Above: The home’s kitchen works as well for entertaining as it
does for family meals.
Left: This three-story glass stair tower with its 24-foot-high wall
of uplit stacked stone is one of the home’s most notable features.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019 | TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 47
Windstar Homes’ clients do not have a need to choose
between luxury and efficiency or between comfort
and savings. Clients come to Windstar to experience
a new level of inspired living and to enjoy an exciting
array of resort-style amenities. Yes, they want to have their cake
and eat it, too.
The journey from the design process to the completed Windstar
home is an essential part of every project undertaken. Windstar’s
relationship with its clients is one of mutual collaboration from
the initial introduction through the life of the project. The firm
believes that an understanding of their clients’ lives and the visions
for how they want to live are essential in designing successful
projects. Through open and continuous dialog, Windstar clients
are part of the project team and along for the journey. That is why
Windstar Homes has built multiple homes for many of its clients,
as their lives and situations change.
This home’s design presented many challenges due to the site’s
constraints and the client’s desires. As a result, the design of this
very compact modern home was able to accomplish the client’s
goals and ultimately exceed expectations.
Besides the home site being the smallest lot that was platted
in its municipality, the primary design challenge was to create
the ultimate in floor plan flexibility. The clients, who happen to
live next door, wanted a home that could be used as a retreat or
club for their main residence. The goal was to create a home that
would allow them to repurpose rooms for things such as a movie
theater, arcade, bunk room and home fitness center, so that in the
event they wanted to sell the home, they could easily transform
the home to a family plan without much effort.
One of the most notable features of the house is the three-story
glass stair tower that features a 24-foot-tall wall of uplit stacked
stone. Features such as the elevator, four-car garage and sky lounge
on the roof level that has a sky bar and firepit are noteworthy for
their uniqueness.
The 39th annual design competition of the Southwest Building
Conference awarded two silver Aurora Awards to this home that
is called Club Mez for Best Custom Home Under 4,000 Square
Feet, and Best in Interior Detailing for a Home Priced Between $1
and $2 Million Dollars. The American Residential Design Awards
presented two American Institute of Building Designers awards
to the home for Outdoor Living and Best Design Details. These
four awards have brought Windstar Homes up to 67 such awards
for its homes. These awards are given by a distinguished panel of
experts for architectural design, craftsmanship and intrinsic beauty.