Vail Family Condo honored with AIA Design Award

Renovation  – Vail Family Condo

This Vail condo has been with the original family since it was built in the mid 1970’s. Now in the ownership of one of the daughters, the renovation needed to create an inviting vacation home that brought her children and grandchildren together. They wanted a bright, minimal modern home that felt like a ski lodge while not erasing the rich family memories experienced in the home.

The heart of this compact three-story, 2,650-square-foot unit is the second floor which was designed to encourage family gathering. By removing walls and expanding into the existing deck, a large kitchen for family cooking that faces the family and dining rooms was created. A large round dining room table floats between the dining room and kitchen, inviting people to come gather equally. The living room is anchored by a two-story fireplace, and has a large family seating and a game table. With only 7’-10” ceilings on most of this floor, much effort was put into making the space feel more expansive and connected to the outdoors while working with restrictions to the exterior with the HOA. These include increasing the size and number of windows, adding clearstory windows in the vaulted portion of the living room and adding a large sliding door which opens up to a balcony and a dramatic view of the mountain.

White oak wood accents were used to bring in warmth. These contrast with bright white walls and minimal detail to create a modern interpretation of a ski lodge. The subtle palette of tone-on-tone creates the illusion of more space while providing a perfect backdrop for the owner’s bold art collection.

A wood ceiling in the kitchen wraps up the living room wall to visually connect the two spaces and anchor the vaulted space. Wood louvers are introduced at the entry to create a more defined entrance without making it feel small or closed off. Wood slat walls in the bedrooms and office to add warmth and interest to the small spaces.

The lower level was renovated from three bedrooms to four compact on-suite bedrooms, one for each of the four children. Designed for sleeping, they have built-in closets and drawers to unload their suitcases making them clean and functional, while also encouraging them to hang out in the main living space.

The upper floor consists of a compact master suite with walk-in closet and double vanity. Connected to the master suite by a sound insulated pocket door, is a shared vaulted office space with its own bath that serves as a six bedroom for future grandchildren.

The existing spiral staircase was kept as an artifact of the condominiums long history. It was given new life by refinishing the treads and replacing the existing handrail with a sculptural steel screen enclosure made of tightly spaced pickets. The guardrail at the floor was eliminated by replacing the square opening with circular opening and extending the handrail to the floor.

AIA Colorado –

The AIA Colorado Annual Design Awards honor the most outstanding work of AIA Colorado members and their firms, reinforce the value of great architecture and highlight members’ positive contributions to the community.

Previous design award recipients have designed innovative schools, stunning custom homes, creative hotels, excellent community gathering spaces, and much more.

Additionally, the AIA Colorado Honor Awards recognize the people and teams who are making a difference in the architecture profession and their communities. They’re committed to continually growing as architects, value creating a strong team and recognize the power of architecture in our daily lives. Help us congratulate AIA Colorado Design + Honor Award recipients below.