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ORREN PICKELL DESIGNERS & BUILDERS
on budget while minimizing client
inconvenience during renovation.”
IMAGINE Your Home
OPDB launched its most recent develop-
ment – IMAGINE Your Home – in 2006.
IMAGINE, located in Northfield, Ill.,
showcases 10 diverse room settings
where clients can explore OPDB features.
These include traditional and contempo-
rary kitchens, luxurious spa baths, a fam-
ily workshop, pocket library and home
office, as well as vaulted wine rooms.
Founder and CEO Orren Pickell says
IMAGINE addresses clients’ question:
what if? “What I like best about this
space is that [clients] can visit and get
great ideas and then modify them to fit
[their] needs,” he said in a statement.
“Everything can be customized and our
talented team is on hand to lend their
expertise. [Clients get] top-notch service
at [their] fingertips and limitless
resources.”
In addition, the showroom is equipped
with interactive plasma screens and com-
puter stations that are updated with state-
of-the-art products, the company notes.
188 ■ CONSTRUCTION TODAY ■ OCTOBER 2007
“This was a unique project. It took a
whole team of people to complete it,”
Richter explains. “The showroom high-
lights a lot of the creativity we put in to
our homes.”
Current Projects
Two of OPDB’s most recent projects in
Illinois are Tarns of the Moor in
Bannockburn and Lansdowne in Lake
Bluff. Tarns of the Moor is a 10-unit
development to be completed this fall.
Community features include gardens
with small lakes, bridges and walking
paths, and a large waterfall.
Lansdowne is a 70-unit development
along Lake Michigan, scheduled to be
completed in spring 2008, the company
says. One of its unique features is pre-
serving the 14,500-square-foot Benjamin
Marshall mansion. Marshall is the archi-
tect of Drake Hotel in Chicago.
Working Together
Despite the recent market slowdown,
Richter says, OPDB has not faced any
major challenges. “We’re somewhat insu-
lated in the higher-end market, so we’re
not as affected by the slowdown,” he
states. The company also has not faced
labor shortage. “We’ve had a good team
of subcontractors and we’ve made some
good hires to add to the pool,” he adds.
In addition, the company started an
ownership-thinking environment in
2006. “We’ve always worked as a team,
but now, we’ve really [developed] a strate-
gic plan to enhance how we can work
well together,” Richter says. “We under-
stand we’re all accountable and are
rewarded for our success.”
He adds that OPDB pays close atten-
tion to training. The company cross-
trains its staff to provide a more capable
team that can manage the ebb and flow
of developing needs.
In the future, the company is looking
at properties in Long Grove and
Highland Park, Ill., and South Haven,
Mich., as well as in Wisconsin. Its vision
of the future, however, is simple, Richter
says. Companies need to be intentional
about consistently getting better to meet
higher client and industry demands.
“We have been a pacesetter in the indus-
try, and we’ll continue to be.” he says. ■