Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet News and Press

Kitchen+BathBusiness.com
October 1, 2008

2008 Oasis Award winner revealed.

Winner of the Oasis Award for Outdoor Kitchen Design Announced

Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet and Garden Design magazine recently announced Richard De Angelis and Mifflin Hollyday, landscape designers with Dragonfly Design & Detail in Santa Rosa Beach, FL, as the winners of the second annual 2008 Oasis Award for Outdoor Kitchen Design, a national competition recognizing exceptional outdoor kitchen design.

"Together with Garden Design, we are proud to present the 2008 award," said Pete Georgiadis, president of Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet. "The Oasis Award has created an important opportunity for the industry to recognize great design and fresh thinking in outdoor kitchens. It provides exciting outdoor living ideas for homeowners and professionals alike."

The Oasis Award competition recognizes outstanding design for site-specific residential outdoor rooms with an outdoor kitchen as a primary feature. The projects submitted may be real or conceptual, using components from Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet's Custom Outdoor Kitchen Collection.

The panel of six judges included: Sara Ann Busby, CKD, president of the National Kitchen & Bath Association; Richard Frinier, MA, IDSA, ASFD, principal of Richard Frinier, LLC; Deborah Krasner, CCP, designer and author of The New Outdoor Kitchen; Bill Marken, Honorary ALSA, editor emeritus of Garden Design magazine; Mario Nievera, ASLA, founder and president of Mario Nievera Design; and Art Smith, chef, author and restaurateur of Table 52.

The panel considered not only the quality and originality of the outdoor design, but also the overall design excellence of the total outdoor living space and the cohesiveness of the entire plan. Every design aspect was considered for each entry, including landscape design, furniture and materials selection, the usability of the kitchen and the design value to the potential client.

Richard De Angelis and Mifflin Hollyday's winning design, "Living Green at Blue Mountain Beach," envisioned a beachfront weekend home on the Gulf of Mexico in Blue Mountain Beach, FL. The two-story design for the weekend home is almost entirely comprised of outdoor living spaces. The sizable Kalamazoo outdoor kitchen has a view of the Gulf and is the primary kitchen for the home. Other planned spaces for outdoor living include a dining room, lounge areas and a fire pit with benches. The family is able to live off the land with two kitchen gardens, a rainwater collection system and chicken coop. The only indoor living space on the site is an Airstream trailer permanently parked on a second level, covered and screened deck. The trailer serves as the family’s weekend sleeping quarters.

The team of judges also selected two runners-up: "Texas Hill Country Terrace" by Thomas C. Randall of Perfect Lawns and Landworks of Austin in Austin, TX, and "Columbia Basin Tuscan Patio" by Julie A. Wilson, J.A. Wilson Designs in West Richland, WA.

"Living Green at Blue Mountain Beach" will be featured in the October/November issue of Garden Design. Additional recognition of the winning design and runners-up can be seen on the Garden Design and Oasis Award websites.

Download the Garden Design magazine feature.