Great Gulf and OakWood have taken the top two honours in the 2018 Ontario Home Builders’ Association awards.

Great Gulf was named the 2018 Ontario Home Builder of the Year for the first time, after finishing as a runner-up in past years.

However, the OHBA judges felt 2018 was Great Gulf’s year to shine. An industry leader and innovator in energy-efficient, high-quality new homes for more than 40 years, Great Gulf utilizes leading technology in its residential construction, such as the H+ME Technology panelization system and Tucker HiRise, an integrated platform to manage and coordinate the design and construction of buildings.

The Great Gulf Homes division is part of the Toronto-based Great Gulf Group of Companies, which was established in 1975. It is an international award-winning, low-rise and high-rise residential developer which has provided more than 70,000 families with places to call home.

Great Gulf also has a long-standing tradition of serving the community with partners like The Daily Food Bank, and actively participates in fundraising initiatives to assist disenfranchised youth and families.

Great Gulf also supports the industry as a founding member of the Canadian Active House Alliance, volunteers with the BILD board of directors, the OHBA/EnerQuality Technical Committee, and the Canada Green Building Council.

OakWood named Renovator of the Year

OakWood earned the 2018 Ontario Renovator of the Year award. For the second time, all category finalists for this honour hailed from the same city – Ottawa. The first time this occurred was in 2015.

OakWood is best known for its technology-driven innovation, demonstrated in its partnership with Tesla MPOWER Powerwall for solar roofs. This technology stores solar energy for later use, thereby reducing reliance on the grid and lowering customers’ electricity bills.

In addition, OakWood’s High Performance Initiative with Mike Holmes and The Holmes Group leverages additional design-build expertise, allowing OakWood to provide energy-efficient, sustainable services and products exclusively available in Ottawa.

Fourth-generation and family-run for more than 60 years, the company participates in ongoing support for local organizations and charitable causes, including the Orleans Chamber of Commerce, Algonquin College and several local sports teams.

“OHBA holds the Ontario Home Builder of the Year and Renovator of the Year in high regard because both winners represent the highest standard for home building and professional renovation, to date,” the organizations says in its release announcing the winners.

“They set the bar in leadership, community service, customer service, and innovation for the rest of Ontario’s industry.”

Other top award winners

The 2018 Prestige Award winners also include:

* Project of the Year – Low-Rise: Minto Communities for Glen Agar – Etobicoke (in conjunction with Montana Steele Advertising, NAK Design Group, RN Design Ltd.)
* Project of the Year – High or Mid-Rise: North Drive Investments Inc. for One Forest Hill – Toronto (in conjunction with kg&a, The Walsh Group/Printserver Inc.)
* People’s Choice Award: Paradise Developments for High Point – Brampton (in conjunction with Ryan Design International)

This year, there were a record 511 entries submitted in the awards program. Winners were recognized  at the Awards of Distinction Dinner. The full list of winners is available at ohbaaod.ca.

About OHBA

As #homebeliever champions, the Ontario Home Builders’ Association (OHBA) believes in the great Canadian dream of home ownership by supporting more housing choice and supply across Ontario.

OHBA is the voice of the residential construction industry in Ontario, representing 4,000 member companies organized into 29 local associations.