In June 2012, Living-Stones Developments Ltd. will start construction on a new 58-unit townhouse complex located at 2306 - 30th Avenue North in Cranbrook.

“The land is cleared and ready for start of construction, which we are hoping will be sometime in June this year,” stated Dennis Hockley, Living-Stones’ owner/developer.

The development will consist of four types of family dwellings—from one-bedroom, one-level wheelchair-accessible units to three-bedroom, three-level units. Some will have ensuite bathrooms and all will come with six stainless steel appliances.

“We have had the vision for this townhouse (development) for about four years now,” said Hockley, “and have been gathering information. We have travelled to other centres to look at projects similar to this, and we have worked hard to make it not look like a row house.”

The buildings will be different colours, Hockley said, and each area will have a small private yard with a picket fence. There will be a green space in front of the complex, with a gazebo and a water feature.

“Our vision for 30th Avenue North Park is to develop a project that embraces the concept of community,” said Hockley. “The buildings have been carefully designed and located on the site to create pleasing sightlines that highlight walking paths, trees and grassy areas where families can congregate and children play. Parking, roads and site access have been designed so as not to interfere with play areas for children or detract from the park-like atmosphere.

“We are trying to hit that place (pricewise) for people who have not been able to afford to get into a new home. The whole idea is to create community so that we’ve got both younger families and older families in there.”

This will be a strata development, convenient for those who wish to travel. It will be built in stages, and pre-sales are projected to start in June 2012 for a January 1 possession date. Hockley said that the East Kootenay Community Credit Union has come on board as a partner, offering zero-down mortgages.

Energy Star qualified new homes are designed to be approximately 25 per cent more energy efficient than those built to minimum provincial building codes.

“We’ve always been committed to building homes that people will feel good living in. The Energy Star initiative is a great way for us to show that our homes are better for the environment, more comfortable to live in, and cost less to operate than homes built to minimum standards,” said Lars Chose, president of Mandala Homes.

The Energy Star initiative is administered and promoted in Canada by Natural Resources Canada, a federal government agency.

“People are used to looking for the Energy Star symbol when purchasing things like computers and washing machines, and now in B.C. homebuyers can look for Energy Star qualified homes as well,” said Peter Sundberg, executive director of City Green Solutions, a non-profit organization providing expert energy efficiency assistance to builders and third party testing for the Energy Star for New Homes initiative.

“Our home includes many energy saving features, including a high-performance building envelope with R66 ceiling insulation and R34 wall insulation, a domestic hot water system that is three times as efficient as a standard system, a heat recovery ventilator for fresh air with minimal heat loss and multiple Energy Star products, including windows and lights,” said Chose.

The building was first built in 1976 and is located next to the Cranbrook and District Regional Hospital, on 24th Avenue South.

The 4,000-square-foot expansion is on the south side of the existing building and will house a larger boardroom (20 more seats will be available) and four more seats around the board table, public washrooms, a new office for the board chair and additional staff offices and meeting rooms.

The expansion could accommodate up to 12 new employees as future demand dictates.

The project is estimated to cost $1.5 million. Cranbrook-based New Dawn Developments is the general contractor on the expansion project, which could be completed as early as the fall 0f 2012.

Chad Jensen, president of New Dawn Developments in Cranbrook, B.C., meets and exceeds all three of these criteria, and has won this year's honour bestowed by the Canadian Home Builders Association of BC (CHBA BC) and BC Homes magazine, after a detailed nomination and judging phase.

"The nominations we received for the fifth annual award were all tremendous, but the glowing testimonials about Chad Jensen—personally and professionally—were unmatched," said M.J. Whitemarsh, editorial director of BC Homes magazine. "He was singled out for his vision as a leader in the Kootenay region's development industry, which started in its time of incredible growth, and also during the devastating downturn in the region about three years ago. But, perhaps even more importantly, he was earmarked as a wonderful family man and person of great integrity who is dedicated to giving back to his beloved hometown."

Chad Jensen was humbled when told about the award, but echoing the name of his company, he says it symbolizes a "new dawn" for the industry. Jensen refers to himself as that "next generation of builder," taking the reins from the baby boomers like his father, Rick Jensen, who started the company when Chad was still a youth.
  
This "next generation" has had a bumpy ride so far with the recession, but Chad has shown his innovation and perseverance by continuously looking for new ways to grow and expand the business and industry in the region overall. He is also a board member of the one-year-old Canadian Home Builders Association of the Rocky Mountains.

Jensen will be honoured by his colleagues at an awards event in Cranbrook in April 2012, details on purchasing tickets and the venue will be released next month.

Jensen is the first winner from the Kootenay region. Previous winners of the province-wide award have included David Podmore of Concert Properties in Vancouver, Doug Wittal of DW Builders in Kamloops, Doug Bromage, president of InSight Developments in Nanaimo and Tim Kasten of Hillside Contracting in Kamloops.

Read Chad Jensen's profile or subscribe and receive the February/March issue of BC Homes for the full story.

For more information on this award or on BC Homes magazine, please visit www.bchomesmag.com

The new building is scheduled for an early 2012 opening. Officials from the East Kootenay Community Credit Union say they are proud to bring its first full-service branch to Sparwood.  It will be conveniently located on Aspen Drive, and the management and staff are all very excited to finally be able plant some roots in Sparwood—a place that’s already home to many of their members. Watch for a soft opening soon and an upcoming official opening in March or April.

They also point out that, "At EKC, our commitment to the communities we serve has always gone beyond the financial products and services we provide. Now, with our first branch opening in Sparwood, our member-run board of directors has approved an initial commitment of $27,500 to help fund community projects in 2011 and 2012. It’s just one more way we’re closer."