Russ Bridenbaugh (right) holds a piece of the stump from his original "memorial tree" that was cut down and stolen from Bryan Park, as he talks with Don Weiler of Bailey & Weiler Design/Build. Weiler and members of Cook Center Business Roundtable organized the planting of a replacement blue spruce tree. David Snodgress | Herald-Times
By Mike Leonard
December 13, 2011
The light rain seemed to accentuate the bittersweet occasion Tuesday morning as workers replaced the blue spruce memorial tree vandals cut down in Bryan Park more than a week ago.
The tree had been donated by nearby resident Russ Bridenbaugh, who watched as Designscape owner Dan Gluesenkamp, Don Weiler of Bailey & Weiler Design/Build and others pitched in to dig a hole, plant a new tree and right the wrong inflicted not only on Bridenbaugh but patrons of Bloomington’s most popular urban park.
Bridenbaugh told the assembled group that the second thing he does every morning — after making coffee — is to open up the dictionary and choose a word for the day. “Today’s word is gratitude and today, I feel great gratitude for all of you. Thank you,” he said.
Russ Bridenbaugh watches as Don Weiler of Bailey & Weiler Design/Build and the Designscape landscaping crew plant a new blue spruce in Bryan Park near the spot where his original "memorial tree" was cut down and stolen.
Bridenbaugh, a retired wine journalist, had donated the tree to the city after moving from the north side of Bloomington to an apartment on the south side of Bryan Park. The city planted it on a hill where Bridenbaugh could see it from his apartment and he cared for it as if it were still his own, pruning it frequently to keep it perfectly shaped.
Bridenbaugh intended for the 22-year-old evergreen to long outlive him and be his memorial tree.
Members of a Cook Center Business Roundtable group read about the theft of the tree and offered to replace it. It didn’t hurt that Gluesenkamp, the owner of a horticultural business, was a member of the Ivy Tech/Cook Center for Entrepreneurship roundtable.
“I just went out to our nursery in Brown County and picked out the biggest blue spruce we had,” he said Tuesday morning. “We don’t have a lot of blues — mainly Norways.”
A Designscape crew brought the 10-foot tree through the park using a small, front-end loader. After volunteers hand-dug a hole, the tree was gently maneuvered into it. Excess dirt was loaded back into the loader bucket and a load of bark mulch was spread to cover the base of tree, making the newly-planted spruce look as if it had always been there.
“We are pleased to celebrate the planting of this new tree,” said Don Weiler, a member of the business group. “It serves as a reminder that simple acts can have a significant impact.”
Copyright: HeraldTimesOnline.com 2011
Russ Bridenbaugh stares at the stump of a 22-year-old blue spruce tree he had nurtured and donated to Bryan Park.
Cook Center Business Roundtable businesses pitching in to help put another tree where Bridenbaugh’s stood
Once a tree is cut down and stolen, it can’t be replaced.
When vandals took the 22-year-old blue spruce that Russ Bridenbaugh donated to the city and saw planted within eyesight of his apartment on the south perimeter of Bryan Park, they took a tree the longtime Bloomington resident had nurtured for more than two decades — and had intended to be his memorial tree after his death.
A business roundtable group read about the theft of the tree Tuesday morning and unanimously agreed to help put a new one in its place. “I’m very moved by that,” Bridenbaugh said when he heard of the plan. “I’m deeply grateful.”
Don Weiler of Bailey & Weiler Design/Build said his group, the Cook Center Business Roundtable, was not only moved by Bridenbaugh’s loss but fortunate that one of its members is Dan Gluesenkamp, owner of Designscape Horticultural Services. “We wanted to rectify the situation for this gentleman,” Weiler said. “Dan’s a good resource to have.”
Bloomington’s urban landscaper, Lee Huss, said he’d be happy to work with the business group to fill the gap left by the purloined tree. He noted that he had just learned that someone recently cut down two blue spruce trees at RCA Park as well.
“Unfortunately, it doesn’t surprise me,” Huss said. “It seems to happen every year.”
“The irony is, blue spruces don’t make good Christmas trees,” said Bridenbaugh on Tuesday. “They will drop every needle within about 48 hours of being cut. Whoever did this is sitting there looking at a bare-framed tree with a pile of needles on their living room floor.”
By Mike Leonard
December 7, 2011
Copyright: HeraldTimesOnline.com 2011
Personalizing a custom home
Story and photos By Carrol Krause of Herald-Times Homes
Published December 11, 2010
When Craig Bailey and Don Weiler joined forces to create Bailey & Weiler Design/Build, they each had more than twenty years of experience in design, construction and business. The hallmarks of their firm are high quality and service.
So when Shawn Eurton and his wife Kara resolved to build a custom home that would comfortably accommodate their family, they turned to Bailey & Weiler. They had been planning a larger house for some time.
“We saw a house plan that we really liked in a house magazine,” Shawn explained. “And a year or two later we came across the same plan in another magazine. We knew it was the one for us.”
“Bailey & Weiler modified it for us,” Kara added. “It originally had an in-law suite upstairs, with a bedroom and a second kitchen, which we needed for our children. And we wanted to change the basement around.”
Shawn owns Mother Nature Landscaping and Bloomington Valley Nursery. He wanted the opportunity to landscape his new home in its picture-perfect setting high above Lake Monroe, while Kara needed an ergonomic home office in which to do the companies’ bookkeeping. They asked Bailey & Weiler to adapt the home plan to meet the needs of both family and business, ensuring that it was not only beautiful but also a pleasure to live in.
Bailey & Weiler does everything from custom designing and construction to remodeling. In this case, existing home plans needed to be modified. Don Weiler explained how his company approaches the design process.
