Gold Award

Stephen C. Gidley, Inc., Darien, Conn.
Project location: Wilton, Conn.
Sq. ft. before: 250
Sq. ft. after: 10,000
Project cost: $450,000

This glorious outdoor living project in suburban Connecticut came about through sheer force of will. Upon seeing the steep grade of the rear yard, and knowing that solid rock lay beneath, the first three pool contractors enlisted to bid the job said it could not be done without collateral damage to the home.

The fourth pool contractor took the job and did so brazenly. He bet the homeowner that there would not be a crack or paint chip inside the house as a result of the needed rock blasting, even though the home was only 25 ft. away.

The homeowner lost his bet, but ultimately won. In the end the steep yard was transformed into an outdoor-living showplace that utilized the granite and boulders that were exposed in the process.

Taking the homeowner’s vision and translating it into a functional yet beautiful space fell to the general contractor/remodeler Stephen Gidley Inc. The team designed a program that involves a complex multilevel deck with bridges linking different parts of the home. The upstairs master bedroom has its own private deck that leads straight out to the pool. The main living space opens onto a lower-level deck with an elegantly designed stone staircase up the side of the retaining wall/hillside to the pool. This lower deck receives another deck off

of a recreation room located above the garage. Yet for all of the difficulty in integrating the house with its unforgiving topography, the whole program works seamlessly.

No detail was too small to consider. For example, a seldom seen portion of the underside of the deck is finished with bead board. Also, the natural shaped pool utilizes a “diving rock” instead of a diving board. Ultimately it is the beauty of the pool that wins the day. It is surrounded by exposed ledge rock into which a space for a hot tub/waterfall combination was carved.

Stephen Gidley’s last note to the Master Design Award judges: “Please enjoy the following presentation.”

They did.

Specified Products

Brick/Masonry: Portland Cement, Allentown Type II
Decking: Port Orford Cedar/Osmosis
Paints/Stains: Benjamin Moore; Cabot’s
Roofing: GAF; Elk – Williamsburg Slate – Camelot Style
Structural materials: Georgia Pacific; U.S. Steel

Silver
Mosaic Group, Atlanta, Ga.

Bronze
Mosaic Group, Atlanta, Ga.

Honorable mention
Team Entry: WreckCREATIONS, Lexington, Ky. and Pohl Rosa Pohl Architecture and Design