“Suburban farming” featured in Florida Weekly

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Mark Anderson of Benchmark General Contractors, is quoted on this cover-story for Florida Weekly.

Suburban farming

Living off your land, often at your own risk

Backyard farming is certainly not “unique, historically,” admits Southwest Florida builder Mark Anderson, CEO of Benchmark General Contractors, and a backyard gardener. But he sees this common-sense feature of American life coming back. Mr. Anderson suggests urban vegetables gardens make just as much sense now as they did decades ago before falling out of fashion, in the wake of cheaply processed foods and the rise of fast-food giants.

“Where we historically were at with our land use and lifestyle was the unique part — we were totally out of touch as consumers. Now we’re back to where we’ve been, which is a good place to be.”

And as a builder, he is in favor of sustainable developments that include deliberately designed space for gardens, in both residential and commercial settings. That includes not just backyard gardens but urban community gardens — ones that taste great and look good, too — in places like empty lots.

“It’s pretty easy to do,” Mr. Anderson said.

Sea Glass on Sanibel featured in News Press article

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Community property: Shared sustainability key feature of Sea Glass on Sanibel Island

As an environmental studies student, Kellie Anderson admired the homes her father built, but pushed him to envision a more eco-friendly future.

“She was telling me from the start, ‘Dad, you’re doing the same old stuff. This is not what’s going to be going on in the future,'” said Mark Anderson of Fort Myers-based Benchmark General Contractors. “Being a dad, I heard it but I didn’t act on it. And then the economy hit and it really got me thinking.”

Anderson is doing more than thinking now. He’s developing what should be the most sustainable community on Sanibel Island.

Florida Weekly – Buyers Prefer Green

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A Florida Weekly article mentions Benchmark’s survey results regarding eco-friendly and sustainable communities.

Research conducted by Benchmark General Contractors in Fort Myers revealed that three out of four of those surveyed would live in an eco-friendly, sustainable community and would decrease their carbon footprint to
protect the environment.

Mark Anderson, owner of Benchmark, implemented the online survey before finalizing the site plan and home design for Sanibel Island’s first sustainable community, Sea Glass of Sanibel. Launched over a three month
period, the survey was e-mailed to more than 5,000 people throughout the U.S., Germany, Sweden, France and the U.K.

Times of the Islands – Living with the Land

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An eco-friendly community planned for Sanibel will help residents get back to nature

Benchmark General Contractor’s planned eco-friendly community, Sea Glass of Sanibel, was featured in the May/June 2011 issue of Times of the Islands.