“When we sit down with a homeowner,” he said, “we listen as they describe their lifestyle, goals and ideas. We work with them to design a home that captures those elements. Most people know what they like, but have a tough time visualizing spaces. Craig Bailey has an incredible ability to visualize a space before it’s built. He can sketch a 3-D rendering freehand while he’s sitting with the client. And after we have the design, we guide the homeowner through the process of selection, whether it’s flooring, faucets or paint, because many clients are intimidated by the process. We achieve the look and style they want, within their budget.”
Kara worked closely with Craig on the details and colors of the new house. Because of Shawn’s landscaping connections, wood and stone flow throughout the interior, and the house was sited to take full advantage of the view of the lake and the surrounding trees.
Curving cedar beams, reminiscent of timber-framing but purely decorative, greet visitors at the front door and continue inside the house, defining the dining area and soaring high above the great room. The chimney and fireplace surround are made of carefully stacked pieces of Indiana limestone, assembled by the skilled stonemasons at Mother Nature Landscaping; the same artisans also crafted a stone surround for the kitchen hood which appears to float weightlessly above the marble counter beneath.
Behind the house is a deck and covered porch overlooking the lake. An outdoor kitchen provides opportunities for entertaining within easy sight of the water.
“Our favorite thing about the covered porch is watching the eagle’s nest down there, in the tree by the water,” said Shawn, pointing. “We see the eagles all the time.”
The kitchen has a granite counter and breakfast bar, with a laminated two-color butcherblock table built into one end. The handsome custom cabinets were built by local cabinetmaker Design Solutions and the backsplash is various colors of travertine marble. The natural cherry floors were installed by Gerald’s Woodshed, with each plank intentionally “distressed” by hand before installation.
“We wanted an older, lived-in look,” explained Kara.
Shawn chuckled, “They really hated to beat up the wood, because they like a perfect surface.”
The upstairs in-law suite in the original plans was adapted into commodious living quarters containing a central hall, two bedrooms, study space and a large bathroom, with a third bedroom at the foot of the stairs. The master bedroom is at the other end of the house, with a tray ceiling and huge windows that overlook the lake.
“I can wake up and look right out and see the water,” said Shawn. As he spoke, the sound of birdcalls floated in from the woods outside.
Because of its large windows, the lower level doesn’t feel like a basement at all. This is a terrific place to unwind after long hours of hard work, featuring a pool table, an air hockey game, a television area and a built-in bar framed with maple recycled from IU’s championship basketball floor. At the far end of the exercise room is a unique feature: a sunken concrete basketball court, accessed by a short flight of steps.
“We’ve built several homes with a basketball court inside,” noted Don Weiler. “Our custom design allows such personal lifestyle features to be added at a very reasonable cost.”
When complemented on the overall craftsmanship of the home, Don Weiler seemed pleased. “We appreciate the great feedback we receive,” he replied. “The quality is a natural result of good communication, experience and craftsmen that take pride in their work. We don’t know any other way to build.”
Shawn and Kara are extremely happy with their new home, which they moved into last year. It’s a child-friendly and comfortable environment which welcomes friends, Shawn pointed out.
“Craig Bailey is extremely creative,” said Kara appreciatively. “From just a picture or an idea, he can design what you want right then and there.”
“We are very happy,” she summed up. “We can’t see ourselves ever moving.”
Bailey & Weiler can be reached at 330-1169. Also see www.Bailey-Weiler.com for additional information and photos.
Copyright: HeraldTimesOnline.com 2010
[Photos of this beautiful home can be viewed in the Residential two photo galleries titled "Cedar Shake Splendor."]
Bailey & Weiler Design/Build was named “Microenterprise of the Year” at the 2010 Fuse Business Innovation Awards presentation. The awards were presented on Thursday, October 21 at the Bloomington/Monroe County Convention Center. Fred Glass, Director of Athletics at Indiana University, was the keynote speaker.
The Fuse Business Innovation Awards honor businesses and individuals that inject creativity, innovation, energy and spirit into the small business community. Businesses must be nominated, and the winners are selected by the Indiana Small Business Development Center.
The 2010 Fuse Business Innovation Award winners are as follows:
–Small Business Advocate of the Year: Charlotte Zietlow.
–Social Entrepreneur of the Year: Jeff Baldwin, Boys and Girls Club.
–Community Service Award: John C. Hurlow, Hurlow Wealth Management Group.
–Microenterprise of the Year: Craig Bailey and Don Weiler, Bailey & Weiler Design/Build.
–Innovative Business of the Year: Matthew Muller, Aeon Imaging.
–Entrepreneurial Growth Award: Janet Barrows, Home Instead Senior Care.
–Bill and Gayle Cook Entrepreneur of the Year: Dan
and Deb Gluesenkamp, Designscape Horticultural Services.
Terri Green of the Small Business Development Center and Dr. Jeffrey Harper of the Scott College of Business at Indiana State University present the 2010 Fuse Business Innovation Award for "Microenterprise of the Year" to Craig Bailey and Don Weiler of Bailey & Weiler Design/Build.
Don Weiler of Bailey & Weiler LLC recently became one of the select group of construction professionals nationwide to earn the Certified Green Professional designation.
CGP graduates understand the best strategies for incorporating green building principles into homes. The CGP curriculum integrates cost-effective construction techniques with increased energy efficiency, improved indoor air quality and lower maintenance costs. The CGP program is administered by the Indiana Builders Association in conjunction with the National Association of Home Builders.
Bailey & Weiler provides full-scope design and construction management services from concept to completion.
