Mayland Heights Renovation Project in NE Calgary

Luxury Renovation Project in NE Calgary

Our wonderful clients were in search of a home in Calgary, Alberta closer to their children and grandchildren. New homes were not available within their desired vicinity of the city, so they opted to find an older home to make it new and customized towards their preferences with a full home renovation.

The home they purchased was built in 1987 and had Tuscan-inspired design. While centrally located with a close proximity to downtown, the home was outdated. The clients wanted a full transformation with the finished product of a luxurious, clean, new residence. All areas of the home were completely renovated along with the construction of 3 home additions. One addition on the front of the house to make space for a home office. One addition on the north-east side of the home to relocate the stairs to the basement and open-up the floor plans and one basement addition on the south-east side of the home to create space for an in-ground pool. The additions and new spaces were required to meet the 9.36 Energy Code providing the clients complete warmth and comfort in their new home.

The final product on the main floor was a fully modified, mostly open-concept main floor renovation which included an attractive and inspiring front office, larger dining room, informal sitting area, relocated kitchen and a much more functional mudroom, powder and laundry space. A beautifully designed custom, curved staircase in the entryway doubly serves as a stunning focal point. To achieve the beautiful and open floorplan, a home addition was added on the north-east side of the house which enabled us to relocate the stair case to the basement.  The switchback landing opens to the ground level and to the back yard onto the new patio, hot tub area and fully landscaped yard. Additionally, the originally sunken family room was raised to be seamless with the rest of space which was aesthetically a major contribution to the look and feel of the main floor.

KITCHEN RENOVATION

The Kitchen was relocated to where the main-floor family room originally was located to achieve the new floorplan. Deleting the fireplace and removing bay windows was necessary in order to replacing them with windows high enough to accommodate the new cabinets below. The upper cabinets were not included in the new design in order to have windows, allowing the maximum amount of morning sun and natural light into the room.
The new Kitchen renovation and location provided better access from the garage, mudroom and laundry creating a more functional connection for everyday chores such as bringing in groceries and taking out the garbage. Additionally, The Kitchen’s new location reduced the through-traffic from other rooms.
It also provides vast lengths of counter space enabling a number of Chef’s to work in the area at the same time. Compared to the original floor plan the new Kitchen has 3 times the amount of storage space

SECOND FLOOR RENOVATION

The second floor was also modified with a fabulous new ensuite and dressing room serving the master bedroom. The new floorplan reduced the bedrooms from 4 to 3, allowing each of the 3 bedrooms to be more spacious and allowing each room to have its own walk-in closet. This made the second floor much more functional in creating 3 well-appointed bedrooms instead of having unused space within a needless 4th bedroom.

BASEMENT RENOVATION & DEVELOPMENT
WITH HOME ADDITION

The basement of the home was originally unfinished. Our clients’ goals were to provide an exquisite entertainment area consisting of an indoor, year-round pool at floor level, theatre room with fireplace, exercise room and an acclimatized wine room and wet bar. Also requested was room for a billiards table however with the basement addition to accommodate the pool, the space did not allow for it and that unfortunately became the compromise.

Steel Beams, W-flange, were required to provide the longer span to remove posts bracing the upper floor and were pulled up into the floor systems above to provide a seamless open space.
Within the theatre room an acclimatized wine room was created for the clients to display their collection of over 400 bottles. Also within the theatre room was enough space to include an exercise room housing all of the equipment necessary. The in-ground endless pool is self-contained and a functional change room with swimwear dryer is located just off the pool area. Additionally, the relocation of the basement stairs enabled us to opened up the center space.

This spectacular renovation was awarded Best Basement Renovation at the CHBA BILD Calgary Region Awards and went on to win the CHBA National BILD Award for Best Basement Renovation.

