showcase westside area builders Imagine building your dream home, designing it from basement to attic, lovingly choosing just the right windows, fixtures, countertops and colors. Imagine the home is located in a neighborhood full of people who share your interests. Then imagine that just after you've moved in the last stick of furniture, hung the pictures and set your potted plants in the perfect places, you have to sell the house. That's what it's like to be a Homearama 2003 builder, said Margaret Peterson, Riga resident and co-builder of a Homearama house called "Marda." Peterson and her partner, David Quick, have already received a purchase offer for their 2,901 square-foot colonial, featuring an octagonal sitting room, a stone exterior, and hunt club green accents. Homearama 2003, located in the Park Place Community on Union Street directly across the street from the entrance to Black Creek Park in Chili, will run from July 12 through July 27, Monday through Friday from 2 to 9 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sundays from noon until 6 p.m. Tickets will be $8 at the gate, $7 in advance at Chase Pitkin stores or Charter One Bank branches. Food, beverages and live entertainment will round out the experience, which is serious shopping for some, dreaming for others. Homearama homes range in price from the mid-$200,000s to more than $600,000. Some of the homes have already been sold, builders plan on the rest being sold immediately following the show. It's business, of course, but there's still a tinge of melancholy to selling something that you've worked on so diligently and so closely with others. "We've become like a community here," said Peterson of the builders who have collaborated with Town of Chili officials to bring the Rochester Home Builders' Association annual showcase to the west side this year for the first time. "The other night we were all out watering and saying 'howdy neighbor' to each other. I will be sad when it's all over." Although the show doesn't consist exclusively of west side builders, several are involved. Besides Quick and Peterson there are the Battisti Brothers and Home Pride Builders and Developers of Spencerport, Perna Homes and Faber Homes of Chili, and Homestead Development/Allison Homes of Brockport. These builders are responsible for eight of the eleven featured homes. The west side builders are proud to show off their "hometown," Peterson said. "I love living on the west side," she explained. "I came from Syracuse, located on the west side, and never left. There's so much openness here, it feels like country yet we're really close to things. I'm sure many, many people are about to discover what a beautiful peaceful place this is to live." In addition to the houses themselves, visitors come to Homearama to get decorating and landscaping ideas. This is another place where west side companies will shine. For example, Peterson asked Debbie Finely, owner of Victory Hill Studios in Churchville, to paint custom faux finishes in Marda. Debbie is also painting a mural in another Homearama home. Pro Carpet in Spencerport is responsible for Marda's carpeting. The Amish Outlet and Gift Shop on Union Street in Chili provided a gazebo for Marda's backyard. Contributors like these and other home building and improvement companies will have displays and other sales materials set up in a large tent. Heritage Furniture on Ridge Road in Spencerport and the Glue Factory in North Chili are also involved in the Homearama houses. "We're planning to have a spiral notebook just loaded with this kind of information available to those who visit our house," said Peterson. "No matter what you see that you like, we'll be able to help you connect with someone who can help you either in a new home or existing home." Ample free parking will be available at the show. |
