A
BOTTOM: JEFFWOLFRAMPHOTOGRAPHY
CapeCod,Massachusetts. I’m inFortLau-
derdale, sothatwas interesting, supervis-
inga jobthat faraway,”hesays. “Webuilta
house forthiscoupledownhere,andthey
wantedsomeonetheycouldtrust inMas-
sachusetts, sotheyhiredus. Ihiredsome
local trades forthemechanicals,but forthe
finishtrades, Ihadpeopledriveup from
Floridaandhadtoputthemup fromweek
toweek inordertocompletetheproject.”
The jobendedupbeinganuphillbattle
forbothcontractorandhomeowner. “The
homeowneroriginallybought12acres,and
hewas forcedtogiveeightof thoseacres
tothenationalpreservationtrust just for
theprivilegeofbuildingontheoceanfront
property,”saysPaskoski.
Paskoski’scurrentproject inCoral
Gables,Florida, though, isamonghismost
complex. “Whenwestarted, itwas80
pagesofdrawingsandnowwe’reupto400,”
hesaysofthe future17,000-square-foot
home. “Everytimeweturnaround, the
homeownersandtheirarchitectsaregrow-
ingtheproject.Butwhen it’sdone, itwill
beoneofthemostuniquehomeseverbuilt.”
Aboldstatement, tobesure, forsome-
onewhohasbuiltsomeofAmerica’smost
spectacularestates.
20,000-square-foothomeatSt.Andrews
CountryClub inBocaRaton,Florida, for
BernieMarcus, theco-founderofHome
Depot. “Thehomeownersawthispicture
ofahoneycomb inamagazineandwanted
itrecreated inthehouse,”saysPaskoski,
who, inthetraditionofAddisonMizner,
handcraftedthespectacularceilingdesign
outof300-year-oldpeckycypress25 feet
abovethehome’sexpansive familyroom.
Paskoskialso installedapneumaticglass-
cylinderelevator— likethoseonceused in
ocesandbankstotransportdocuments
acrosstheroom—tocarryMarcusupto
his in-home loftoce. “Hedidn’twantan
elevatorbecausehe’sveryfitandathletic
foramanover80.ButIconvincedhimthat
hewouldnevergototheoceafterthe
firsttime ifwedidn’tputsomething like
this in,”recallsPaskoski.The lakefront
estatewas latervoted“houseof theyear”
bytheConstructionAssociationofSouth
FloridaandhelpedestablishPaskoskias
oneof thetop500residentialcontrac-
tors intheU.S.by
QualifiedRemodelers
magazine.
ALTHOUGHSOMEOF
theUnitedStates’
tophomebuildershaveworkedabroadcre-
atingsecondandeventhirdresidences for
theirclients,mostof thework isregional
duetotheconstraintsof labor. “We’re
lookingataprojectrightnow inMumbai;
it’sa luxuryresidential tower,andwe’re
lookingatdoingoneof theresidences,”
saysTaconic’sTyer. “We’realso looking
atone inAntigua.Butthechallengeof
workingoutof thecountry issourcing
materialstothesite,andfindingsubcon-
tractors,particularlyfinishcontractors,
whocanachievethe leveloffinishwork
we’reusedtodelivering.Soonanyof these
projectsabroad, ithassortofbeenpartof
theupfrontstrategy—andcost—tohavea
U.S. contractorwithU.S. resources, sothey
knowtheywillachievethe leveloffinish
theyaretryingtoget,”hesays.
ForPaskoski, justgettingahouse
builtacrossthecountryposed itsown
sortofchallenges. “We justfinisheda
10,000-square-footoceanfrontestate in
MASTER
BUILDERS
Looking for an
extreme home
builder?Here are a
handful of companies
toget you started.
AgstenConstruction
Charleston,
WestVirginia
Agstenworks inand
around the statebut pri-
marily focuseson luxury
homeswithinGreenbrier
County.
construction.com
GrunowConstruction
LaJolla,California
Grunow specializes in
historicpreservationof
existing luxuryhomes,
aswell as custom
home remodels andnew
home construction.
construction.com
MaloneConstruction
Atlanta
Buildsboth classic and
modernhigh-end resi-
dential homes in someof
theSouth’smost pres-
tigious neighborhoods.
Oneof itsmasterpieces
includes ThePrado, a
modern structural
steel-and-stoneveneer
residence featuringan
oversizedPalladian-style
colonnadeentranceand
dramatic circular stair-
case.
construction.com
MichaelDavisDesign&
Construction
Sagaponack,NewYork
The companybuilds
luxury residential spec
houses, includinga
$25.95millionhouse
inTheHamptons that
welcomedmore than75
potential buyers to its
openhouse.
www
.michaeldavis.com
PaskoskiConstruction
FortLauderdale,
Florida
Paskoski specializes in
large-scale luxury resi-
dences in the southeast,
primarily inCoral Gables
andBocaRaton, Florida.
construction.com
SizebreedConstruction
London
Itsmain focus is on
building luxury residen-
tial properties inLondon
andSouthernEngland;
specializes in compli-
cated structural work,
aswell as refurbish-
ment, conservationand
restoration. It alsooers
abespokemaintenance
serviceafter the job is
done toensureproper
careof everything.
TaconicBuilders
Mamaroneck,NewYork
Taconic has a heavy
concentration of luxury
residential properties
inManhattan. However,
the firm recently began
to expandoutside of
the statewith projects
inCalifornia, Connecti-
cut andEngland, among
other locations.
builders.com
WILLIAMKISSEL
writesabout luxury fashion,architecture
and interior design. His work has appeared in the
Los
Angeles Times
,
RobbReport
and
Virtuoso Life
, among
other publications.
LEFT:
Originally
slatedas amodest
addition/renovation,
thisTaconicproject
inWeston, Con-
necticut, turned into
a 14,000-square-
foot estatewitha
movie theater, ten-
nis courts, apool, a
spaandabilliards
room.
BELOW:
Ahomeat The
Greenbrier Sporting
Club inWhite
Sulphur Springs,
WestVirginia
WINTER
AA.COM CELEBRATEDLIVING
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