Chicago Office

As we announced last week, Visbeen Associates will be opening an office in downtown Chicago. Here is a first look at our space, located at 2251 S Michigan Ave, Suit 320, Chicago, IL 60616:

Exterior shot of the building - 2251 S Michigan Ave

Entry/lobby area with office on the right

View to the loft - first impression of the space

Open area with loft on the left, office below and kitchen to the right

Loft is an old elevator shaft with equipment still visible

Conference Room

View of McCormick Place out the window

Chicago-Bound

Chicago -- here we come! Visbeen Associates has decided to expand our business and open up an office in downtown Chicago. This new venture will allow us to service our Metro Chicago clients locally and hopefully will broaden our business into the surrounding areas of the midwest. Here is our Chicago contact information:

2251 S Michigan Avenue

Suite 320

Chicago, IL 60616

phone - 312.810.5669

Spread the word!

Detroit Home Design Awards Winner!

Yesterday, Visbeen Associates staff members attended the Detroit Home Design Awards in Troy, MI put on by Detroit Home Magazine. We won 13 awards, including the highest honor of Best Overall Home for Kearney Hill! Here are the accolades we received and a few photos from the event:

Best Overall Home

Kearney Hill

Builder: Insignia Homes, Interior Designer: Julie Holmes

2nd Place, Vacation Home under 3,000 sq ft

Clareville

Builder: Jeff Segard, Interior Designer: Julie Holmes

3rd Place, Vacation Home under 3,000 sq ft

Rylestone

Builder: Douglas Sumner Builder, Inc., Interior Designer: Rick Whallon

3rd Place, Vacation Home under 3,000 sq ft

Sunsweet Hill

Builder: Distinctive Homes, Interior Designer: Kim Waltman

2nd Place, Vacation Home over 3,000 sq ft

Kearney Hill

Builder: Insignia Homes, Interior Designer: Julie Holmes

3rd Place, Vacation Home over 3,000 sq ft

Inverness

Builder: BDR, Inc., Interior Designer: Julie Holmes, Mary Buikema

2nd Place, Contemporary Architecture over 4,000 sq ft

Sinclaire

Builder: Mike Schaap Builders, Inc., Interior Designer: Missy Pratt

3rd Place, Contemporary Architecture over 4,000 sq ft

Reynard

Builder: Jeff Segard, Interior Designer: Donna Cohen

3rd Place, Traditional Architecture over 4,000 sq ft

Petoskey

Builder: David C. Bos Homes, Interior Designer: Shelly Nietering

2nd Place, Kitchen between 201 & 500 sq ft

Inverness

Builder: BDR, Inc., Interior Designer: Julie Holmes, Mary Buikema

In addition to the accolades above, we were awarded in several detail categories:

3rd Place, Deck/Patio/Porch

3rd Place, Gate/Fence/Wall

3rd Place, Exterior Use of Stone, Tile, Concrete

Jonathan Lorenz, Marcy Stellin, Megan TerVeen & Ryan LaHaie waiting for the ceremony to start

Awards Attendees

Awards Presentation

Angela Mulder, Megan TerVeen & Marcy Stellin with our many awards!

To view the full story published in Detroit Home Magazine, click here.

Architectural Tutorial: Contemporary Style

In our upcoming Architectural Tutorials, we will be outlining and defining architectural styles. Today's tutorial will cover contemporary architecture.

Contemporary architecture is typically defined as the "building style of the present day."* But the styles of present day have a variety of influences, so the term is not so easily characterized. The contemporary style has been known to "feature reflective surfaces, clean and sleek lines, innovative graphical patterns, unusual colors, rounded forms, and asymmetrical designs."**Contemporary homes often incorporate materials like stainless steel, polished marble, chrome and recycled materials and frequently deal with the monochromatic, minimalistic and neutral color schemes.

You may not know that in addition to our many traditional residential designs, Visbeen Associates has numerous contemporary homes in our portfolio of work. Here are just a few examples of our contemporary designs.

Sinclaire - Detroit Home Design Award Winner

Reynard - ARDA & Detroit Home Design Award Winner

Aronimink

Sebastian

*http://www.wisegeek.com/m/what-is-contemporary-architecture.htm

**http://www.homedesignfans.com/4524/difference-between-meaning-contemporary-and-modern-design/

Brooklyn Museum to Open First Phase of Transformative Renovation | www.broadwayworld.com

The Booklyn Museum in New York is in the initial phase of a major renovation. As part of this transformation, the Museum Shop will be relocated and it's new space has been designed by Visbeen Associates. In a recent article, www.broadwayworld.com has this to say about our involvement in the project,

"The Museum Shop will be relocated to the area currently occupied by the Robert E. Blum Gallery near the main lobby. The new shop will be redesigned by Visbeen Associates, Inc., an award-winning architectural firm based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, whose projects include several of the Metropolitan Museum of Art satellite stores, as well as the Peabody Essex Museum shop. Important new features to enhance the visitor's experience will be a wider entrance that will open onto the Grand Lobby, providing greater visual access to the galleries in the Great Hall and assisting with circulation patterns, as well as a new signage system."

Here are a few 3D views of our initial design concepts for the Museum Shop.

To read the full article about this grand renovation, please visit the following website:

Brooklyn Museum to Open First Phase of Transformative Renovation 2011/02/24

To view other retail designs by Visbeen Associates, Inc., please visit the gallery of our website: www.visbeen.biz > gallery > commercial projects > retail.

Grosse Pointers Build Certified Earth-Friendly Home | The Detroit News

Our LEED certified residential design in Grosse Pointe Park, the Kensington, was featured in an article in the Detroit News! Learn about the challenges of Charlie & Lynn Arnett's journey through the design and building of their environmentally-friendly home. To view the full article, click on the following link:

Grosse Pointers build certified earth-friendly home | detnews.com | The Detroit News

Job Opening at Visbeen Associates, Inc.

We currently have a position available here at Visbeen Associates. Our Controller, Marcy Stellin, will unfortunately be leaving our company for another job opportunity, so we have an opening for a part-time controller to manage the financial activities of our firm. The successful candidate will have experience handling the following responsibilities:

• financial reporting: financial statement preparation and analysis (monthly, quarterly and annually) - various entities and formations (C Corp, S Corp, LLC, etc); budget and variance analysis and explanations; planning implementing and developing accounting system improvements; cash management; strategic planning and develop initiatives for improving performance; monitor compliance with financial institution loan terms; client billing and collections; contract preparation and management.

• business development and management: research technical issues involving potential business and investment opportunities; analyze business acquisitions for profitability and returns; research and apply corporate and personal tax strategies; summarize data for income tax filings; manage copyright infringement litigation; business insurance review and placement; manage relationship with professional service providers including accountants, attorneys, financial advisors, insurance agents, and investment advisors.

• human resources: payroll calculation and administration; benefit plan administration and management - medical, dental, vision, life disability; 401K plan administration.

Qualified applicants who wish to join our dynamic team should submit a cover letter and resume to info@visbeen.biz.