Renew • Colorado's Remodeling Magazine

Photo provided by Design Adventures

Many of the most remarkable Denver-area remodeling jobs go unnoticed each year, but a local trade group made sure that a few of the polished gems got to shine. The National Association of the Remodeling Industry’s Front Range Chapter honors its members whose projects stand out.

The two top prizes in the 2008 Contractor of the Year Awards went to Cambridge Construction in Denver (www.basementsandremodels.com) and Design Adventures in Brighton (www.designadventures.net).
Judged by their peers and consumers, both companies proved that a remodeled home can be better than a new home when the right design and craftsmanship is applied. Their award-winning projects were judged on functionality, problem solving, craftsmanship, innovation, difficulty and entry presentation.

For Cambridge Construction (this page), the homeowners’ goal was to “increase the size, aesthetic appeal, functionality and flow of a 1982 ranch home.” The project included building a guest-suite addition and then remodeling the entire house. Indeed, every corner of the house received a new look.

Photo provided by Cambridge Construction

The Design Adventures project (opposite page) focused on the kitchen. The homeowners wanted to “make a long-term investment in modernizing the kitchen as a social and functional space in preparation for retirement.” From the wood floors and countertops to the cabinets and appliances, the kitchen was reworked to meet their needs.

For more information about the National Association of the Remodeling Industry’s Front Range Chapter, visit www.remodelcolorado.org.

Posted on 04 June 2009

The state’s most remarkable remodeling projects are featured each year during the Colorado Awards for Remodeling Excellence gathering.

The Remodelors Council of Metro Denver throws a party each year to give the area’s top remodelers a chance to get together, share stories and check out what the competition is up to. The Remodelors Council operates under the Home Builders Association of Metro Denver, a trade group that works on behalf of the industry.

From small bathroom renovations to the renewal of the entire house, the awards allow home improvement experts to outline the challenges faced and what was done to overcome them.

Winning projects follow by category.

Whole House
• Nest Architecture; co-entrant, Boa Construction, 1st place, luxury
• Olson Architecture, 2nd place, luxury
• Terra Verde Architects, 1st place, standard
• Cambridge Construction; co-entrant, Enger Architects, 2nd place, standard

Kitchens
• Kitchen Distributors, 1st place, luxury
• CS Design; co-entrant, ReSpace, 2nd place, luxury
• Nest Architectural Design; co-entrants, Company kd and Canady Construction, honorable mention, luxury
• a la carte Design, 1st place, basic
• Company kd; co-entrant, Canady Construction, 2nd place, basic
• Classic House & Garden, honorable mention, basic
• Kitchen Distributors, 1st place tie, standard
• Blue Stone Woodworks, 1st place tie, standard
• Cambridge Construction, 2nd place, standard
• Terra Verde Architects; co-entrant, Bruce Leahy & Associates, honorable mention, standard

Basements
• Finished Basement Co., 1st place, 2nd place, honorable mention, luxury
• Roger S. Simmermon & Co., 1st place, basic
• Finished Basement Co., 2nd place, basic
• Finished Basement Co., 1st place, 2nd place, standard
• Cambridge Construction, honorable mention, standard

Bathrooms
• Harrison Browne Interiors, honorable mention, luxury
• Maureen McGuire, Timberline Kitchen & Bath, 1st place, basic
• Roger S. Simmermon & Co., 1st place, standard
• Wyatt Breum Artisan Interiors & Remodeling, 2nd place, standard
• Classic House & Garden, honorable mention, standard

Interiors
• The Architecture Studio; Lynn Shannon Interior Design; Reed Stair & Handrails; Denver Glass Interiors, 1st place, remodel
• TKP Architects, 2nd place, remodel

Exteriors
• Superior Products, 1st place
• True North Builders, 2nd place

Landscapes
• Environmental Designs, 1st place
• True North Builders, honorable mention

Siding
• Superior Products, 1st place, honorable mention

Details
• Blue Stone Woodworks, 1st place
• Lin Lee & Associates, 2nd place
• Liquid Metal Coatings, honorable mention

Specialty
• Rolling Ridge Deck Co., 1st place
• True North Builders, honorable mention

Historic Remodel
• Roger S. Simmermon & Co; co-entrant, Thomas Carr, Architect, 1st place
• Associates in Building & Design, 2nd place
• TKP Architects, honorable mention

Additions
• Roger S. Simmermon & Co.; co-entrant, Michael Koch Architects, 1st place
• Cambridge Construction, 2nd place

Architectural Design
• Nest Architecture; co-entrants, Company KD and Canady Construction, 1st place

Commercial Remodel
• Olson Architecture, 1st place

Pro Bono
• a la carte Design, 1st place

Theme Remodel
• Finished Basement Co., 1st place

Photo provided by Environmental Designs

Posted on 07 March 2009

The purpose of many remodeling jobs is simply to improve an area of the home. But for other projects, the meaning is much deeper.

Such was the case with a Boulder home that Parrish Construction remodeled. A Japanese family needed an addition to accommodate the owner’s mom who had moved from Japan to live with them. Cultural considerations needed to play an integral part in the plans.

Three generations had needs: An aging grandmother, the owners and their daughter. “The three-generation household needed more privacy and more space, plus accommodation for their hectic professional lives and for their aging grandmother,” said Loraine Masterton, customer relations specialist with Parrish Construction.

The grandmother’s bedroom was small and crowded and “she could not enjoy her personal cultural belongings,” Masterton said. “The husband wished his aging mother to feel as comfortable in his home as possible and wanted to add Japanese amenities and cultural touches to the addition.”

With decades of experience behind them, Parrish set out to meet the family’s needs with the help of Terra Verde Architects, also of Boulder.

When it was all over, the family had a home that was functional and culturally comforting.

For Parrish and Terra Verde, a job well done also turned into bragging rights when the National Association of the Remodeling Industry honored them with a regional award.

Of course awards mean nothing unless the client is satisfied. That goal involved an extensive game plan to meet some very specific needs. Among them: a 628-square-foot addition and remodel of the entryway, a master bedroom and master bath built to the Certified Aging in Place Standards; and a walk-in cedar closet. The remodeling of the existing entrance included an additional guest bathroom and the re-positioning of five doors, Masterton said.

The grandmother’s bathroom included a programmable bidet that was set for her specific needs. A feature that is becoming common in Japan, a control panel is programmed to know who is using the bidet based on weight and its controls make it easier for people to wash up, especially as they grow older. The design included a bench and movable water fixtures in the walk-in shower, as well as a heated floor. With the use of the aging-in-place standards, there is room for a walker or wheelchair if it becomes necessary.

Additional consideration was given to the wife, who has a music studio in the basement. She instructs students who are constantly visiting the house, making privacy an issue for the rest of the family. “There is now a powder room in the home’s entrance, which the students can use without disturbing the family,” Masterton said.

The home now has a discreet entryway, part of the Japanese culture, which separates the rest of the world from the privacy of the home, “all designed in a distinctly modern and Japanese style,” Masterton added. “Our cabinet shop made custom entranceway furniture reminiscent of the centuries-old style of a traditional Japanese home. The elegance and usefulness of the new entranceway provides harmony and grace where once there was chaos.”

Overall, “the family has a new level of ease with each other, as everyone’s privacy is assured,” Masterton said.

All photos provided by Parrish Construction.

Posted on 26 November 2008