"It's not easy building green"

There is going to need to be more public pressure and/or laws against "Homeowner's Associations" that prevent people from being environmentally friendly. It is some kind of twisted peer pressure that creates these things to begin with - the idea that the rules they put in place make a more desirable mini-world for themselves. Arrgggghhh.

Nora and Richard Parkman thought their plan to use the rays of the sun to heat the water for their Plainfield home would be would be approved long before winter arrived.

They figured wrong.

"We spoke with them several times, but our homeowners association still hasn't let us put up the system," said Nora, who said she first met with the homeowners association last May.

The Parkmans' application to the Caton Ridge Homeowners Association to install solar panels on the roof of the south side, which is also the front, of their house -- to maximize solar energy collection -- was rejected because the group didn't like the way the panels looked.

"They told us to put them on the north side of the house, which is like telling somebody they can put up a satellite dish, but have to point it at the ground," said Nora.

An official of the Caton Ridge association declined to comment for this story.

On top of it, legislation that would prevent associations from blocking solar panels for aesthetic reasons passed the Illinois State Senate in 2007, but still must clear the House.

Frustrating? Absolutely. Hopeless? Not quite.

"We're pretty tenacious," said Nora.

Tenacity is a good quality when it comes to greening Chicago-area homes. While Chicago has made great strides with its Green Permit Program and Green Homes Program, it still has a long way to go, according to environmental experts. The suburbs are much further behind.

Five years ago when the Parkmans built their house, they did it with energy efficiency as a priority, making the building envelope tight and appliances highly efficient. "Now, the things we're trying to add to make our house even more efficient and less dependent on fossil fuels are the way this country is moving. It's just a matter of persisting until people understand the processes and change rules and codes to permit them," she said. "We're thinking about going door to door with a petition."

Homeowner associations afflicted with what online magazine The Daily Green calls "green fear" -- or, fear of unfamiliar green technologies -- is just one of many problems stemming from a lack of education.

George Sullivan, of Chicago's Eco Smart Building, believes that homeowners' slow move to energy conservation "is the biggest obstacle to green." Part of the issue here: Although the general public has been bombarded with the message that reducing home energy use is a good idea, step-by-step how-tos and access to experts who can help have been slower to arrive...