BUILDER
CALIFORNIA CUSTOM BUILDER ENTERS NEW REALM OF HYBRID HOME BUILDING
Mark Tanner Construction tries out prefabricated construction methods to broaden company abilities.
In California’s Sierra Valley, custom builder Mark Tanner Construction has always been known for its one-of-a-kind site-built homes. But now, the company has begun a new wave of hybrid home building, working with Method Homes of Washington State.
The project revitalizes the development of Nakoma Resort, a second-home community in Clio, Calif., with 300 home sites, a hotel, golf course, and new community center. As the general contractor for the community’s 33 new single-family townhomes, the Mark Tanner team is responsible for laying the foundation and overseeing the setting of modular models ranging from 800 to 2,600 square feet.
“I’ve been building homes for 20-plus years in the Truckee/Tahoe area and this was an opportunity for us to learn about how this process all goes together,” says Mark Tanner, owner of the company. “It broadens our ability to provide clients with a different product at reasonable prices and timelines.”
The biggest challenge, according to Tanner, was getting the team up to speed on the new techniques associated with setting modules. “You don’t know what you don’t know,” he says, but after the initial learning curve, the company will be set to continue with this type of building.
Teaming with a modular builder had its advantages, Tanner says. Since the project’s location is remote and typically cold, a lack of labor and materials and weather uncertainties could have delayed the timeline. By shipping in prefabricated modules from Washington, the project was fast-tracked, due to the off-site home production and on-site work happening simultaneously.
Once the modules were completed and shipped to the site, cranes set the pieces in place and the Mark Tanner team installed electric, plumbing, gas, and auxiliary items, such as exterior decks. Inside, the homes boast mountain modern décor, hardwood floors, custom cabinetry, and energy-efficient features standard in California homes.
So far, the company has fully completed three models for the community, which will serve as the pre-sale examples for the next 30 planned homes by Mark Tanner. Pricing for the homes start between $350,000 and $995,000.