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gate several stairs upon walking in the door. Huguet pushed in the entranceway several feet and put a couple stairs outside, eliminat- ing the immediate interior steps and creating a covered entrance- way outside. "When you walk in the entranceway now, you see this beautiful open glass railing stairway with open treads lead- ing to the third floor," he says. "Everything on the main floor is now one level, which makes it a lot easier to get around." The exterior face-lift encom- passed installing natural cedar cladding, some stucco and stone, plus a planter box and lighting to dress up the entranceway. A large skylight over the entrance- way introduces natural light and enhances the open floor plan. "It created a much cleaner, more modern, open floor plan out of an old box," Huguet says. The main floor also includes a guest suite with a full walk- in closet. "If the owners choose to, they could live on that main floor and the main floor would be totally self-contained," Huguet says. LUXURIOUS EFFICIENCY Not only was My House Design/ Build/Team able to conceptual- ize and execute clever solutions for the clients' desires, but the team did it in a highly sustain- able manner. The house is a Certified Gold Green home and has an EnerGuide rating of 86. EnerGuide is the official mark of the government of Canada for its energy performance and label- ing program. The maximum rating under EnerGuide is 100, though Huguet notes the high- est rating typically seen is in the high 80s. A high-efficiency heating sys- tem with a heat pump acts like geothermal heating by using ambient air to heat and cool the house. A tankless, on-demand hot water tank controls hot water, and energy-efficient glass in the windows and skylights contain heat in the wintertime while reflecting it in the sum- mer. "The specialty glass means they don't need blinds on their windows," Huguet says. Other green elements include high- density spray foam insulation; Energy Star-rated appliances, plumbing and windows; flow- through toilets and faucets; and certified green cabinetry construction. Huguet is particularly proud of repurposing parts of the house and presenting those ideas to the city in such a way that they were allowed to move forward. "There are a lot of considerations in this area, including not block- ing the view of your neighbors, and of course the square foot- age requirements," he says. "The fact we got that passed was the best part, next to seeing the final accomplishment of all the pieces coming together." QR ForResidentialPros.com QR July 2014 15 The main floor, which now sits evenly on one level, is open, airy and filled with light. ONLINE BONUS View extra photos of this project by visit- ing ForResidentialPros. com/11520657 Before After QUR_12-15_MDS714 a.indd 15 6/30/14 1:49 PM