Set on 8.39 acres bordering a wetland, this newly built, modern, hillside home joins Gordon James Construction & Development’s private, five-site residential development in Orono, Minnesota.
As the third house built in this exclusive neighborhood, it encompasses approximately 6,540 square feet with five bedrooms, six bathrooms, an indoor sport court, dedicated wellness spaces, plus a chef-quality kitchen and a dramatic pool area for entertaining. The project was completed on an accelerated 10-month timeframe for the 2024 Summer Artisan Home Tour, and it is now known as Orchard Creek Hillside.
Modern, Museum-Quality Framed Views
The new home was custom designed for a family of five by Tommy Everson of Everson Architect. Another one of Everson’s completed projects in the development served as inspiration for Orchard Creek Hillside.
“While touring the development, the clients saw the first house we designed in partnership with Gordon James, the Orchard Creek Overlook. That house has more of a mountain modern architectural style and was designed to blend into the natural setting,” remembered Everson. “The clients liked the setting and layout, but said they wanted an ‘even more modern’ design.”
He noted, “I’ve heard people say the new Orchard Creek Hillside home looks like something you would find in California, Arizona or Florida. The way we configured it—tucked into the hillside—it’s nestled within nature; it physically feels like a part of the landscape, yet aesthetically stands in contrast with it.”
“In this home, it was more about the expansive use of space and views,” clarified Everson. “We used Kolbe Windows & Doors. The large glass openings with narrow framing give it a museum quality, where the windows become the artwork and draw you into the dynamic views.”
Jeremy Thompson, senior project manager with Gordon James Construction & Development, agreed: “The windows were a huge part of this house. It’s no surprise that many people on the Artisan Home Tour commented on how great the windows looked, and asked what brand they were.”
Approachable, Personalized Entry
While the Orchard Creek Hillside home is a picturesque portrait of modern design from every angle, the front façade of the house is intentionally understated. Distinctive, approachable and welcoming, the personalized 9-foot-tall entry door was custom-crafted by Kolbe Windows & Doors. Composed of horizontally oriented walnut wood, the door’s boards align with the adjacent dark-gray exterior siding. An expansive 9-foot-tall window flanking the entry door provides a glimpse into the home and vast landscape beyond.
The large glass openings with narrow framing give it a museum quality, where the windows become the artwork and draw you into the dynamic views.
This window, like the rest of the home’s Kolbe VistaLuxe WD LINE products, prioritizes the glass and views with minimal, narrow framing. On the exterior, the extruded aluminum is finished in onyx black. On the interior, the pine wood trim also was painted to match the modern color palette. Upon entering the home, a 15-foot-tall window wall offers panoramic views of the surrounding wetland area and pool below.
“The homeowners didn’t want to draw a lot of attention with a grand entry. Instead, they reserved the grandiose gesture for the back of the house,” shared Everson.
Dramatic Design for Indoor-Outdoor Living
The back of the house showcases an ideal blend of indoor-outdoor living with a dramatic, yet casually inviting outdoor pool area connected to the home by way of an open-air pavilion and an expansive 9-by-20-foot, all-aluminum framed, multi-slide glass door.
“We designed the core of the house around this door. The pool is lined up exactly with the lower level’s windows and the multi-slide door,” Everson said proudly. “It’s a three-panel door system from Kolbe VistaLuxe AL LINE. It is a truly unique product from Kolbe, with such narrow framing and such a large opening.”
Before committing to Kolbe VistaLuxe products for their house, the homeowners visited Kolbe Gallery Twin Cities in Edina. “Seeing the door system in person made a big impact on the homeowners,” recognized Everson. “The showroom is top notch! The people who work there understand more than just their products; they understand architecture. I don’t feel the need to accompany clients on every visit. I can just send our drawings ahead of time and know that our clients will be taken care of.”
He elaborated, “The gallery’s high level of service, high quality displays and products speak for themselves. Homeowners are able to see, feel and experience this first-hand in the showroom. We’ve had a lot of success creating homes of all styles with Kolbe’s products to meet whatever the client wants.”
Everson said he considers the Kolbe VistaLuxe AL multi-slide door “a critical design element” to the Orchard Creek Hillside project. “The thin frame profiles were really important to the homeowners and to achieve as streamlined of a look as possible. Kolbe’s VistaLuxe lines have such a clean aesthetic. You can tell they were designed in collaboration with architects.”
Reiterating the design priorities, Everson said, “It’s all about the view and connection to the surrounding landscape. On the lower level, you look through the glass door, onto the pool and into the landscape beyond. When the door’s closed, it looks so convincingly like a window that people on the Artisan tour didn’t realize they could open it.”
