“A vacation without ever leaving home,” was the MO for these executive homeowners who spend a great deal of time on the road. The solution: an onsite timber frame sports barn replete with a full kitchen, a lounge, and generous covered wrap-around porches. The centerpiece of this barndominium, is a regulation basketball court designed for their basketball-loving family to be the stars of their own team. The finishing touch is a towering turret that pays homage to the soybean silos of the barn’s Midwest locale.
“From the pictures we saw on the website…the first phone call…how quick it became a reality…how awesome it looks, it has just been a great experience all together working with New Energy Works,” says the homeowner. “I tell people when they come over that it turned out better than I even thought it would, better than we could ever have imagined.”
The home is located typical midwestern subdivision, but the homeowners own a 250-acre parcel at the end of the road. “Frankly we just wanted somewhere to spend afternoons and weekends. In particular, during the wintertime. It’s kind of dreary outside in these parts, so we felt like we needed something indoors,” the homeowner continued.
“It started as, ‘Where can we find a place to keep a couple tractors and some convertibles that I don’t drive all of the time…’ Then it became ‘Well, what if we put a basketball court in there for indoor fun…’ Then we thought, ‘Well, we also need a place to entertain…’ and it evolved from that.”
“I started looking at a more economical and base-functional outbuilding and then decided that I didn’t want to spend my time in something like that,” the homeowner continued. A timber frame structure that offered a multitude of uses and with high craftsmanship sounded much more in-line with a place that could be welcoming and also meet all of the family’s needs:
“The timber beams add a character that’s hard to replicate. We wanted somewhere to hang out that had a beauty unlike anything else around us. I spent about two years researching places on the internet until I found New Energy Works. I just loved the projects that they have done, and the fine woodworking they can craft.”
“The process was pretty easy really. We got with Eric at New Energy Works and said, ‘Here’s what we are looking for.’ We immediately started throwing pictures around and before you know it, we were settling in on a design meeting and plotting it out from there,” the homeowner continued.
“We took pieces from several of New Energy Work’s past work and some other projects that inspired us. Then New Energy Works would say, ‘We understand what you’re looking for, how about we tweak this.’ It was a great collaboration between Eric, New Energy Works architect Kyle Barber, my wife, and me.”
The barn is expansive and multi-use. It stores farm equipment, keeps the kids busy, and spotlights several high-craft spaces where the homeowners can have large or small family gatherings. It’s a rustic resort with modern amenities, lots of light, and spaces for any recreational activity you can imagine.
“My wife and I also wanted something that represented place—the central prairie of the United States. So, the turret was designed pay homage to the soybean silos that mark our surrounding areas.”
Inside the “silo” is an ornate iron spiral staircase that connects two levels of the building. Upon reaching the second level is a loft style ladder with its apex reaching a small landing at the peak of the turret that provides visitors elevated views of the property.
New Energy Works sister company Pioneer Millworks provided both the reclaimed exterior siding and interior reclaimed flooring for the barn. On the exterior of the building is sustainably harvested Farmed Board, crafted in the U.S.A. from domestic softwood lumber that has been carefully exposed to natural elements, weathering gracefully over time to give it a classic barn-board appearance.
Installed in all the interior areas, minus the basketball court area, is Pioneer Millworks Settler’s Plank Reclaimed Oak. Salvaged from agricultural timbers and joists from long-enjoyed structures across the north and southeast, this flooring provides history, character, and texture to the inside of the barn.
“My wife and I are both busy people. We both travel all the time for work, so when it’s the weekend the last thing we want to do is grab the kids and get in the car and go somewhere. We want to hang here—and that’s what’s been fun…when we get home, we get to stay home. Now our vacation is only a short walk away. It’s where we go to watch football on Saturday and Sunday; the neighbors come over and we barbecue; the kids run around in the gym, they can do whatever they want. It’s been great for all of us, kids and adults alike.”
Design: New Energy Works
Flooring: Pioneer Millworks
Engineer: Eclipse Engineering
Photography: Michael Lipman
