St. Charles builder Al Lacey likes the lines of traditional architecture, particularly the “simple but elegant” homes of Colonial Williamsburg and Lynchburg, Va.
“I take pictures of old houses,” he adds, somewhat shyly, as if he’s not sure how a listener will react.
But it is a practice that serves Lacey and his partner Mike Allen well in their Tower Builders entry in the 2006 Parade of Homes. The new housing showcase at the Settlers Ridge development in Sugar Grove runs through Oct. 29.
Not everyone will like Allen’s vanilla-colored house with black shutters that Allen made by hand, , but most will remember the residence for its strict symmetry of front windows and door. Visitors also are likely to remember it for such non-traditional features as the 60-foot long deck across the back.
The model is one of several Colonial-look homes among the eight houses which 10,000 to 20,000 people are expected to tour. All the houses, priced from $659,000 to $799,900, are inspired by classic architectural styles.
This nod to tradition makes this third and last of the 2006 major home shows sponsored by metro-area builder groups in some ways the most interesting. The event is sponsored by the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago in conjunction with AT&T and Hyundai Motor America.
The custom builders participating had to contend with the usual community zoning and materials rules, but they had to build houses with elements from a handful of classic styles–Colonial, Italianate, Charleston, Craftsman or Victorian.
The styles are said to reflect the historic housing stock in the village of Sugar Grove and are required in the 1,300-acre Settlers Ridge development, where the event is located.
The result is definitely mixed–all the Parade houses have large front-load garages which seems sure to make architectural purists howl–but a couple of them incorporate some of the best classic features prized by contemporary buyers.
Showgoers will see the expansion of granite countertops from kitchens into many bathrooms and the continuing importance of high-end floors and ceilings.
Floors in these houses range from wide hickory planking to Peruvian, as well as Brazilian, cherry.
Vintage Development of Sugar Grove shows a bamboo-look tile in the downstairs laundry of its butter yellow “Victorian English country” design.
The floor in the second-floor laundry looks so much like a surface of small stones that some may be tempted to reach down and touch it. The startlingly lifelike look is achieved by applying a photographic technique to tile, said Maria Kormos, wife of Vintage owner Cort Cormos.
Mudrooms between the garage and kitchen are must-haves now and are increasingly elaborate.
There is tumbled marble flooring in the mudroom in 3,600-square-foot Colonial by Highfield Homes of St. Charles.
I don’t know if we should credit Martha Stewart for popularizing the boot bench–a place where one can to sit to put on and take off footwear–but this is a good idea from the past that is welcome in Highfield’s new $799,900 house.
There also are sensible features such as hooks or lockerlike cubbies for storing coats and shoes near the garage door.
The Parade builders should be complimented for taking time for some truly elegant and distinctive front doors and not settling for off-the-rack models.
A number of the doors in this show beckon visitors to come for a closer look, with interesting shapes or beautiful glass inserts.
On the minus side, there were some busy rooflines, which seemed unnecessarily complicated.
Several houses had too many dormers. Those boxy roof pop-outs can add light, space and a quirky charm to interior rooms, but when five and six are lined up on a single dwelling it begins to resemble a hotel or college dormitory.
One trend hard to miss is the growing popularity of the Craftsman-look homes.
There are four houses with variations of Craftsman exterior elements–front porch, chunky stone pillars, shingled siding or trim and art glass front doors–though all are two and three times larger than the modest cottages that inspired them. Other homes show interior details familiar to many from the bungalows built during the Arts and Crafts period.
The stone-and-shingle Rachel Marie by Midwest Custom Homes of St. Charles was designed by architect Dan Marshall, a specialist in Craftsman-style homes.
The dark floors in the center foyer and the wood-paneled study to the right of the foyer and the dining room at the front of the house are reminiscent of the original Arts and Crafts styles from the early 20th Century.
