FAMILY TIES BIG DRAW TO LIFE AT THE RANCH

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Paige Bodkin and Troy Koester are moving to The Ranch in Strathmore, where they both grew up and have family — a key factor in their decision. DON MOLYNEAUX / F OR CALGARY HER ALD
FAMILY TIES BIG DRAW
TO LIFE AT THE RANCH
Young couple return to roots and settle down in Strathmore
J O S H S K A PI N
C A LG A RY H E R A L D
A new phase at The Ranch marks a
homecoming for Paige Bodkin and
Troy Koester.
The young couple, set to be
married this September, grew up
in Strathmore, a town east of the
Calgary city limits. While they’ve
since moved to a townhome in
Airdrie, Bodkin and Koester de-
cided there’s no place like home.
The couple bought a house
through Jager Homes in the latest phase at The Ranch, which is
a master-planned community by
United Communities. The veteran
land developer is also behind Nolan Hill in northwest Calgary and
Drake Landing in Okotoks.
“It was about the next step,” says
Bodkin. “Both our families are here
and we found this summer, with
nieces and nephews, we’re back
every weekend for something. We
were spending lots of time at home
and more time in guest bedrooms,
just to be around everybody and
what was going on.”
Once they take possession of
their new Strathmore home, the
couple will rent their townhouse
in Airdrie. Bodkin says they originally turned to Airdrie because of
the price point.
“We decided Airdrie strictly
because at the time we weren’t
ready to be in a full-fledged house
and there wasn’t a lot of options
in Strathmore,” she says. “They
didn’t have anything in that midprice range in Strathmore that was
newer and that we could be comfortable in at the time.”
The new phase at The Ranch offers homes from the $330,000s and
includes 44 lots, each measuring
34 feet wide. Joining Jager in the
phase is WestView Builders.
“The Ranch offers an ideal smalltown experience,” says Steve LePan, marketing director for United
Communities. “You are close to
your neighbours, close to amenities and close to the great outdoors.”
Homes in the new phase have a
garage attached to a neighbour’s.
However, the homes themselves
are three metres apart. Linking
the garages allows the homes to
be zoned as attached homes, which
means the lots cost less. However, the space between the houses
means residents enjoy the benefits
of a single-family home.
Jager and WestView showcase
this housing style through two
show homes each in the community on Ranch Rise. WestView’s
show homes are the Colorado and
the Radley, which each come in a
three bedroom and 2 1/2 bathroom
orientation.
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The homes in The Ranch by Jager Homes boast attractive streetscapes and lots of open spaces. PH OTOS : D ON M OLY N E AU X / F OR CALGARY HER ALD
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The Colorado is 1,480 square feet
and the Radley is 1,339 square feet.
Jager’s show homes are the
1,790-square-foot Eastgate model
and its Waterford floor plan, which
is 1,511 square feet.
On having the garage attached
with the neighbour’s, Bodkin
says “from the inside, you’d never
know.”
The couple picked the Eastgate
model and were fans of its “very
open” main floor, adds Bodkin.
Eastgate has three bedrooms and
2 1/2 bathrooms.
“All the space is very well-utilized,” says Bodkin of the Eastgate.
“There are no nooks and things to
take away space. Stairs go right up
the middle, so you can walk around
the stairs, which I like. It keeps it
all very open.”
Bodkin also singled out the spacious second floor bonus room as
a key piece to the home’s appeal.
And they like that their basement
gives them options.
“Right now, it’s just an open
shell,” Bodkin says. “You know
how sometimes they put in little
jags here and there where you’re
forced to either have a small developed basement or put a bedroom
in a certain place because of what
they’ve already done — for us, this
one worked really well because of
how open it was so we can do any-
W H AT Y O U
NEED TO
KNOW
PROJECT: The Ranch.
DEVELOPER: United Communities.
PRICE: From the $330,000s.
BUILDERS: Jager Homes and
WestView Builders.
HOURS: The show homes
are open 2 to 8 p.m. Monday
through Thursday, and noon
to 5 p.m. on weekends and
holidays.
INFORMATION:
theranchunited.com
The Ranch in Strathmore has lots of green space and is close to amenities, such as a parks and shopping.
thing down there.”
While the move to Strathmore
puts the couple back in reach of
family and friends, picking The
Ranch was much more than that.
“We really like the area. It’s close
to everything,” says Bodkin, pointing out a new grocery store nearby.
“Location was a big thing for
Troy and me because sometimes
if you live right in the middle of
town, you can spend 10 or 15 min-
utes just getting out of town in the
morning.”
Koester and Bodkin both work
out of town, so the commute was
an important consideration.
“(Troy) is still going to be driv-
ing to Calgary and I am still going
to be driving north out of town to
my work,” Bodkin adds. “So it’s
very accessible for the both of us
because it’s boundary roads to get
out of town.”
