projects
Culver Garden Court – Permission to Occupy!
This past Tuesday we had our PTO (Permission To Occupy) meeting with HUD for the Culver Garden Court. This released the building to the property management company (Bradley Residential Management, formerly Real Estate Management) and they started to move furniture in that day. There were a few minor cleaning issues and some general touch-up items to be completed and they are underway. We will be moving the equipment and trailers off the site this week. The first residents will be moving in on Monday of next week! We’ve had to kick one future resident out multiple times over the past month as he’s been impatient to move in! Ha!
Due to the timing for completion of this building, there were a few items escrowed including the landscaping. This is scheduled for installation later this Spring. If our Spring comes in as mild as the Winter has been, we should be able to get an early start on it. Since it includes seeding, we don’t want to push this too early though.
We think this has been a successful project and we have gone over and above since it’s in our home town. There will be an announcement for an Open House and Ribbon Cutting coming out soon which we’ll include as a post here. We look forward to seeing you there!
We’ve included a few additional pictures after the jump.
Culver Garden Court Emergency Services Walk-thru
Tonight we’re going to have a walk-thru at Culver Garden Court for Culver’s Emergency Services personnel. We’ve invited any of the Culver Fire Department, Culver EMTs and Culver Police that would like a tour of the building. As this is housing for the elderly, we feel it is important to familiarize them with the facility. This is something we have done in the past with other Garden Court facilities we have built.
Culver Garden Court has the first Knox Box in Culver. (Wikipedia description here.) A Knox Box is a small safe that is installed at the front door of a building. It will contain a master key to the facility. In case of a 911 call, whether a fire, medical emergency or other, the emergency service personnel arriving at the site will be able to access the key using a key to the Knox Box.
Now that the program has been initiated in Culver, I would anticipate that other Culver facilities will want to install them as well. While the boxes are somewhat expensive, they are generally less expensive than the cost of the door replacement due to the the fire department taking an axe to the door. It is also a life safety issue. Opening the door with a key is the most efficient way to get to a life in jeopardy on the other side. In my opinion the Culver Schools, the Culver Library and the Culver Town Hall should all have Knox Boxes. In the spirit of the one installed at Culver Garden Court, the Culver Cove, Beachside Condos and Beach View Condos should consider them as well. Knox Boxes can also be installed on private homes.
I believe the next step for Culver should be to develop a policy regarding Knox Boxes. There’s a lot of responsibility involved in their use. All the Knox Boxes in a community have a master key. A chain of custody for these keys should be established. A policy should be adopted on how to handle them. (Some communities have controlled access safes in each emergency vehicle to establish accountability and a chain of custody for anyone that accesses the key.) Depending on the type of policy developed, Culver may want to apply for a grant from the Marshall County Community Foundation (MCCF) to implement a program. (Thanks for the suggestion B3!)
I would also like to see a standard set for the location of the boxes. The Knox Box company has a recommendation, but it should be established. It does no good for the box and key to be there if emergency services have to search for it. A second step forward here would be a program that initiates emergency plans for the buildings with Knox Boxes. An emergency services walk-thru for each of these buildings, similar to what we have planned tonight, would help them if they ever had to enter that building in an actual emergency.
I plan to follow up tonight’s meeting with a discussion at the Town Council to get them thinking about implementing this policy. I believe doing this by ordinance would be appropriate, but that would be up to the council to make that determination.
Culver Garden Court Siding Progress
We previously discussed efforts to make Culver Garden Court “Greener” than previous Garden Court projects. Apparently our project architect, Brent Martin, took that a bit literally when selecting the color scheme as you can see as the siding installation progresses. The siding is Certainteed’s Cedar Impressions and the color is Cypress.
There is a flurry of activity at the site now that the drywall and painting has been completed. The vinyl tile has been installed. The cabinets are in place. This is allowing installation of door frames, plumbing fixtures, electrical devices and electrical fixtures. On the exterior the siding is nearly complete as well as the soffit. The gutters and downspouts are scheduled for completion this week as well.
Manufactured Housing Remodels
Some of the manufactured housing companies from the 50’s and 60’s were ahead of the curve on green building. Many of them used panelization (prefabricated wall sections) for their wall construction. Interior, non-bearing walls were often constructed using 2×2’s in lieu of the standard 2×4’s. This resulted in space savings, but created non-standard door jambs and generally required 1-3/8″ door thicknesses. Electrical box installations are tight and these walls are not suitable for chases in most cases. The narrow walls and narrow door jambs were followed by smaller than average casings, base and other associated trim.
There are many of these homes in the residential areas of Culver. I have no confirmations, but it is our understanding that most of these homes were purchased through National Homes out of Lafayette, Indiana. We were contracted to move a wall in one of these homes on Academy Road last month. This reminds us of a previous project completed on Fleet Parkway.
