Spacious living with room to choose

Sometimes a jolt of fresh energy is just what the housing market needs. That's how owners Jon Schwartz, chief executive officer, and Wade Grabeldinger, chief financial officer, felt when they founded Crimson Cove Homes last May.

They built a show home in Granville, a new development in west Edmonton just south of the Whitemud and west of Anthony Henday, and have been busy ever since.

It didn't take long for customers to become interested. Kate Cosentino was drawn in by the small-scale company and its modern show home. As a real estate agent for ReMax Elite, Kate knew the area well and was interested in buying her first house with her boyfriend, Cory Robinson.

"We bought our home when it was in the framing stage. The show home drew me in. I was impressed by the level of finishing. Other builders nickel and dime you on finishings, but at Crimson Cove it was already part of the package."

Kate and Cory's home was completed on June 24, and they are now enjoying home ownership and all that comes with it. Their 1,750square-foot, two-storey is done in what Crimson Cove terms the Atlantic style. Hardwood floors, ceramic tile, a tile fireplace and quartz countertops are some of the features of the Atlantic. The Pacific offers a lower price option with linoleum and carpet.

Kate was also impressed by Muriel Mckay, the area sales manager. "I know quite a few sales reps from being a realtor, and she (Muriel) stuck out as special. She wasn't only concerned about the sale. By getting to know us, she was able to help with our selections based on who we are and what we do. It seemed like it was a whole other level of service."

The Starling show home is a 2,006sq.-ft., two-storey with nine-foot-tall ceilings on both floors. Rectangular tiles cover the front entryway and flow to the mud-room. Hardwood floors extend into the main entertainment space. Bright quartz countertops waterfall over the cabinetry, giving the space a modern feel.

Jon describes the inception of Crimson Cove. "Wade and I had been working at a tract home builder, a big company. I'd been doing land development, and Wade started as a controller. We then became general managers. I'd been there a long time and saw that there were a lot of things I wanted to do differently."

One of those things was providing the opportunity for customers to customize their homes. Rather than being limited by a set scheme or design, buyers are invited to personalize their homes. "If customers are going to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, our view is that they should be able to change more than the paint colour," says Jon.

There are several floor plans to choose from, ranging in size from 1,533 sq. ft. to 2,700 sq. ft. and from $375,000 to $650,000.

Crimson Cove has sold 22 homes, all in Granville, a neighbourhood next to The Grange Shopping Centre with banking, a Safeway store and restaurants, as well as easy access to Anthony Henday and the Whitemud.

Jon and Wade spent time measuring out spaces during the design process to make sure they functioned well. "When we built this house, we didn't have to make any changes during construction. We feel we really nailed it," says Jon.

X-Men Destiny News and Images from E3

You control the destiny of 1 of 3 mutants in the upcoming X-Men: Destiny game. Choose to uphold the ideals of Professor X and attempt to co-exist with humanity peacefully or follow the doctrine of Magneto and exterminate "homo superior's" inferior cousins. Confirmed to appear in the game are Magneto, Cyclops, Wolverine, Gambit, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Quicksilver, and Surge (yeah, all mutant A-listers and then Surge?...really?). However, I am sure we will be treated to a bevy of cameos and easter eggs.

Standard gameplay tactics are in effect here as you will be able to choose from standard punch and kick attacks, mutant power attacks and a special attack which unleashes a potent explosion of your mutant abilities but also leaves you vulnerable for a few seconds afterwards.



As for our 3 main characters? Adrian, is a former Pure Fire member who's father was killed by mutants. He struggles to cope with the discovery that he is actually the very thing he hates. Aimi is the daughter of mutant parents, however she has become an outcast in her family and has since been sent to San Francisco for reasons not yet revealed at this time. Finally, there is Grant, the proto-typical All-American boy who has never paid much attention to the mutant/human conflict until his latent mutant powers start to manifest.

As for villiains, Magneto is obviously in the game but whether he is a primary antagonist is unknown. Also confirmed at E3 was the presence of the U-Men, making it a possibility that the game may loosely follow the storyline of the current ongoing X-Men anime.