Like most of the Parade homes, however, the back of the house is strictly 21st Century. The two-story great room, in lieu of a formal living room, has a two-story stone fireplace. The room is open to the kitchen and a dining bay, which in turn opens to a space called a hearth room with another fireplace and comfortable club chairs.
Upstairs, there is a 15-by-22-foot master bedroom with a foyer or anteroom and his-and-hers walk-in closets, 6 by 11 feet and 8 by 8 feet, and a 12-by-13-foot master bath. In addition, the second floor has three secondary bedrooms, two baths and a loft overlooking the great room.
With nearly 4,200 square feet of living space, the house is one of the largest and, at $779,900, is one of most expensive of the eight show homes.
Kackert Associates’ $779,000 Emma Dianne II Craftsman is only slightly smaller, with 3,884 square feet. Add in the 1,800 walkout basement looking out to a pond in the back and it has 5,600 square feet of room in the five-bedroom, 5 1/2-bath residence by the Batavia builder.
This is a home that fairly shouts its size, rather than surprising visitors with it as a true Craftsman does. For example, there is a custom-built corner entertainment center big enough for a 50-inch plasma television in the two-story family room. In the basement, there is an exercise room, masonry fireplace, walkup bar and entertainment center.
The 3,480-square-foot Craftsman by McFarlane Construction of St. Charles is smaller and concentrates on details such as inlaid floors and a wood ceiling on the front porch.
The Alexander model by Old Towne Custom Builders of St. Charles is described by its builder as a 3,600-square foot Colonial, but this must be a crossover design because the generous front porch, cedar shingles and beautiful front door with glass sidelights and transom have a definite Arts and Crafts feel.
While not small, the two homes with the least square footage and the least expensive prices were two of the most intriguing.
The 3,500-square-foot Tower residence could win a prize for “best use of square footage,” if one were given. This $675,000 dwelling has a floor plan that eliminates traditional narrow hallways by having rooms radiate from a wide central foyer at the heart of the main floor. This is duplicated on the second floor, where all the bedrooms and a hall bath open onto the center hall at the top of the stairs. This space is big enough for a desk or small sitting area.
On the main floor, the wide foyer draws visitors to the family room at the back of house, where a wall of windows overlooks a small pond.
The room opens to a dinette and kitchen, but is divided from them with two wall-like partitions resembling French doors with many glass panes. The glass panes open up the sightlines, as do the large windows and sliding glass doors to a 60-foot back deck. The effect is to make the space seem even larger.
Ed Saloga Builders of Sugar Grove showed a 3,200-square-foot Colonial, with details from the 1920s. The study to the right of the front door is wood paneled and has what looks like a stamped metal ceiling.
The dining room to the left of the front entrances has doors that open to a covered front porch with pillars. The $659,000 house makes good use of window seats–there is one long enough to recline on in the family/living room and the master bedroom–and employs every nook and cranny.
The study desk with shelving in a hallway on the second floor is large enough to be useful, with the desk tucked into a dormer in the bedroom over the garage.
One bonus of the Parade for those who have strong feet and show home endurance is the Kimball Hill model home park across the street. The nine models are priced from $200,000 to $400,000.
The 1,300-acre Settlers Ridge is in the early stages of development. The plan is for about 2,500 homes upon completion, with about half the land left open.
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2006 Parade of Homes
Sponsored by: The Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago
What: 8 custom homes
Where: Settlers Ridge development, Sugar Grove
Hours: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays until Oct. 29.
Admission: $12 per person at the gate or $10 per person if purchased in advance online at www.ticketweb.com. Children under 12 are free. $2 off admission for veterans, firefighters, police officers and nurses with presentation of identification, and to anyone bringing a new, unwrapped toy to the Toys for Tots collection box.
Getting there: Take Interstate Highway 88 west to Orchard Road. Go south on Orchard to Galena Blvd., then west (right) on Galena to Settlers Ridge at the corner of Gordon Road.
For further information: www.ticketweb.com or call 815-814-2166
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