THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 30, 1996 TAG: 9607030729
SECTION: HOME PAGE: G1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARCIA MANGUM, HOME & GARDEN EDITOR
LENGTH: 170 lines
TRANSITIONAL IS POPULAR. Brick wins by a landslide. The side-entry garage is in. And a large great room and big bedrooms are a must.
These were a few of the results from our four-part survey this spring to design The Virginian-Pilot Reader Home to be built by Charlie Anderson for the annual Homearama show, Oct. 5-20 at South Shore Estates in Virginia Beach.
Votes have been tabulated, plans drawn and ground broken, so it's time to report on what the readers wanted and what they'll get.
A total of 1,866 votes were cast over four weeks. The majority of callers were baby-boomer homeowners from Virginia Beach, but calls came from every city in the region and from ages 8 to 77.
Many of the results were predictable and a few were surprising. But some were impossible to build, due to Homearama restrictions.
The Tidewater Builders Association, which sponsors Homearama, stipulates that the house cost between $245,000 and $265,000 and contain between 2,400 and 3,000 square feet.
Strictly abiding by readers' choices was not possible in a house that size, because readers wanted too many rooms on the ground floor of a two-story house.
Readers chose, by large margins, to have the master bedroom and the laundry room on the first floor. To do that in a 3,000-square-foot house would crowd the downstairs with tiny rooms and leave wasted space on the second floor, Anderson explained. Such floor plans can work, but only in houses of about 4,000 square feet or more.
Therefore, Anderson decided to build a transitional, brick ranch-style house, with a second story above the garage.
That choice covers readers first and second choices for architectural style, Anderson noted. Transitional was the favored style with 256 votes, followed by ranch with 183 votes, traditional with 137 and contemporary with 92.
Anderson's rancher doesn't look like the elongated box of the '50s and '60s. People who've seen similar homes he's built in Hampton Roads tell him they have the look of a two-story house because of the gables. He's even had people tell him they like his ``two-story ranch house.''
``It's a '90s house, and most '90s houses are transitional,'' Anderson said. ``It has a touch of traditional, a touch of Colonial and a little flare of contemporary.''
The floor plan could be considered traditional, because the bedrooms are separate from the entertaining rooms of the house. It calls for heavy woodwork around the ceiling and some stained woodwork, typical of Colonial houses. And it includes of the conveniences of contemporary, such as spacious baths and a raised deck.
On the exterior, readers favored a side-entry garage over a front-entry by a 5-to-1 margin, reflecting a national trend away from garages that dominate the front of a house.
Anderson said he will have the only house in Homearama with a side-entry garage, because he bought the widest lot.
Brick was chosen by 442 readers, with 109 for stucco and 54 each for cedar siding and vinyl siding. The Reader Home will use light brownish-orange bricks with scalloped roofing shingles in a weathered-wood color.
Readers were almost evenly divided over whether they like a covered porch on the front or back of the house, but the wooden deck in the back yard is clearly the top choice for outside entertaining.
The Reader Home will have a small covered front porch with columns and wood railings on the front. A deck will run behind the kitchen and family room.
The flow of the house will comply with reader wishes, he noted. The foyer, with a raised ceiling, will lead into the great room, which then opens to the breakfast nook, adjoining the kitchen.
The family room and master bedroom will each have a three-tier tray ceiling, with recessed lighting, while most of the rest of the house will have 9-foot ceilings. Readers preferred raised ceilings by nearly a 2-to-1 margin, but when asked if they would be willing to pay extra for construction and utility costs for higher ceilings, they were evenly split.
Readers favored a study over a living room by a 393-248 vote, so the house will have a study with built-in bookshelves. It also will have a dining room, desired by nearly three-fourths of the readers.
The family room was overwhelmingly the favorite spot for a fireplace, with stone the preferred material for the fireplace front.
Readers also gave strong support to having at least some crown molding in the house. Anderson plans to use it in the foyer, study, dining room, family room and master bedroom.