POOL DEVELOPMENT

The addition we created in the basement created ample space for the swimming pool and still had room for three HVAC systems. With the basement being bare to start and needing to adhere to the rules of 9.36 Energy Code, the additional foundation walls were built using ICF systems creating a very warm, comfortable and efficient area. We found it necessary to use a minimum R27 insulation on the pool pit walls and floor to protect water in the pool from losing heat. The added appeal with this design and project was the pool area and the structural requirements for an “off-the-shelf” self-contained pool. It was required to build the pool having access to the equipment that is below the floor, so structural tile on a steel frame was necessary. The use of the structural tile that can be removed provides full maintenance access to all systems around the pool. The 60-pound tiles are set into spacer clips and allows for water from the users to flow down into the pit of the pool which prevents the formation of puddles on the floor. This feature along with child-proof, floor to ceiling glass sliding doors were installed with maximum safety in mind for children and pets visiting or staying in the home. The security of the pool from the glass door main entrance and also through the change room was an essential part of the design to enable the children to be in the home while the pool area is on constant lockdown until an adult is present. This allows children and pets to roam through other areas of the basement while being unable to gain access to the pool without supervision

ARCITECHTURAL DESIGN & INTERIOR DESIGN

Our clients preferred clean and simple finishes throughout allowing natural light to enhance the color palette. Soft greens, greys and blues were integrated and layering of the textures used gave the homeowner a contemporary look with flexibility for furnishings, art and accessories.

The old to the new floorplan shows that numerous undersized spaces were eliminated and more functional areas were developed for better use of each new room. Moving the Kitchen allowed for more wall space to allow additional cabinets and storage while also creating rooms with complete open sightlines. There were several windows added to capture as much natural light as possible considering the rear of the home faces east. The south facing area of the home was looking onto another residence so no windows were added on that side. The new floor plan for the second level created larger and more functional washrooms and bedrooms.

The new design started with the relocation of the stairs to the basement which were moved to the addition that took over the covered deck space at the back corner of the home. This not only opened up the main floor, but also gave the basement more space to allow all of the mechanical plenums to run in the area to gain the best ceiling heights throughout the basement. The location of the pool also worked well with the mechanical system since it required its own HVAC system due to the humidity and chemicals involved in the environment.

CHALLENGING HOME RENOVATIONS

The first challenge for this home renovation was keeping the floor plan and additions within the City of Calgary guidelines. The additions created were kept to only fill the property of 45% of the lot eliminating the need for a development or relaxation. This therefore helped to move the project forward and on schedule to be completed prior to a June 2018 family wedding.

The second major challenge of this home renovation was that the neighborhood of Mayland Heights was built over a sandstone bed; making the excavation of a 6-foot pit below footings for the pool much more challenging and laborious. Limited machine access required the stone to be hammered out by hand to 6 feet below the basement slab while the two-story home was temporarily shored overhead.

Additional challenges involved with the new main floor plan was the removal of bay windows because of the skylights placed over the basement addition roof. It was required to relocate the plumbing, HVAC system and complete electrical. The inefficient masonry fireplace which made-up a portion of the structure of the south wall in the former family room needed removal. To repair this, it was necessary to assemble an exterior wall with insulation.

EXTERIOR RENOVATIONS AND LANDSCAPING

The exterior of the home was fully transformed with a clean, modern finish. The 3 home additions that were added completely changed the footprint of the house and the outdated brick and stucco was redone with new stucco and stone. New roofing, under-soffit lighting and enlargement and reconfiguration of the windows helped to modernize the overall appearance of this home. Additional windows were also added to the attached double garage to allow natural light inside. The home was then complimented with full, low maintenance landscaping with ample space for entertaining including a paving stone driveway, back-yard patio, firepit and hot tub enclosure.

This award-winning one-of-a-kind renovation consisted of virtually all aspects of home renovations; from architectural and interior design, floor plan reconfiguration, home additions including a basement addition and special custom features including pool, theatre and acclimatized wine cellar. Our highly experienced team at Kay2 Contracting worked tirelessly to ensure that our amazing clients’ needs and vision were met with meticulous attention to details. Together with the trust and support of our amazing clients, this renovation went on to win Best Home Renovation with Addition at the CHBA BILD Calgary Awards & Best Basement Renovation at the CHBA National BILD Awards. Whether you live in Calgary, Canmore, Banff or Edmonton and surrounding areas contact Kay2 Contracting with your next custom home build or renovation.