Posted by Holly Kelton on Sat, Nov 14, 2009 @ 10:52 AM
November 11, 2009 - MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT - - Connor Homes received a national home building accolade, capturing the three award(s) or honorable mention(s) in the 2010 BSC Excellence in Home Design and Marketing Awards program. The honor was awarded by the Building Systems Councils (BSC) of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)-a trade association that represents the concrete, log, modular, and panelized building system industries-at their annual awards program on November 2, 2009.
Sponsored by the NAHB Building Systems Councils, the BSC Excellence in Marketing and Home Design Awards has promoted excellence in the systems-built housing industry for more than ten years. All winners were announced at an awards luncheon in Marco Island, Fla., held in conjunction with the BSC SHOWCASE event-the leading trade show and conference based centered on the systems-built housing industry. Home manufacturers, builders and industry associates were among the groups recognized.
"This year's award winners like Connor Homes prove that even in a slow housing market, the systems-built industry is raising the bar in residential marketing and home design concepts," said BSC Chairman Michael H. Weber with Lancaster Redevelopment Corp. "Our award winners are adding credibility to their businesses and shedding a positive light on the building systems industry as a whole."
The annual BSC Excellence Awards are judged by a panel of industry experts and companies like Connor Homes were given praise for the quality of their submittals.
"It is truly an honor to receive the BSC Excellence Award for three homes in the Excellence in Home Design categories," said Michael C. Connor, CEO. "At Connor Homes, we strive to provide innovative, practical housing solutions using Mill-built technologies and traditional architectural design and detailing. This award shows the hard work and vision of the Connor Homes' dedicated employees.
Awards received by Connor Homes were:
- Winner - Excellence in Home Design: Panelized Home 4,000 plus square feet for a shingle style home built in Richmond, Massachusetts.
- Winner - Excellence in Home Design: Panelized Home 2,301-4,000 square feet for a Colonial Revival home built in Panton, Vermont.
- Honorable Mention - Excellence in Home Design: Panelized Home under 2,301 square feet for a Barn-inspired Cottage in Ferrisburg, Vermont.
For a complete list of winning companies and projects, including Connor Homes, visit www.nahb.org/2010bscawardwinners. For slide shows of these homes please CLICK HERE. Award winners were announced to a crowd of nearly 300 systems-built industry professionals at the awards luncheon. Winners received plaques to commemorate their efforts. They will be featured in upcoming editions of NAHB's e-newspaper, Nation's Building News. These projects will also be on display on the BSC Awards Wall at the 2010 International Builders' Show in Las Vegas.
ABOUT THE BSC: The Building Systems Councils of the National Association of Home Builders is made up of manufacturing, builder, and associate members who advocate building with systems. Systems-built homes are constructed with concrete, log, modular, or panelized systems. They are constructed to the same code standards and reflect the same, and often enhanced, quality levels as any site-built construction. The advantage of systems-building is it's done in a fraction of the time, with a fraction of the waste, reducing costly weather exposure. Many systems-built homes are inherently "green," adding an environmentally friendly label to the product.
ABOUT NAHB:The National Association of Home Builders is a Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing more than 200,000 members involved in home building, remodeling, multifamily construction, property management, subcontracting, design, housing finance, building product manufacturing and other aspects of residential and light commercial construction. Known as "the voice of the housing industry," NAHB is affiliated with more than 800 state and local home builders associations around the country. NAHB's builder members will construct about 80 percent of the new housing units projected for 2009.
Posted by Holly Kelton on Wed, Oct 28, 2009 @ 01:20 PM
October 28, 2009 - MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT - On Wednesday, October 21, 2009 the 32nd Annual Home Builders and Remodelers Association of Northern Vermont's (HBRANV) Better Homes Award Banquet was held at the Sheraton Hotel and Conference in Burlington. This banquet, known as the "Academy Awards" for the Home Building Industry, highlights builders for projects that they submit to the program.
Connor Homes received Best Single Family Home under 2,000 Square Feet for its Stewart Hamil Cottage in Ferrisburg, Vermont. This award is judged on building design, efficient utilization of space, innovative use of materials, products and practices, compatibility with existing environment and craftsmanship.
The 1,832 sq ft house was Mill-built at the Connor Homes Middlebury millshops and revolves around a barn-like design. Exterior finishes included natural eastern white cedar shingles on the facade and custom built sliding barn doors of solid pine with a flared shield above to protect the entry from snow and ice. The main living space is open and the porch runs the entire length of the back of the house. While a light wash finish has been applied to all interior woodwork, the porch has a natural look. White cedar shingles are used for the porch interior wall finish, matching the exterior facade shingles. The Connor Homes farmhouse-style inset cabinets with their beadboard fronts are painted a clean white, offset by the custom mahogany counter top, also built in the Connor Homes cabinet shop. The house was general contracted by Matt Laberge Builders out of Hinesburg, Vermont. This house also won honorable mention for the Excellence in Home Design under 2,300 sq ft awarded by the Building Systems Council of the National Association of Homebuilders.
The Home Builders and Remodelers Association of Northern Vermont is a trade association, comprised of 500 members, whom build, remodel homes, or supply products and services to the home building industry.
