These past few years it’s felt as if no one were building anything. But the 18th annual CUSTOM HOME Design Awards received an impressive 321 entries in nine categories. Yes, the number is some 200 or so off our high-water mark for the construction boom but, oddly enough, our editors and our judges believe the caliber was just as strong as in the go-go days. Fewer projects, indeed, yet the survivors were beautifully designed and impeccably executed. Perhaps it was only the indifferent endeavors that fell by the wayside in the downturn?
This year, 18 projects were singled out for honors. The jury featured four distinguished custom builders and architects, including Christine L. Albertsson, Albertsson Hansen Architecture, Minneapolis; Tom Glass, Glass Construction, Washington, D.C.; Tom Hinerfeld, Hinerfeld-Ward, Los Angeles; and Beth Reader, Reader & Swartz Architects, Winchester, Va. In all, they bestowed nine Merit awards, eight Grand awards, and one Custom Home of the Year award.
As the market returns, we can only hope that it upholds the quality we see from the CHDA 2010 winning projects.
Read our Editor’s note about this year’s competition.
