home & garden issue - Magleby Construction

[left] The home office in the Mikas’guest house reflects their love ofAfrica.[above] Exposed timber framing supportsthe inside of the barn.In the end, all of their dreams cametrue with an 8,000-square-foot residencewith an adjoining spacious — and heated— garage, along with a craftsman-stylebarn that has all the horses in Alpinewanting to be adopted by the Mikas. Adda unique landscape, and this guest homeis now a dream home — the Mikas planto move into their guest abode full timewhen their children (now ages 7 through20) get a little older.“We wanted to meet all of our differentSue Mika enjoys comingnext door to herguest home because itstays clean. “There areno toys out or unmadebeds,” she says.Build a great relationship with your builderRon Mika says before you ask your builder any questions, you should answer a few questionsyourself.“You need to evaluate how much you want to be involved,” he says. “Do you want to set thevision and then be hands off? Or do you want to be involved every step of the way?”Ron describes his style as somewhere in the middle. “I love setting the vision but I don’t want todo the details.”Sue Mika begs to differ. “He does more detail than you would think,” she says. “I am at one endof the spectrum — very hands-off — and he is at the other end — he’s very detail-oriented.”The most important detail, Ron says, is finding a builder who meets your standards of quality,delivery, timeliness and budget.“I’m not going to deal with anyone who can’t find the right mix on those things,” he says. “Findsomeone who fits with how you want to be involved. They need to be able to build it the way youwant them to.”Ron also suggests doing reference checks and other “due diligence” before naming a builder foryour dream home.36 www.uvmag.com ■ Utah Valley Magazine