{"id":1049578,"date":"2026-09-07T21:21:17","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T21:21:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1049578\/"},"modified":"2026-09-07T21:21:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T21:21:17","slug":"two-rochester-homes-to-be-featured-in-american-institute-of-architects-minnesota-tour-post-bulletin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1049578\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Rochester homes to be featured in American Institute of Architects Minnesota tour – Post Bulletin"},"content":{"rendered":"

ROCHESTER \u2014 For the first time, two Rochester homes will be featured this year in the 19th annual Homes by Architects Tours.<\/p>\n

The homes join a list of 10 others located mainly across Minnesota, with one in Wisconsin.<\/p>\n

The two Rochester homes will be available to view as part of the self-guided tour on Sept. 19 and 20 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Tickets are available for purchase at <\/p>\n

HomesByArchitects.org<\/a><\/p>\n

or can be bought on site at any of the homes available for in-person viewing.<\/p>\n

A full list of the homes featured in the American Institute of Architects Minnesota tour <\/p>\n

is available online.<\/a><\/p>\n

Number 11 on the list, the ‘Well Framed\u2019 house at 5515 Vince Lane SW was designed around the idea of \u201caging in place.\u201d That largely comes through in the house\u2019s one-level living.<\/p>\n

\"Well<\/p>\n

The ‘Well Framed’ house at 5515 Vince Lane SW is one of two Rochester houses featured in this year’s American Institute of Architects Minnesota Homes by Architects Tours.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Scott Amundson<\/p>\n

\u201cYou could say it\u2019s a modern rambler in some ways,\u201d said Jean Rehkamp Larson, an architect who designed the house.<\/p>\n

The front courtyard is one of the house\u2019s star features. <\/p>\n

Homeowners Tim and Rene Finnegan knew even before the design phase that they wanted a house with a courtyard.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea of having that front courtyard and having it become an outdoor room was part of their vision right away,\u201d Rehkamp Larson said.<\/p>\n

One of the main goals of the house was to \u201cbring the outside in.\u201d That shows not only in the courtyard, but the house\u2019s dining area, too, which has large floor-to-ceiling windows along its three walls.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to describe it as a glass house,\u201d said Rene. \u201cIt absolutely brings in the outside.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like you\u2019re sitting out in a garden, the living room and the courtyard,\u201d she added. \u201cYou can see right through the living room to either the courtyard or the backyard.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Well<\/p>\n

The dining area of the ‘Well Framed’ house is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Scott Amundson<\/p>\n

Rene also had a guest\u2019s quarters designed for the house, which she calls the \u201ccasita.\u201d <\/p>\n

The casita has its own bedroom, bathroom, kitchenette, living area and private entrance.<\/p>\n

There is no one feature that Rehkamp Larson and Rene want tour-goers to take away from the house \u2014 rather, they want the care that went into the home to be on display.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we want people to see is that working with an architect produces a house that just has this right feeling about it,\u201d Rehkamp Larson said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t need to be gimmicky and gizmo-y and even luxurious. That\u2019s not even necessarily required. It\u2019s just that it\u2019s functional and it\u2019s beautiful.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u2018Orchard House\u2019 is a long, linear home set on property right beside a 300-tree apple orchard and a wildlife management area. Like the \u2018Well Framed\u2019 house, it was also designed with the idea of bringing the outside in.<\/p>\n

Along the south side of the home, floor-to-ceiling windows take up around half of the wall space. A screened-in porch and terrace also invite homeowners to the outside.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we appreciate the most is just the feeling of being in this house, bringing the outdoors inside, just feeling like you’re part of the land and you’re part of nature,\u201d homeowner Lisa Askew said.<\/p>\n

\"UPDATED<\/p>\n

A view of the south side of the ‘Orchard House’ is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Jasper Lazor<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s very different than most other houses in town, right?\u201d she said. \u201cI mean, watching the sun come up in the morning \u2014 you can see it from every window on the south side of the house. It\u2019s really special.\u201d<\/p>\n

Architect David Wagner designed the house, located at 4016 Silver Creek Rd NE, with the elements in mind.<\/p>\n

Along with the windows covering the south side, he had the north side of the house\u2019s siding made of corrugated metal. That corrugated metal helps deflect some of Minnesota\u2019s harsh northern winds in the winter.<\/p>\n

\u201cI tried to create heavier walls on that north side with fewer window openings because that\u2019s what\u2019s going to keep the house naturally warmer,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s like putting on your coat.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the summer, a steep overhang deflects some of the sun from beaming into the house.<\/p>\n

Askew and her husband, Wells, also have a private deck off their bedroom. The deck includes an outdoor shower and hot tub.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think what people will come away with from coming out here and seeing this home is the level of detail and craft, how harmoniously the spaces fit into the landscape and how connected you feel to the place when you\u2019re in there,\u201d Wagner said. \u201cAnd then how the materials that we use and how we detailed it really create these comfortable, warm and inviting spaces to inhabit.\u201d<\/p>\n

More photos of the houses:<\/p>\n

\"Well<\/p>\n

The courtyard of the ‘Well Framed’ house is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Scott Amundson<\/p>\n

\"Well<\/p>\n

The kitchen of the ‘Well Framed’ house is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Scott Amundson<\/p>\n

\"Well<\/p>\n

A view of the kitchen in the ‘Well Framed’ house is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Scott Amundson<\/p>\n

\"Well<\/p>\n

The living area of the ‘Well Framed’ house is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Scott Amundson<\/p>\n

\"Well<\/p>\n

A bathroom in the ‘Well Framed’ house is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Scott Amundson<\/p>\n

\"260630JL_SALA_OrchardHouse_024.jpg\"<\/p>\n

The screened-in porch of the ‘Orchard House’ is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Jasper Lazor<\/p>\n

\"260630JL_SALA_OrchardHouse_033.jpg\"<\/p>\n

The living area of the ‘Orchard House’ is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Jasper Lazor<\/p>\n

\"260630JL_SALA_OrchardHouse_035.jpg\"<\/p>\n

The kitchen in the ‘Orchard House’ is shown.<\/p>\n

Contributed \/ Jasper Lazor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ROCHESTER \u2014 For the first time, two Rochester homes will be featured this year in the 19th annual…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1049579,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[32],"tags":[648,1032,1033,171,248847,420308,420309,420310,67,132,68,420311],"class_list":["post-1049578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-homes-for-sale-near-me","tag-mn-homes-for-sale","tag-mn-homes-on-the-market","tag-mn-unique-homes-for-sale","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us","tag-where-to-live-in-mn"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/117231859648019809","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1049578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1049578"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1049578\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1049579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1049578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1049578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1049578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}