The National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) has selected 148 Regional "Contractor of the Year" (CotY) winners during its January 2009 competition.
The Des Plaines, Ill.-based association is comprised of approximately 800,000 U.S. companies and individuals identifying themselves as remodelers.
The annual CotY contest invites NARI contractors from seven regions around the country to submit descriptions and 'before and after photos' of projects completed between July 1, 2007, and Nov. 30, 2008, that revamped or refined existing structures.
Entrants were judged by a panel of industry experts on a variety of factors, including presentation, innovation, functionality, craftsmanship, and degree of difficulty.
Winners are listed on the NARI Web site, www.nari.org, with categories ranging from Residential Kitchen Under $30,000 to Home Theater & Media Rooms $150,000 and Over.
David Baskam, a design and management partner of Baskam-Sotera, a Long Island, N.Y.-based home remodeling company, won seven CotYs in 2008 and earned two more in 2009. One of these awards was for an "Entire House Over $1,000,000" built for a family of five.
"There was an enormous amount of elements comprising the total project scope and a ton of detail required to pull it off," Baskam says. "The home is located along the Long Island Sound and wide open to the north and in particular to Northeasterly storms."
But Baskam, whose company he says "prides itself on taking on more difficult, odd projects," incorporated special roofing, windows, and paneling to make the house weatherproof.
Baskam-Sotera's other award-winning project was for a "Residential Addition $250,000 & Over" that included the reconstruction of an existing basement wall and construction of a new office and a new master bedroom, as well as the renovation of the first-floor kitchen on "a budget that was past its max."
Baskam says he looks forward to attending the NARI Evening of Excellence on March 28 in Atlanta. The event—the most prestigious for those in the remodeling industry—will culminate with the national CotY Awards ceremony.
A complete list of 2009 winners can be found here.
