Local builder Paul Clarkston of Clarkston Construction came away from this year’s Construction Achievements and Renovations of Excellence (CARE) Awards with three gold awards for a project west of Sooke.
The award ceremony was Sept. 29 at the Fairmont Empress Hotel and marked the 27th year for the annual awards.
The home that earned the awards has been dubbed “My Time” and was a dream home constructed for a retiring couple who have relocated to Sooke. The 10,000-square-foot home took two years to build and includes a home theatre, a 6,000-gallon saltwater aquarium, a full English bar and antique-like stained oak and dark timber framing.
The project garnered Clarkston awards for Best Outdoor Living Space over 1,000 square feet, Best Single Family Detached Home over $3 million, and the People’s Choice Award.
“It was a really amazing project,” said Clarkston. “You expect to see this kind of home built in the Uplands (Oak Bay), perhaps, but to have one built in Sooke was very special.”
These are the first awards that Clarkston has won in his 16 years in Sooke, but his work in the community has been well known and respected over the years.
“We’ve built about 70 o 80 custom homes in the community, exclusively in Sooke, and it’s been a great experience. This last project was very special, and gave us the opportunity to learn a lot,” said Clarkston.
He credits his success to a devoted team of staff, local trades and craftsmen who have been his “soldiers on the ground” for his projects.
“I do the coordination and pay the bills, but these are really the people who do these beautiful, artful things,” he said.
Clarkson’s reputation in the community caused him to be chosen as the project manager for another, very special, Sooke construction project when he took over the installation of the artificial turf field at Fred Milne Park. “It was really outside my wheelhouse, the first turf field I’d ever worked on, but it turned out great and I felt lucky to be able to do something for the entire community,” said Clarkston.
“There was a ton of water under there and we installed a ton of drainage, but even so we held our breath after the first rain. But it sheds water, and that’s a good thing.”
Clarkston is pleased to have received the CARE Awards, but he’s quick to point out that his company’s philosophy has, and will continue to be, based on employing trades and labour with integrity, skill and accountability.
“Doing custom work means working with clients to deliver homes with different approaches and property layouts. We’re delivering on their dreams and it’s challenging but enormously rewarding work.”
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