joshua Rubin continued on page 15