Check out these sleek new homes that won Coast builders top awards in Mississippi
A sleek and contemporary home on the Coast is the grand prize winner for the “2022 Best In Mississippi” awards presented by Home Builders Association of Mississippi.
Michael and Kim Fritz, owners of Michael Fritz Development in Ocean Springs, collected the Grand Award at the ceremony March 29 in Jackson, and several other South Mississippi builders also took the top prize in their categories.
The Fritzes won for a home called “Modern Tranquility,” a contemporary home designed to be an escape for a professional couple and built on a 16-acre site between a natural pond and the riverbank.
“It’s definitely unusual for the Coast and Mississippi in general,” said Kim Fritz, who was challenged to research the styles and finishes the homeowners wanted and Michael Fritz built them into the home.
The wood veneer in the bedroom is “stunning,” she said, and the faux fur wallpaper in the office came from France.
The couple travels extensively and chose “modern Italian” style for their home, Fritz said. The imported wallpaper, the modern art they collected and even the distinctive lighting were selected to complement the theme and Fritz said, “That’s where it makes their house personal.”
The kitchen has high-gloss acrylic cabinetry and individual weighted paper pendants, hung at varying heights with airplane wire over the island. The design also about the things that aren’t seen, like pop-out outlets, screw-less wall plates and an intricate system for drainage of the waterfront property.
This is the third grand prize won by Fritz Development and Kim Fritz said seeing a project through to completion is a gift. Being named the best in Mississippi is “the bow on top,” she said.
More winning home styles
Among the other winners of 2022 Best in Mississippi awards are Tootle Homes in Biloxi for Lakeside, a four-bedroom, three bathroom home built at Village at Tradition.
The home won in the category of Spec Home New Construction, and Kyle Tootle said it goes beyond a white and bright home with open floor plan buyers want today.
“We tried to make a new house look old,” he said. He and his wife, Stephanie, who does all the interior design and exterior finishes, incorporated antique brick and shutters, tall ceilings and doors, upgraded finishes and a side patio to make the home feel like a creole-style shotgun house and also give it function.
“It was made for entertaining,” he said.
Tootle was president of Home Builders Association of Mississippi Coast last year and said, “It’s obviously a big honor to see our work recognized among our peers.”
The other winners were honored for a small guest house, a “beauty” up to 4,000 square feet and the best outdoor space.
Winners from the Coast
▪ Mike and Kim Fritz and Michael Fritz Development of Ocean Springs — Grand Prize for Modern Tranquility home
▪ Kyle Tootle and Tootle Homes, Biloxi for Lakeside — Spec Home New Construction, 2,000-3,000 square feet
▪ Jackye Hansen and Crane Builders, Waveland for Reidy Guest House — Custom New Construction less than 500 square feet
▪ Jackye Hansen and Crane Builders, Waveland for Benton Residence — Historical preservation Residential
▪ Shelley Kish and Watters Architecture, Pass Christian for Barrister’s Landing — Custom New Construction 2,400-2,800 square feet
▪ Kevin Taylor and Plum Homes, Gulfport for Hen Hen Residence — Custom New Construction 3,000-3,500 square feet
▪ Hunter Desporte and Chase Denmark and HD Homes DBA Buildhaus, Ocean Springs for Bayou Bernard Beauty — Custom New Construction 3,600-4,000 square feet
▪ Hunter Desporte and Chase Denmark and HD Homes, DBA Buildhaus, Ocean Springs for Pelican Oaks — Outdoor Space
