PEOPLE&
PROJECTS
Blumenkamp Named Volunteer of the Year by Association of Pool & Spa Professionals Region 3
The Woodlands based Texas Pools, is proud to announce that Thom Blumenkamp, Certified Building Professional (CBP) received the 2012 Volunteer Leadership Award from the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals (APSP) Region 3 at a recent Design Awards ceremony.
Thom Blumenkamp has been a senior designer at Texas Pools since 2005. He has
won numerous awards for design and technical achievement, and is an APSP Certified Building Professional. He is a member of the board of directors of the Greater Houston Chapter of the Association of Pool and Spa Professionals (APSP) and sits on the APSP Region 3 Advisory Council.
APSP Region 3 established its Volunteer of the Year Award to annually honor one outstanding volunteer who has made a significant impact within the region. Recipients of the Region 3 Volunteer of the Year Award have demonstrated exemplary leadership, consistency, willingness, reliability and spirit. Visit
www.texaspools.com to find out more.
Woodforest Earns ‘Most Active’ Status
In a recently released report prepared by Bohlke Consulting Group, Woodforest posted the most Montgomery County housing starts of any development, with 234 building permits awarded from July 2011 to June 2012. The number of building permits issued in Woodforest rose 189 percent during the 12 months ending June 30 compared to the previous 12 months, said Bohlke’s Gary Latz.
“Woodforest’s growth is remarkable for the Houston area, which recorded a 25.4 percent increase during the same time period,” Latz said. “With The Woodlands expansion occurring primarily in Harris County, Woodforest is by far the most active community in Montgomery County.”
Woodforest’s sales pace mirrors the increase in the number of building permits, with 167 new-home sales through mid-July, a jump of 166 percent over 2011.
Despite the success Woodforest now enjoys, it was a slow start for the community. The launch of Woodforest, which surrounds Woodforest Golf Club, was delayed to allow the completion of the Fish Creek Thoroughfare, the major access point into the community. Fish Creek Thoroughfare opened in mid-2009, with Woodforest hosting a community grand opening shortly thereafter. But by then, the nation’s housing crisis was in full swing and Houston buyers were staying home — literally — with housing starts in a steep decline. Economists forecast a long and difficult recovery.
Housing starts were similarly slow in Woodforest, which opened with “two and a half” builders. “We actually had only two builders when Woodforest opened because our third builder was going through bankruptcy and reorganization,” Yoakum said. “When D.R. Horton and Highland Homes joined our builder list in early 2010, it proved to be a real game-changer for the development.”
Developers saw diversity as key to the community’s survival and made a concerted effort to continue adding more builders and to offer a variety of home styles. Today, 12 builders are active in Woodforest and 12 model homes are open. Amenities also are in place, including several playgrounds, a spray park, three miles of hike-and-bike trails and —soon-to-open — a bark park and sports fields. Construction has started on a fire station within Woodforest and crews will begin work this fall on Forest Island, a recreation complex with an aquatic park, tennis and basketball courts and more. For more information, visit www.woodforesttx. com and
www.johnsondevelopment.com.
Morning Star Builders Named 2012 Design Excellence Award Winner
Morning Star Builders has been named a 2012 Design Excellence Award winner by Residential Design + Build magazine. The annual awards program recognizes residential design and construction firms for excellence in the single-family custom home market. The judges chose Morning Star Builders for its success at addressing challenges, design creativity and overall dedication to success and as proof of the firm’s unwaver- ing quality as the nation’s housing market begins its slow recovery.
This award winning master bathroom features a barrel vaulted ceiling finished in exquisite glass mosaic tile, a digital shower controller with bedside remote, heated
20 SEPTEMBER 2012 | HOUSTON BUILDER | GREATER HOUSTON BUILDERS ASSOCIATION – BUILDING A BETTER FUTURE
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