2008 Home of the Year Awards

There’s no denying that the housing market has been uneasy these past few years, but no evidence of it appeared in our 17th annual new homes competition. In fact, we received more than 130 high-quality entries that showed our doubts to the door. The response from builders, architects, designers and developers to our call for entries was as strong as ever; therefore, the decisions our judges had to make proved highly difficult. From the caliber of custom homes to strikingly well-planned communities, we saw a great number of participants worthy of our awards. Unfortunately, only two can be granted our recognition in these pages, but everyone should know that we were pleased with what Kansas City has to offer. Housing here has consistently remained a good value for residents and, by evidence seen on the following pages, meets the needs and wants of today’s homebuyers.

Our Home of the Year

Ambassador Homes • Wendlandt & Stallbaumer • Phill Crum Designs
Also see:
Gold Winners | Silver Winners

The owners of this storybook castle owned their four-acre wooded Leawood lot several years before ever breaking ground. That gave them plenty of time to conceptualize their idea of a perfect home. Having spent considerable time in Europe, the couple knew they wanted a spacious family home rooted in Old World style. Although imposing from the outside, with its stone veneers and reclaimed tile roof, the interiors are human-scaled, cozy and luxuriously appointed.

A jaw-dropping entrance introduces a dramatic two-story hall and great room, highlighted by Venetian plaster, heated limestone floors and an Italian carved marble mantel. Craftsman spent a year working on scaffolding to create the complex trim work.	Looking closely, the tile flows like water on the tub surround, showing attention to detail. Undraped windows overlook the private lot, including the owner’s woodshop and a mass of interconnected outdoor living spaces.
Hand-scraped wood floors and walnut paneling with burled walnut insets set a masculine tone for the homeowner’s office. A highlight is the hidden fax closet.	At first glance, it appears that the see-through hearth doesn’t have to compete with the television, like it does in so many homes, but the secret is that a flat-screen TV drops out of the top of the side cabinet whenever the family chooses.
Looking beautiful with cherry cabinets and travertine countertops, the kitchen is also highly functional, incorporating such novel features as a rolling cart with trash and knife drawer underneath, a built-in steamer, pot filler and home automation touchpad. A butler’s pantry opens up extra working space and storage for those times the family has guests over.	The dining room makes a statement with a solid wood table, carved marble fireplace surround, double crystal chandeliers, gold barrel ceiling edges and fabric-lined ceiling boxes. Velvet drapes tied back on one side of the room seem to say — quite appropriately — that it is a stage for entertaining. The entrance to this space from the other side is just as dramatic: a deep, alder wood passageway with a hidden china cabinet and coat closet.
Located near the spaces that get the dirtiest — garage, mudroom, back entry — the laundry room does double duty with four front-loading units tucked under a granite top. The homeowners praise the laundry chute that delivers clothes directly to the room and a cabinet outfitted for air-drying clothes while concealed.	This fan-shaped breakfast nook is one of the homeowners’ favorite rooms in the house, with its three northeastern-facing skylights and three French doors, plus a computer desk hidden behind a built-in walnut ‘armoire.’ The room’s curvature is mimicked outside with a stone patio and partial wall overlooking a golf course.

See the Gold Award Winners
See the Silver Award Winners