Glacier Peak High School Visits New Homes in Snohomish

Mike Kinney explains how how hard surfaces and finishes were chosen at Larimer Highlands

I recently had the opportunity to repeat a very enjoyable day from last year. The interior design class from Glacier Peak High School in Snohomish returned for another tour of our new homes.

As many of you already know, Pacific Ridge Homes takes great pride in giving back to our communities wherever possible. Since two of our newest neighborhoods are located in the prestigious Snohomish School District, this opportunity seemed like a great way to continue our support of their classes.

On January 5^th, 27 students in Joan Langkow’s interior design class came to tour two of our newest Snohomish County communities, Larimer Crossing and Larimer Highlands. These 9^th – 12^th graders have received excellent theoretical and classroom instruction from Ms. Langkow and now had a chance to see how everything comes together in a new home.

Just one of the five homes Joan Langkow's interior design class toured while visiting Larimer Crossing and Larimer Highlandss in the Mill Creek-Snohomish area.

I walked them through three homes in Larimer Crossing and two homes in Larimer Highlands, showing various interior design features and upgrades and how we work within different square footage constraints. I showed them how lot size plays a very important role in home floor plan design. I explained how we strive very hard to make each home have a unique look as we looked at different exterior elevations in the neighborhoods. I also showcased how our interior design professionals use different colors and finishes to stage our models for maximum appeal.

After touring our communities, the students were heading off to Lowe’s to pick some different materials and finishes to use in a class project involving one of our new homes.

One of the most rewarding parts of my job is watching a community take shape, from the initial land acquisition to the final personal touches of each homeowner. I hope, by providing some hands on examples of community and home design, these students get some great new perspectives about the building industry and how new homes are designed.