Anything goes: the 2004 International Awards of Excellence have it all … and then some

Pool & Spa News, Dec 24, 2004 by Shabnam Mogharabi

The entries for this year's APSP International Awards of Excellence run the gamut from traditional angular pools to lagoon-style ponds.

"The setting, the lighting, the plants--all of it serves to make an attractive project," says Peter Cattano, president of Paco Pools & Spas Ltd. in Baldwin, N.Y., and one of the judges on this year's awards panel. "I try to look past the photograph and ask, 'What did this builder go through to build this pool?'

"When you're looking at nearly 700 photographs, it's difficult," Cattano adds. "I think each judge sees every job with a different eye."

The judges ended up sorting through a whopping 672 entries, submitted by 117 companies. More than 145 awards were handed out across the gold, silver, bronze and awards of merit categories. In all, seven countries and 25 states were among the participants.

On the next several pages, prepare to be wowed by the winning projects. And when you're all set to design your next awe-inspiring paradise, keep this in mind: Your options are as vast as your own imagination.

Pool Art by Gary Nannini & Co.

Brentwood, Tenn.

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Free-form, 450 Sq. Ft. or Less

Depth range: 3.5- to 6 ft.

Length/width: 20-by-32-ft

Special features: Natural rock waterfalls made with Tennessee sandstone boulders help retain soil: dry stack walls of Tennessee and Arkansas stone: bluestone coping: elevated spa with lion head fountains: stamped concrete deck: fiberoptic lighting; swim jet.

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Cody Pools and Spas

Austin, Texas

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Free-form, 451- to 750 Sq. Ft.

Depth range: 3- to 9 ft.

Length/width: 36-by-26-ft.

Special features: Spanish styling; free-form shape to fit courtyard setting; Colorado red flagstone decking; Spanish-style tile: 7-ft. spillover spa; elevated decking; built-in planters; fire pit.

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Essig Pools Inc.

North Miami Beach, Fla.

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Free-form, 451- to 750 Sq. Ft.

Depth range: 3- to 5 ft.

Length/width: 14-by-18-ft.

Special features: Vanishing edge appears to flow into the lake without a raised elevation; sun shelf; curved sidewalls incorporate round palm-tree planters; 7-ft. round spa; artistic paver deck.

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Neptune Pools Inc.

Sugar Hill, Ga.

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Free-form, 451- to 750 Sq. Ft.

Depth range: 3.5- to 6.5 ft.

Length/width: 16-by-33-ft.

Special features: Faux rock waterfall; koi pond that wraps around the spa; stone bridge conceals the pond's dam wall; flagstone deck with built-in planters.

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Texas Pools

The Woodlands, Texas

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Free-form, 751 Sq. Ft. or More

Depth range: 3.5- to 9 ft.

Length/width: 50-by-34-ft.

Special features: Two large waterfalls flank a vanishing edge: lower observation deck with a view of tumbled flagstone vanishing-edge wall; 7-ft. spillover spa tucked close to the home: flagstone deck.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Redmon Design Co.

Maitland, Fla.

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Free-form, 751 Sq. Ft. or More

Depth range: 3- to 6 ft.

Length/width: 15-by-50-ft

Special features: Sheet fall spillway; black pebble coping; gold/rust travertine deck; mosaic slate-and-travertine waterline; outdoor fireplace; nearly invisible spa within pool's outline, separated by lowered dam wall; separate lap pool.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Mossman Brothers Pools

Scottsdale, Ariz.

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Traditional, 600 Sq. Ft. or Less

Depth range: 3.5- to 5 ft.

Length/width: 24-by-14-ft.

Special features: Tuscan styling; spa spillways with hand-carved weirs; 8-ft. elevated spa; Tuscan stone edging; deck of Saltillo stone and salt-finished, colored concrete.

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Paradise Aquatech Pools Inc.

Visalia, Calif.

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Traditional, 600 Sq. Ft. or Less

Depth range: 3- to 5 ft.

Length/width: 8-by-40-ft.

Special features: Lap pool design; elevated walls capped with double-bullnose brick; shade structure above pool features pilasters finished in exposed aggregate; sheet waterfalls; separate wading pool; pebble aggregate interior.

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Mossman Brothers Pools:

Scottsdale, Ariz.

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Traditional, 601 Sq. Ft. or More

Depth range: 3.5- to 5 ft. Length/width: 49-by-31-ft.

Special features: Hand-carved, Cantera-stone fountain rising out of the pool water: deck-mounted laminar arcs; sheets of water spill from stone pillar bases to interrupt the serene pool: 9-by-6-ft. spa; deck made of travertine marble and pavers.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Texas Pools

The Woodlands, Texas

Category: Residential Concrete Pools: Traditional, 601 Sq. Ft. or More

Depth range: 3.5- to 6 ft.

Length/width: 39-by-19-ft.

Special features: Traditional, Roman-ended design; three vertical geysers are mirrored on either end; two scuppers; 12-ft. retaining walls and stairways lead to a deck of patterned concrete; shade structure with shingles and stone-faced half-walls; fire pit: cabana; Roman plant pots; 8-by-6-ft. spa.

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