This project was a home purchased from a past client where we had completed several projects. The home was purchased by an Interior Designer and her family. She wanted to update the Master Bathroom, Guest Bathroom and Kitchen.
Along with this she wanted to change the existing trim throughout the house. She chose an oversized MDF trim for the casing and base which gave the walls more mass. This was added to all of the main floor rooms as well as the downstairs family room. We were able to collaborate with her on several methods of changing the trim such as the detail to the right (and the cap detail here) at the entrance to the dining room from the living room. This disguised one of the main openings where the narrow walls were obvious. The change was dramatic as you can see in these before and after pictures.
We provided a custom window seat at the main window in the living room providing a focal point for the room. This made a dramatic change to that room. There was also a dated white wrought iron railing system at the stairs into the room which we changed to wood following the theme of increasing the scale of accent elements.
The existing doors were a hollow core wood with stained veneer finish. These were changed to two panel (stacked) composite doors which were painted white to match the trim. The composite doors are heavier which required some reinforcing of the jambs, but the added weight made the 1-3/8″ thickness less noticeable. New hardware further enhanced the substantial feeling. An example of this can be seen in the master bedroom closet doors in the picture to the right. (Notice the size of the existing baseboard which was retained in this room.)
In the original floor plan, the master bathroom was small and was adjacent to a combination bathroom/laundry room that served the other two bedrooms. As part of the remodel, we expanded the master bathroom, stealing space from the laundry room. This expanded the master bath sufficiently to allow a separate shower and soaking tub (left). A furniture piece sink was used in this room. Tile floors were added with tile shower surrounds and a tile surround for the tub. Beadboard wainscot was added as well.
An existing closet was used to create a new guest bathroom to serve the other two bedrooms. This bath also included tile floors and wall details as well as similar beadboard wainscot. A custom cabinet was created to allow the sink to be installed over the area where the head space for the stairs to the basement encroached on this room. A tub-shower was installed opposite the sink. Custom clear glass shower partitions and doors were included in both rooms.
We also provided a custom cabinetry fireplace surround in the family room. The old cabinetry was removed and replaced with custom sizes. The red brick fireplace was covered in drywall and wood refreshing its appearance. The stained shelves were removed and reconstructed with the larger trim, recessed shelf strips, and custom shelves to match the cabinetry below. (See pictures below.)
Fireplace (Before)
Fireplace Stripped
DF Fireplace During 2
DF Fireplace Painted
DF Fireplace (After)
It was quite amazing what these changes did to transform the home. We are pleased and proud that we were allowed to be part of this project.
Culver Garden Court Emergency Services Walk-thru
Tonight we’re going to have a walk-thru at Culver Garden Court for Culver’s Emergency Services personnel. We’ve invited any of the Culver Fire Department, Culver EMTs and Culver Police that would like a tour of the building. As this is housing for the elderly, we feel it is important to familiarize them with the facility. This is something we have done in the past with other Garden Court facilities we have built.
Culver Garden Court has the first Knox Box in Culver. (Wikipedia description here.) A Knox Box is a small safe that is installed at the front door of a building. It will contain a master key to the facility. In case of a 911 call, whether a fire, medical emergency or other, the emergency service personnel arriving at the site will be able to access the key using a key to the Knox Box.
Now that the program has been initiated in Culver, I would anticipate that other Culver facilities will want to install them as well. While the boxes are somewhat expensive, they are generally less expensive than the cost of the door replacement due to the the fire department taking an axe to the door. It is also a life safety issue. Opening the door with a key is the most efficient way to get to a life in jeopardy on the other side. In my opinion the Culver Schools, the Culver Library and the Culver Town Hall should all have Knox Boxes. In the spirit of the one installed at Culver Garden Court, the Culver Cove, Beachside Condos and Beach View Condos should consider them as well. Knox Boxes can also be installed on private homes.
I believe the next step for Culver should be to develop a policy regarding Knox Boxes. There’s a lot of responsibility involved in their use. All the Knox Boxes in a community have a master key. A chain of custody for these keys should be established. A policy should be adopted on how to handle them. (Some communities have controlled access safes in each emergency vehicle to establish accountability and a chain of custody for anyone that accesses the key.) Depending on the type of policy developed, Culver may want to apply for a grant from the Marshall County Community Foundation (MCCF) to implement a program. (Thanks for the suggestion B3!)
I would also like to see a standard set for the location of the boxes. The Knox Box company has a recommendation, but it should be established. It does no good for the box and key to be there if emergency services have to search for it. A second step forward here would be a program that initiates emergency plans for the buildings with Knox Boxes. An emergency services walk-thru for each of these buildings, similar to what we have planned tonight, would help them if they ever had to enter that building in an actual emergency.
