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Renovation Revolution
Portico
By Barry Wise Smith
Rising property values, convenience, and
top-notch schools have made over-the-mountain communities hotbeds of
home renovation.
Drive down almost any street in Homewood
or Crestline, and you’ll see a home renovation project under
way. Builder signs and industrial dumpsters have become
commonplace landscape elements in many over-the-mountain
front yards. Driven by low lending rates, quality schools,
convenient locations, and popular television shows such as
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and HGTV’s Generation
Renovation, people are choosing to stay in their homes and
renovate rather than buy new homes and
move.
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Double Vision
Growing up in Vestavia Hills, Nina Haas
Daniels loved the panoramic views from her parents’ home. When she
married and started a family, she approached her parents’ longtime
next-door neighbors and told them she was interested in buying the
house- if they ever decided to sell. When the neighbors eventually
decided to downsize, Nina and her husband David jumped at the chance
to own the home. “We bought the house because we loved the views,”
Nina says.
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After living in the house for almost a year,
Nina realized some changes were necessary to accommodate her family
of five, including three young daughters. Nina enlisted architect
Debbie Simmons and builders David and William Siegel of Twin
Construction to develop and execute a plan to renovate the home.
“Since I was a little girl I’ve loved older houses,” Nina says.
“There’s something fun about redoing something.”
By August 2003 the plans were ready, and the
renovation began. The first, and most outwardly visible change, was
raising the existing roofline to give the house more presence from
the street. By Nina’s request, and for cost-saving reasons, the roof
was not completely removed.
Inside, Twin reconfigured the main living
space to maximize the spectacular views from the rear of the house.
They removed a large stone fireplace from the back wall of the
family room and replaced it with floor-to-ceiling windows that
revealed scenic vistas and flooded the room with natural light. In
the kitchen, several walls were removed to create a large open area
with an abundance of cabinets and counter space. A 10-foot-long
center island provides additional storage and casual seating for
guests.
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The master bedroom and bathroom were
redesigned, and a formal living room was converted into a bedroom
and bathroom for one of the Daniels’ three daughters. A largely
unfinished basement was given gleaming hardwood floors and finished
to include an extra bedroom and bathroom, a study, a spacious
playroom, and a large living area that features a pool table and
copper counter wet bar. The Daniels are thrilled with the results.
“We absolutely love it,” Nina says.
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The Siegels, identical twin brothers who
started their company three years ago, have seen a surge in large
renovation projects and in their business. They attribute the trend
to “growth in Birmingham and people wanting to be close to
downtown.”
The brothers, who both live in Homewood and do
a majority of their work there, decided when they started to “find a
niche market where we can continue to work our whole lives, build
those relationships, live in the area, and see people in the grocery
store and say hello,” says William. David agrees, “We make sure to
treat every homeowner like our neighbor.”
The philosophy has worked as the business
started by David-he was joined a year later by William- has grown
almost exclusively through word-of-mouth from happy homeowners.
White the brothers handle different job responsibilities- William
does accounting, estimates, invoices, and bookkeeping while David
covers on-site project management- they both enjoy the work. “We
bring excitement to our work,” says William. “We really love what
we’re doing.”
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