Timber Frame Homes

HILLSIDE HAVEN

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Story by Roland Sweet
Photos by Roger Wade
Styling by Debra Grahl

When Paul Milewski was growing up in Fort Collins, Colorado, he applied for a job with the Old West Ridge Fence Company, whose plant was just outside town. He fell in love with the land the plant was on. Years later, when the company went out of business, he continued to keep his eye on the property, watching as it became overgrown and the six abandoned steel buildings began looking dilapidated. "Basically it was an old lumber yard," Paul says. "But I could see beyond that. I used to come out here, just to relax, and I'd think how I'd love to have this place someday."

In the meantime, he married Tania. After living in a busy subdivision, they decided they wanted to gain more acreage and some privacy. They also had their hearts set on raising alpacas, whose cashmere-like fleece comes in 22 natural colors and is used to make sweaters, mittens, scarves, and blankets. At the same time, they wanted to remain close to the conveniences that only a city offers.

Remembering the fence-post company land he had always loved, which was located just three miles from their current home, Paul decided to find out what was going on with it. He and Tania went knocking on neighbors' doors inquiring. As luck would have it, Tania found it was for sale but hadn't yet gone on the market. The Milewskis made an offer, which was immediately accepted.

Although the land wasn't much to look at, having sat vacant for eight years, Paul and Tania had no trouble seeing its potential. Located in irresistibly named Pleasant Valley in the foothills of the Colorado Range at an elevation of about 6,000 feet, the 15-acre parcel features a stream running through the center of it and plenty of deciduous trees, with a few pines and aspens.

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