There’s also plenty to look forward to in the community itself, Bodkin adds. She says the
streetscape is attractive and there’s
open space nearby.
“Where we’re building is right
across from Kinsmen Park so there
is a little lake and a little water park
and a path around that, baseball
diamonds, stuff like that,” Bodkin
says.
“So there is a ton to do within
walking distance.”
He shed, she shed
Growing backyard trend is all about
reimagining outdoor living space
C H R I S L AC K N E R
O T TA W A C I T I Z E N
It’s that instant when you decide
it’s time for your own backyard
hideaway — when you buy into
the fact that sheds aren’t just for
storing junk and hosting cobwebs
anymore.
Backyard sheds are being reimagined as elaborate outdoor
living spaces. The trend has laid
a foundation in Canada just as it
explodes south of the border.
Is any poor, simple storage shed
truly safe? Move over lawn mower.
Find a new space to squat, rusted
paint cans.
Sheds are getting a high-end upgrade, transformed into areas for
entertaining, lounging, studios,
hobby workshops and home offices.
“People don’t think of using a
shed for some purpose other than
storage — a lot of people think,
gross, spiders and bugs or whatever
else,” says Ottawa designer Kristi
Blok of Kiki Interiors.
“(But) the possibilities are endless — and what you’re seeing with
the whole shed trend is people are
keeping that rustic, outdoorsy
look.”
Ottawa’s Lynsey Bennett is a case
in point. Since buying her home
about four years ago, she’s slowly
transformed her backyard into the
perfect outdoor garden, relaxation
and entertainment space. At its
centre, a 14x20-foot shed.
Blok is Bennett’s sister and they
put their heads together to rethink
the property’s storage shed. The
result is a countrified, laid-back,
livable space ideal for Bennett to
lounge and read with her cocker
spaniel, Maddy — one of the shed’s
biggest fans — or to entertain company, whether sizable or intimate.
Bennett’s shed features a wooden bar with three stools, a fridge,
couches and chairs — and some rustic chests and tiny antiques thrown
in for good measure. The barnyard
wood floor has been whitewashed
and reclaimed to provide texture
to the front and back walls. And
two patio doors were added that
open up to her colourful garden
and loungers.
Of course, Bennett’s shady retreat and a cold beverage are only
steps away.
“It’s another extension of my
home,” Bennett says.
“When I do entertain, I don’t
have to have everyone in my house.
I have the deck or people can hang
out in here. It adds another dimension.
“It surprises people when they
come here because I’m living in the
middle of Little Italy but I have all
this square footage.”
In fact, Bennett just hosted her annual Italian week party and the she
shed served as an outdoor bar and
lounge area for her 30 or so guests.
It was important for the sisters
that the shed wasn’t an afterthought. The beige and black colours were chosen to match the
exterior of Bennett’s home.
“We wanted it to feel like it was
part of the house, intentional, and
part of the whole design,” Blok explains, adding the space could easi-
Designer Kristi Blok, left, has created a ‘she shed’ out of a backyard garden
shed for her sister, Lynsey Bennett. J E AN L E VAC/ OT TAWA CIT IZEN
Customized sheds can also be used
as office space. UR BANSHED.CA
Calgary’s Urbanshed makes
custom-made sheds that can
even be used as children’s play
areas. U RBANS H E D S .CA
Urbanshed’s products can be used
for everything from art studios and
hobby spaces to entertainment
lounges. UR BA NSHEDS.CA
The ‘she shed’ is the female version
of a man cave. UR BANSHED.CA
ly double as a home office or a place
for crafting and hobby art — from
sewing to carving and painting.
While existing sheds can be renovated, some people prefer to build
from scratch or have a structure
custom made.
David Dunn certainly gets a lot
of use out of his shed-turned-artgallery, which he bought from
North Country Sheds in Merrickville, Ont.
A gardener and painter, Dunn
wanted a place to show and sell
his paintings of wildlife and woodlands.
The key selling point?
“The double doors at the back
that open into the garden so you are
sort of drawn through the shed into
the garden.”
He and she sheds have another
key selling point: They’re costeffective.
“It’s really affordable without a
mass renovation and it’s so practical and useful,” Blok says.
Jason Fisher, owner of Urbanshed in Calgary, agrees.
“It’s an economical way to add
square footage to your home,”
Fisher explains, noting building
an addition on a house would likely
cost four to five times the price of a
customized shed.
His company both delivers and
builds on-site, offering customized, four-season sheds with options for insulation, heating and
air conditioning.
Urbanshed.ca galleries offer
multiple designs and shed concepts — from a yoga or music studio to a craft room or meditation
space.
Meanwhile, early shed converts
like Bennett continue to benefit
from their outdoor living space.
“Some friends ask, ‘Can I live in
this shed? Do you rent this space
out?’ ” she says.
They’re half-kidding, but maybe
that’s the next step in the evolution
of sheds.