This home, located in the rural area of Burlington on a 28 acre parcel of land, won the Ontario Home Builders Association 2017 Award of Distinction for Most Outstanding Home Renovation over $500,000. The competition is always strong so we were honored to be recognized for our team's efforts. Architecture credits go to Cynthia Zahoruk Architect Inc. and interior design credits to Baudit Design.

In regards to the work completed, the existing home was clad in vinyl siding and had minimal wall insulation and air barrier. The kitchen was buried in the core of the home with no exterior windows. The exterior form of the existing house consisted of large roof overhangs, low roof profile and some interesting window configurations.

Through the pre-design process we identified the following goals:

• enlarge and open-up the disjointed, small kitchen

• provide a light filled, great room adjacent to the open kitchen

• and provide a main floor bedroom, a large mudroom/laundry and a large garage workshop.

• The design should incorporate large windows which would permit a clear view to the escarpment ridge to the south and the valley woodland to the north while standing in the kitchen work area.

• Keep the existing living room, dining room, foyer and upstairs bedroom

• Completely modify the exterior finishes and overall look to suit the natural landscape of the site. Client expressed desire for a rustic modern aesthetic

• Provide low maintenance exterior materials.

• Provide a pleasing entry to the house

The bedrooms and living room of the existing house had a fairly pleasing and logical layout. However the main kitchen and family room spaces fell radically short in functionality. Therefore the focus of the renovations and addition was to provide a large kitchen open to the breakfast area and new great room. The enlarged space permitted a kitchen and vista views to both the south and the north in accordance with the client’s wishes.

The rear approach to the house and close proximity of the cistern meant that the garage was better suited to turn slightly off axis and this created an entrance courtyard sheltered from westerly winds. The garage facing away from the vehicular approach to the house means that guests see the entrance to the house before they see garage doors. The landscape architect has planned for a landscape buffer along the approach so that the back wall and the garage are screened from the driveway. The garage wing includes a clerestory feature to articulate the large roofline and bring in natural light into the garage workshop.

All materials on the exterior of the house were required to be low maintenance but still authentic. The exterior natural stone, prefinished wood siding, metal and shingle roofing met this goal. Darker exterior colours also help to minimize the need for exterior cleaning.

Critical in the design was planning for maintaining occupancy of the house while the construction was underway. Therefore phasing was initial completion of the kitchen area in the existing house, and then proceeding with the second phase of the great room and garage.