Neighborhood leaders:
Please talk this up, or use in your newsletters and on your websites as soon as possible – it can take a “month of Sundays” for people to get ready and find help staffing their homes, so it’s not too early to be planning for the April tour. I’m also available to attend meetings to answer questions about the Tour, or talk individually with homeowners who may be interested. Let’s keep the turnout from Northeast and North Minneapolis strong, it’s a great promotional opportunity for your neighborhoods, in this 28th year of the tour!
Note that if a neighborhood organization brings the tour three homes (or enough to supplement other efforts such that the neighborhood ends up with three or more), we will feature the neighborhood in the Home Tour Guide. We continue to recruit for about a month after the deadline, to round out the selection.
The press release below is offered in a long version and a short version (at the end). Thank you!
— Margo Ashmore, 612-867-4874.
2015 Home Tour wants your home, or your neighbor’s
Who do you know in your neighborhood whose home has recently had a makeover they might like to share with other home enthusiasts? Or even great woodwork and the desire to promote your neighborhood? The 2015 Minneapolis & Saint Paul Home Tour is already looking for homeowners and home improvement professionals to feature on the late-April tour. The first round of nominations/applications are due Friday, January 16, and early submissions are encouraged. It’s the Tour’s 28th year, and it will be held April 25 and 26, 2015.
“People attending the tour are looking for ideas on how to remodel or expand their homes,” said Tour coordinator Margo Ashmore. “We also find that people are really passionate about historic preservation and accuracy to period, bringing back what previous homeowners have covered up or lost.”
Contractors often help staff the homes, and homeowners ask family and friends to contribute a few hours hosting. “A good support network makes it fun. It’s a great incentive to finish up the last few little projects,” Ashmore said.
Contractors and other vendors may nominate homes they have worked on, and are encouraged to call for more information about sponsorship. Green/energy efficient homes, and historically-sensitive remodels/expansions get special notice among the 50 homes. “We’re even partnering with the Handmade Tile Association to promote the art,” Ashmore said. It is not necessary to have remodeled the whole house. Every potential location receives a personal visit before any decisions are made about participating.
The tour is a celebration of city living that encourages homeowners to improve existing homes, and to complement the neighborhood vibe if they build new. For more information, call Tour Coordinator Margo Ashmore at 612-867-4874 or email [email protected]. Go to www.MSPHomeTour.com, click on “submit a home” for the option to apply online or download an application form.
Short version:
The Minneapolis & Saint Paul Home Tour, April 25-26, 2015, is accepting nominations at www.MSPHomeTour.com, click on “submit a home” for the option to apply online or download an application. For 11 hours, homeowners and contractors open their doors to share ideas with other home enthusiasts, based on their remodeling experience. Visitors are particularly interested in period-accurate restoration and expansions sensitive to the surroundings. Being on the tour gives homeowners great feedback as well as the incentive to finish those last few projects. If you or someone you know needs more information, contact coordinator Margo Ashmore at [email protected].
Margo Ashmore, Coordinator
Minneapolis & Saint Paul Home Tour
April 25-26, 2015
www.MSPHomeTour.com
612-788-9003 Fax: 612-788-3299
Real Homes. Real People. Real Ideas
Find us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/MSPHomeTour