Delegate Jon S. Cardin

BALTIMORE, MD - On April 18th and April 20th, 2009, cast and crew from the Discovery Channel’s new hit show Renovation Nation will be filming at the home of Del. Jon Cardin (D-11th District) in Baltimore County. Renovation Nation focuses on homeowners who are either building sustainability from the ground up, or are making eco-friendly changes to their existing homes.

Cardin began renovations on his house, located at 12112 Garrison Forest Road in Owings Mills, MD, last year and is on the verge of completing a sustainable, energy efficient, green home. His house, known as the Old Gill School was originally constructed in 1871 as a one-room school house on the corner of Walnut Ave. and Garrison Forest Rd. in Owings Mills. It was sold to a former student, Elise Durham, and her husband in 1933, and they converted it into a tiny three-bedroom home to raise their three children there. Mrs. Durham died in 2005 and her daughters sold it to Cardin 2006.

Cardin lived there for a year while designing the green expansion and renovations with his architect Bruce Finkelstein. Ashley Homes did the bulk of the renovations over a period of 18 months.

Green Improvements include but are not limited to:

- Geothermal heating and cooling
- Reinstallation of a functional wood stove
- Use of overstock wood, tile, and brick from previous work sites
- Low/No VOC paint, finish, stain
- Recycled plastic carpets and decking
- Solar panel installation
- High-density insulation
- Reuse of original dirt cellar as a functional wine cellar

Cardin takes pride in leaving the original façade and returning the interior to a single room reflecting the original school

“I am thrilled to have this unique project featured on Discovery. Finally – green, sustainable development is getting the recognition it deserves. This is about taking our future seriously and making sure we are addressing the concerns of pollution, greenhouse gases, air and water quality and quality of life for our kids and the generations to come,” said Cardin.

Renovation Nation invites both serious conservationists and curious viewers to watch and explore the growing movement of environmentally-friendly focused home refurbishing and construction. Regardless of the size of the renovation project or the age of the home, Renovation Nation host Steve Thomas (a seasoned contractor and former host of This Old House) shows viewers just how exciting, interesting, and important it is to go green in their construction projects.

In Baltimore County, Renovation Nation can be found on Channel 113 (Comcast) or Channel 168 (Verizon).

For more information, please contact Jonathan Schwartz in Delegate Jon Cardin’s office at (410) 841-3833.