| May 06, 2008 | Media contact: Krista Hopson E-mail: khopson@umich.edu Phone: 734-764-2220 |
Mott Storybook Cottage: Custom playhouse a big collaboration for local businesses
Playhouse to be auctioned at Griese/Hutchinson golf outing in May to benefit C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital & Women’s Hospital
The Mott Storybook Cottage will include all the comforts of home: a faux fireplace made with Motawi tile and Douglas fir, a kitchen complete with Pinnacle cabinetry, a furnished dining room and living room, as well as natural outdoor landscaping.
ANN ARBOR, Mich – Not too far from the construction site for the new University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital and Women’s Hospital, another Mott building project is underway – only on a much smaller scale.
While it won’t include state-of-the-art pediatric operating rooms, private labor and delivery rooms, or special Hepa filtering like the 1.1 million square-foot facility currently under construction on the U-M medical campus, this new local project will ultimately benefit the patients and families at Mott & Women’s Hospital.
Called the Mott Storybook Cottage, the 90-square-foot playhouse will include all the comforts of home: a faux fireplace made with Motawi tile and Douglas fir, a kitchen complete with Pinnacle cabinetry, a furnished dining room and living room, as well as natural outdoor landscaping.
Best of all, the Mott Storybook Cottage is a home-town project – all building materials and services are being donated by locally based businesses specializing in construction, architectural design and interior design.
Once complete, the one-of-a-kind playhouse will be auctioned at the “Champions for Children’s Hearts” celebrity golf event hosted by the NFL’s Brian Griese and Steve Hutchinson on May 17-18. All proceeds will benefit the children’s and women’s building project, and the U-MCongenitalHeartCenter.
The Mott Storybook Cottage was inspired by another playhouse project done a few years ago to benefit the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute. After reading an article about the Karmanos playhouse, Anne Berlucchi, who is coordinating this year’s Griese/Hutchinson event for the U-M Office of Medical Development, thought that with enough help, a similar playhouse could be created to benefit Mott. And, Berlucchi says, it only took a few phone calls to find people willing to take part.
The first local businesses to sign on to help were Nicolette Bozsik Interiors, Myefski Cook Architects, Mans Lumber & Millwork, and Christian Tennant Custom Homes. “Being associated with Mott, it was an easy decision for us to take part in this project. It’s unique and for a great cause,” says Christian Tennant.
Eager to take part in the Mott Storybook Cottage project, Lynette Anderson of Christian Tennant Custom Homes took the lead to coordinate it, and bring aboard the finest local building and design teams to donate time and supplies – Voeller McCully Custom Homes, Inc.; K. Evert Brown Construction, Inc.; Anvil Roofing; Lee Wholesale Supply; Masterpiece Painting Company, Inc.; Sherwin Williams Paint Stores Group; Expo Kitchen and Bath; Pinnacle Cabinetry; Expressions Design Center; Michelangelo Flooring; Designers Cove Interiors; and Eltech Integrated Systems.
For Anderson, building the Mott Storybook Cottage is just like coordinating the construction and design for a real home – paint colors and flooring need to be chosen, and electricians and other trades brought in for the finishing touches.
“It’s been a really exciting project, and the response from local vendors to participate has been humbling and overwhelming,” says Anderson.
Plus, all of the materials being used to create the playhouse are identical to those that would be used to construct an actual home.
The design team also added a lot of little details to make the playhouse really special – flower boxes, hand split cedar shakes, a copper chimney cap, shaker panels, Ipe decking, and a charming trellis that adorns the chimney. Additionally, the dining room includes a custom hand-crafted table and chairs, custom Roman shades on windows and doors, and two original pieces of art commissioned by artist Kenneth Martin.
In all, Tennant and Anderson estimate that about 450 hours will go into making the Mott Storybook Cottage. The playhouse, currently being built at Mans Lumber & Millwork in Hamburg,is set to be complete by mid-May.
Learn more about C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital and Women’s Hospital, and the Champions for Children’s Hearts event.
Written by: Krista Hopson
RSS
