Justin Boyle (right) of Green Valley Builders Inc. leads a tour through the Lewis family's LEED-certified home in Blacksburg and points out energy-saving features, such as the high-efficiency windows, appliances and light fixtures.

Photos by MATT GENTRY The Roanoke Times

Rebecca Lewis and daughter Kailyn Lewis, 4, get ready to head to school and work from their home in Blacksburg. The home, owned by Rebecca Lewis' parents and built by Green Valley Builders Inc., has been certified by the Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) for Homes program.

| Katelyn Polantz

katelyn.polantz@roanoke, 381-1669

BLACKSBURG -- With four 20-something children out of the house and $700-a-month utility bills, Chris and Greg Lewis knew they needed to downsize.

That's about when everybody moved back in.

Seven members of the Lewis family in February moved into Blacksburg's first bona fide green home. The building in the Mount Tabor Meadows subdivision has been certified by the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Homes program and was recognized at a ceremony Thursday.

The $450,000, four-bedroom, 3.5-bathroom house is more than 1,200 square feet smaller than the Lewises' previous house in a nearby subdivision.

"We've always been a close family," Chris Lewis said. "We had to reinvent the space to fit everyone."

Still, the space allows four generations to co-exist, Lewis said. The house also fills Chris and Greg's wishes to save utility expenses and be good stewards to the environment, she said.

Chris, a corporate secretary at StellarOne Bank, and Greg, a Blacksburg High School English teacher, occupy the bedroom and bathroom above the garage. Chris' father, Pete Bailey, 83, has the main level's master suite.

Two sons, Daniel, 27, and Samuel, 23, share a bedroom in the early-morning hours and daytime when they're not working at Macado's Restaurant.

And 25-year-old daughter Rebecca, a cosmetology apprentice, and her 4-year-old daughter, Kailyn, live in the Rapunzel Room, the house's fourth level. Another daughter, Hannah, 19, recently moved out to live with Virginia Tech classmates.

Daniel, Samuel and Rebecca moved home because of financial reasons, Chris Lewis said.

"We wanted the house to be a little prickly so they don't stay long-term," she said. "My kids know I'm over the messy teenager phase."

The family chose to forgo the conventional TV room and instead filled the living room with brown, plush slip-covered couches and books -- a space for conversation.

Green Valley Builders Inc. of Blacksburg constructed the house with energy-efficient lighting, roof-mounted solar hot-water heaters, a fully insulated basement and low-flow faucets and toilets.

Though the home's nearly half-million-dollar sticker price may seem high to some, the building is 49 percent more efficient than the standard home, the builders said.

The family will save money in the long term because of the home's energy-efficient design and "synergy," said Monica Rokicki-Guajardo, a Roanoke architect and chairwoman of Southwest Virginia's chapter of USGBC.

The energy improvements have helped lower the family's energy bills by almost two-thirds, Chris Lewis said.

Justin and Jason Boyle, brothers and Green Valley Builders' co-owners, conceived the idea for the Mount Tabor Meadows neighborhood in 2005. They built the first of about 14 contemporary cottage-style houses -- many with solar-electric panels -- in 2008.

Greg Lewis saw Justin Boyle, his former student, while out walking one day and learned about the property.

Eventually, the Lewises decided it would be right for them and moved in next door to the builder even before their house was complete.

Since moving, Chris Lewis said, her family has stayed conscious of living clean, green and harmoniously.

Most of the occupants recycle and use natural foods and cleaning products at home.

But Chris Lewis said she can't persuade Rebecca to quit her love of Pepsi or coax the boys away from foods such as pizza.

Greg Lewis maintains the drought-resistant landscaping in the yard, and everyone shares child care duties for Kailyn.

The children haven't noticed many of the house's environmental benefits because they're not the ones handling the bills, Chris Lewis said.

For Kailyn, the green living situation doesn't make the place a home.

What does?

"This is grandma's," she said confidently, tying her shoes before her first day of preschool.