Posted by Holly Kelton on Mon, Aug 24, 2009 @ 05:31 AM
August 24, 2009 - MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT - Connor Homes new Shaker Kitchen replicates the utility and grace of the Shaker's precise casework, simple finishes and profiles in a new kitchen line designed to enhance our "Simple Classics" collection of homes. Like the Simple Classics Homes, the Shaker Kitchen is built by the same craftsmen as our Catalog and Custom Homes and uses the same high quality materials but is priced substantially lower. The savings is achieved by pre-designing the kitchens for each house ahead of time so that the design costs are spread among multiple users. The Shaker Kitchen style is also available to all customers as an additional choice for their kitchen, bath vanities and other built-ins throughout the house.
For more information CLICK HERE.
Posted by Holly Kelton on Mon, Jul 06, 2009 @ 06:07 PM
July 6, 2009 - MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT - Connor Homes is pleased to announce that John Connell has joined the Connor Homes senior management team as Design Director. John has a deep and respected place in the architectural and sustainable design/build community. A undergraduate of the University of Pennsylvania in Art and Architecture, with a masters in Architecture from Yale, John studied under such notables as Louis Kahn, Cesar Pelli, Robert Engmann and Charles Moore. Since graduation John has spent his entire professional career focused on environmentally enlighted residential architecture and green homes.
John is the founder of Yestermorrow Design/Build School in Warren, Vermont, an entity which promotes the creation of sustainable vernacular and owner-built homes. Graduating hundreds of non-professional students each year, the curriculum presents energy-conserving and environmentally-enlightened design/build methods as the standard for residential construction.
John comes to us most recently from his own design/build firm - 2morrow Studio - in Warren, Vermont. This design/build firm was created to deliver custom, green architectural design at moderate cost through the use of systems building.
Previously, John sat on the AIA National Housing Committee's Advisory Group where they started the Custom Residential Architects Network (CRAN). He is the founder and ED of Vermont's chapter of the Congress of Residential Architects (CORA). Besides his ongoing work in progressive residential architecture, John was a leader in the creation of sustainable treehouse prototypes for children confined to wheelchairs. He taught and created the life drawing curriculum at Norwich College of Architecture and is a former faculty member at Yale and Ball State University.
In his spare time this licensed architect is an author (Homing Instinct: McGraw Hill, Creating the Inspired House: Taunton Press, plus various magazines), a frustrated animator, a skilled lecturer and lifelong learner.
Connor Homes is proud to welcome John Connell to the team.
Posted by Holly Kelton on Wed, Jun 24, 2009 @ 06:03 PM
June 24, 2009 - MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT - Steve Haskell, Project Designer at Connor Homes has been awarded the LEED AP (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional) accreditation after recently sitting for the exam. Steve joins team members John Connell and Doug Williamson at Connor Homes with this honor.
LEED Professional Accreditation distinguishes building professionals with the knowledge and skills to successfully steward the LEED certification process. LEED Accredited Professionals (LEED APs) have demonstrated a thorough understanding of green building practices and principles and the LEED Rating System. More than 75,000 people have earned the credential since the Professional Accreditation program was launched in 2001.
Posted by Holly Kelton on Tue, Jun 09, 2009 @ 05:50 PM
June 9, 2009 - MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT - Connor Homes is pleased to announce that Kenda James has joined the Connor Homes senior management team as Business Director. A graduate from Syracuse University and post graduate MBA work at New York University, Kenda brings with her a wealth of business experience and operational management.
Kenda comes to us most recently from Old Adirondack, Inc. in Willsboro, New York where she served as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for the outdoor furniture manufacturer. Prior to that Kenda was the Vice President of Data and Document Management at Bacompt Systems in Carmel, Indiana.
"Kenda is a great fit for Connor Homes, with her mix of experience from a wide variety of disciplines," said Mike Connor, President of Connor Homes.
Earlier on in her career Kenda managed technology for a financial services company, served as head of marketing for an Indianapolis-based brokerage firm, and developed new products for top commercial banks and brokers, including Bank of America, Merrill Lynch and Chemical Bank.
"Connor Homes' focus on manufacturing efficiencies to build authentic colonial style homes was an natural for me. And it's such a great bunch of people, I could overlook the long commute," said James, who typically takes the ferry across Lake Champlain every day.
Kenda is a Captain in the U.S. Navy Reserve, specializing in supply chain management and expeditionary logistics. She spent most of 2008 deployed as Commander, Navy Expeditionary Logistics Group Forward in Kuwait and Iraq.
Kenda is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, an honored credential in the manufacturing world. In addition, she is a certified provider of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). In her spare time Kenda serves as a board member for the Northern Forest's Sustainable Forest Futures, is the founder and president of Adirondack Women in History, Inc., and serves on a variety of non-profit boards including the Paine Memorial Free Library in Willsboro, NY and the Essex County Historical Society in New York.
Connor Homes is proud to welcome Kenda James to the team.
Posted by Holly Kelton on Sun, May 17, 2009 @ 05:44 PM
May 17, 2009 - MIDDLEBURY, VERMONT -Connor Homes announces appointment to 2009 National Building Systems Councils Board of Trustees.
Holly Keeler Kelton, COO of Connor Homes has been appointed to fill one of the twenty-one Board of Trustee Seats for the National Association of Home Builders Building System Council. The appointment runs from February 1, 2009 through January 31, 2010.
The Building Systems Councils (BSC), a subcommittee of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) is the leading resource for the concrete, log, modular and panelized home building industries. The BSC aims to educate and inspire through consumer-friendly documents and interactive learning tools. The NAHB is a trade association that promotes the policies that make housing a national priority.
Holly will travel to Washington, DC in late May for the Spring Board of Directors and Trustees meeting.
To learn more about the National Association of Home Builders Building Systems Council CLICK HERE.