Wellness and Natural Light
Everson worked with the homeowners to extend the pool’s loungey vibe and wellness theme inside the home’s lower level. “Inspired by the health clubs they had frequented through the years, we created a spa on the lower level that includes a yoga studio, sauna, steam shower and a daybed area. These spaces are located around the corner from an indoor sport court. The spa area also has direct access to the pool and an adjacent hot tub. We kept all of these on the same level and connected to each other,” he explained.
We’ve had a lot of success creating homes of all styles with Kolbe’s products to meet whatever the client wants.
Also on the lower level, there is a large room for casual entertaining and two guest bedrooms. Everson continued, “On the main level, we have three bedrooms with the kids’ wing on one side of the house and the parents’ on the other, with a great room in the middle providing common space for everyone to gather.”
Throughout both stories of the house, most rooms include at least one operable window or exterior door. The floor-to-ceiling windows are proportionally scaled with reference to the lower-level multi-slide door. Several window size modules were used to unify the glazing patterns throughout the house, establishing a hierarchy for various architectural elements.
“The front faces north, giving a calming, indirect light through the large openings. The back faces south, bringing a lot of direct light into the house,” described Everson. “The south-facing interior floating glass staircase is anchored by a two-story chimney, connecting both levels. You are surrounded by glass and hardly notice anything other than the views because of the minimal window framing. Kolbe’s windows are a huge part of achieving that experience.”
Everson added, “The client had requested vaulted ceilings for the living room, so clerestory windows were integral to that feature. They run east-west where the sun angle tends to be lower, but their size and positioning helps control the amount and quality of light they let in. Conceptually, they help articulate the white stucco banding that wraps the home’s exterior.”
Color, Comfort and Long Views
The undulating white stucco band provides a strong visual element for the home’s exterior. Everson noted: “It is the basis for the architectural language we were using, complimented by glazing and dark siding.”
Along with modern architecture’s signature white and black color choices, grayscale tones, natural wood and stone were added to the interior. Everson and the homeowners worked with a Minnesota-born, California-based interior designer to articulate the desired appearance.
As seen on the custom entry door, the client was partial to walnut wood and a smokey blue color that influenced the exterior siding’s selection. On the interior, the design team mixed in white oak and granite. Everson appreciated that: “It’s simple, but there’s a warmth to it. It gives the home a livable, comfortable feel.”
Indoor-outdoor comfort is extended from the main floor in the form of a covered outdoor deck accessible from the great room and the parents’ bedroom. “In Minnesota, we have a short pool season, so the deck offers outdoor space for other times of the year,” said Everson. “The floor of the deck provides shelter from the elements for the pavilion area and walkways below.”
“Where the lower level’s views draw you outside to the pool, the main floor is more about the long views. The windows and doors subtly frame views of the landscape and beyond into the wilderness,” observed Everson. “When the light is just right outside, you can see a reflection of the house mirrored in the pool from the backyard.”
Complex Construction, Savvy Clients
As the senior project manager, Thompson has been involved in almost every project by Gordon James Construction & Development. Addressing the Orchard Creek Hillside home’s 10-month construction schedule, Thompson acknowledged, “A timeframe that quick is unheard of for a house of this size and complexity.”
Contributing to the project’s success, Everson noted that the clients “were construction savvy. They previously owned and heavily remodeled in a tuck-under rambler in a Twin Cities suburb. They liked its modern aesthetic, but were limited by the existing building footprint and lot size. One of the clients also had plenty of experience with build-outs through her work in the restaurant industry, and was quite savvy with interior selections.”
To meet the scheduling challenge, Thompson credited the team’s expertise, careful coordination and hands-on attention. Among the additional office-based staff, a selections coordinator managed specifications and confirmed every item was correct. Thompson said, “We worked with client and architect to make adjustments as needed as the project progressed.”
While Gordon James Construction & Development works with many window and door manufacturers, Thompson shared his positive experience with Kolbe on the Orchard Creek Hillside home. “Kolbe met the balance of the design that was needed to make the project work. Kolbe’s staff worked directly and seamlessly with the architect to put all the specifications together.”
Accurate information and a smooth construction sequence were essential to the home’s on-time completion. After the build started, the pool pavilion was added and required additional fast-tracking to align it with the overall schedule. As captain to the team, a project manager was on site every day leading the work and a site technician provided on-location support.
Thompson said that as soon as the framing was done in the fall of 2023, the pool was installed. Windows and doors followed, and were completely installed in November. With regard to the lower-level Kolbe VistaLuxe AL multi-slide door, he added, “Their install was seamless.”