Opinions were more divided on flooring. Ceramic tile won by a narrow margin over hardwood for the foyer and tied with vinyl for the kitchen. Anderson will use tile in the foyer and either tile or vinyl in the kitchen.
Plush carpet was strongly favored and will be used in the master bedroom. Hardwood flooring edged out carpeting by a slim margin for the dining room, but Anderson said the dining room probably will be carpeted to keep costs in line.
A strong vote for stained woodwork was one of the biggest surprises to Anderson, who said 90 percent of his customers request painted woodwork. He hasn't decided all the finishing details yet but said he's likely to have a combination of some painted woodwork and stained doors and cabinets.
Anderson also hasn't decided some of the details for the kitchen. Because it is a Homearama show house, many manufacturers, suppliers and dealers donate or give deals on certain items, which could influence what is used.
Readers strongly favored a stainless-steel kitchen sink instead of porcelain and solid acrylic counters over laminate, but solid acrylic costs about $5,000 to $6,000 more than laminate, Anderson said. He is unlikely to use solid acrylic unless he gets a good deal.
On the topic of bedrooms, readers expressed some contradictory desires. They overwhelmingly (563-61) said they wanted a few large bedrooms instead of more small bedrooms, but when asked how many bedrooms they wanted, readers chose four by a large margin.
Four large bedrooms in a 3,000-square-foot house would be difficult, but Anderson's floor plan calls for a large master bedroom, a large bedroom over the garage and two smaller bedrooms. The design, however, could be altered to eliminate the wall between the two smaller bedrooms and make another large one.
There were also some other reader choices that won't be reflected in the master bedroom, either because of space or cost limitations, Anderson said. There won't be French doors leading outside, but there will be some taller-than-normal windows to create a light, airy feel. There also wasn't space for separate ``his'' and ``hers'' closets, but there will be a large, walk-in closet with wood shelving, as chosen by readers.
Having a gas fireplace in the master bedroom was not important to readers, so Anderson will not include one. A small majority favored a built-in entertainment center, but Anderson said he may not have the budget to include that extra.
The master bath will be largely in accordance with readers' wishes: a ceramic tile shower stall, garden tub with whirlpool, shower door, tile flooring, a higher-than-average vanity, two sinks and a window. The linen closet will be in the hallway, rather than the bathroom, as preferred by readers.
A slim majority of readers preferred to store toiletries in a traditional wall cabinet than in a sink vanity unit, but Anderson said there may not be enough wall space. Auxiliary heat in the bathroom, also chosen by a slight edge, may be provided, if a unit is donated, Anderson said.
Although the majority of readers voted for 2 1/2 baths, Anderson's house will have 3 1/2, because he wanted to include a full bath with the bedroom over the garage.
Both inside and out, the house will emphasize details. A similar model ranch house that Anderson has built in the Southwood development in the Great Bridge area of Chesapeake has proved popular, largely due to the details, he said. The arched entry foyer, tray ceiling with beams and elaborate woodworking are particularly popular, he noted. ILLUSTRATION: ILLUSTRATIONS BY JOHN EARLE/The Virginian-Pilot
Graphics
THANKS FOR HELPING
Thanks to all who voted and, especially, to those who took the
time to leave your names and other demographic information. That
data will give the newspaper and local builders a better idea of who
is interested in new homes and what features are important.
Although most of the participants were homeowners, about one in
nine were renters.
Calls came from all major cities in the South Hampton Roads, as
well as the Peninsula, Isle of Wight County, the Eastern Shore and
northeastern North Carolina.
Based on the demographic information we received, here's a
breakdown of where most of the participants live:
Virginia Beach - 643
Chesapeake - 266
Norfolk - 213
Portsmouth - 69
Suffolk - 45
CHOICES IN THE KITCHEN
L-shaped counter with a center island
A large window over the sink
Light-stained kitchen cabinets
Walk-in pantry
Separate cooktop and oven
Desk
Lazy Susan in the corner cabinet
Built-in microwave
KEYWORDS: DREAM HOUSE by CNB