I plan to follow up tonight’s meeting with a discussion at the Town Council to get them thinking about implementing this policy. I believe doing this by ordinance would be appropriate, but that would be up to the council to make that determination.
Culver Garden Court Siding Progress
We previously discussed efforts to make Culver Garden Court “Greener” than previous Garden Court projects. Apparently our project architect, Brent Martin, took that a bit literally when selecting the color scheme as you can see as the siding installation progresses. The siding is Certainteed’s Cedar Impressions and the color is Cypress.
There is a flurry of activity at the site now that the drywall and painting has been completed. The vinyl tile has been installed. The cabinets are in place. This is allowing installation of door frames, plumbing fixtures, electrical devices and electrical fixtures. On the exterior the siding is nearly complete as well as the soffit. The gutters and downspouts are scheduled for completion this week as well.
Manufactured Housing Remodels
Some of the manufactured housing companies from the 50’s and 60’s were ahead of the curve on green building. Many of them used panelization (prefabricated wall sections) for their wall construction. Interior, non-bearing walls were often constructed using 2×2’s in lieu of the standard 2×4’s. This resulted in space savings, but created non-standard door jambs and generally required 1-3/8″ door thicknesses. Electrical box installations are tight and these walls are not suitable for chases in most cases. The narrow walls and narrow door jambs were followed by smaller than average casings, base and other associated trim.
There are many of these homes in the residential areas of Culver. I have no confirmations, but it is our understanding that most of these homes were purchased through National Homes out of Lafayette, Indiana. We were contracted to move a wall in one of these homes on Academy Road last month. This reminds us of a previous project completed on Fleet Parkway.
This project was a home purchased from a past client where we had completed several projects. The home was purchased by an Interior Designer and her family. She wanted to update the Master Bathroom, Guest Bathroom and Kitchen.
Along with this she wanted to change the existing trim throughout the house. She chose an oversized MDF trim for the casing and base which gave the walls more mass. This was added to all of the main floor rooms as well as the downstairs family room. We were able to collaborate with her on several methods of changing the trim such as the detail to the right (and the cap detail here) at the entrance to the dining room from the living room. This disguised one of the main openings where the narrow walls were obvious. The change was dramatic as you can see in these before and after pictures.
We provided a custom window seat at the main window in the living room providing a focal point for the room. This made a dramatic change to that room. There was also a dated white wrought iron railing system at the stairs into the room which we changed to wood following the theme of increasing the scale of accent elements.
The existing doors were a hollow core wood with stained veneer finish. These were changed to two panel (stacked) composite doors which were painted white to match the trim. The composite doors are heavier which required some reinforcing of the jambs, but the added weight made the 1-3/8″ thickness less noticeable. New hardware further enhanced the substantial feeling. An example of this can be seen in the master bedroom closet doors in the picture to the right. (Notice the size of the existing baseboard which was retained in this room.)
In the original floor plan, the master bathroom was small and was adjacent to a combination bathroom/laundry room that served the other two bedrooms. As part of the remodel, we expanded the master bathroom, stealing space from the laundry room. This expanded the master bath sufficiently to allow a separate shower and soaking tub (left). A furniture piece sink was used in this room. Tile floors were added with tile shower surrounds and a tile surround for the tub. Beadboard wainscot was added as well.
An existing closet was used to create a new guest bathroom to serve the other two bedrooms. This bath also included tile floors and wall details as well as similar beadboard wainscot. A custom cabinet was created to allow the sink to be installed over the area where the head space for the stairs to the basement encroached on this room. A tub-shower was installed opposite the sink. Custom clear glass shower partitions and doors were included in both rooms.
We also provided a custom cabinetry fireplace surround in the family room. The old cabinetry was removed and replaced with custom sizes. The red brick fireplace was covered in drywall and wood refreshing its appearance. The stained shelves were removed and reconstructed with the larger trim, recessed shelf strips, and custom shelves to match the cabinetry below. (See pictures below.)
Fireplace (Before)
Fireplace Stripped
DF Fireplace During 2
DF Fireplace Painted
DF Fireplace (After)
It was quite amazing what these changes did to transform the home. We are pleased and proud that we were allowed to be part of this project.
Culver Garden Court – October Update
Parking Lot Base is in Place Ready for Paving
Drywall installation is proceeding. This is allowing us to continue the rough-in that is below the ceiling in the heated space, i.e. fire sprinkler lines and water lines that are in soffits. On the exterior, all of the sidewalks and curbs have been poured and the final grading has been completed on the drives and parking lot. The stone base is in place ready for paving. The topsoil is in place ready for landscaping as soon as the finishes on the exterior walls have been completed. We’re currently working towards completion in late December if things continue to go well.
