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McKee Homes
McKee Homes a true Airdrie original STORY BY JIM ZANG
Only one locally-based home builder can truly call themselves a ‘generational’ builder – and that’s McKee Homes.
“Honey, I’m home. We’re going into the home building business,” announced Martin McKee to his wife, Ruth, one day in 1987, upon arriving home to their house at 104 Alpine Crescent.
Martin had worked for Wimpey Western International, and it was the second big move for the family in the past six years.
Martin and Ruth had immigrated to Canada from Northern Ireland in 1981, with daughters Elaine and Grace, and fell in love with Airdrie (then population 8,414) on their first visit to town.
Martin’s next decision was a good one too, bringing Elaine’s then-boyfriend, Rob Doel, into the business as his partner. Elaine joined the company in 1990, sister Grace a few years later and Elaine and Rob’s son Ryan is now part of the team, making at a true family business and McKee the area’s only three generational home builder.
Martin passed in 2006 and, these days, Elaine is company President, Grace is Executive Vice President, Rob is Vice President of Land and Sales, and Ryan is in marketing.
“There aren’t too many builders left where the owner of the company personally designs the homes,” says Elaine, referring to sister. “Grace gets really creative, especially with our bungalows, to make sure our clients have all the features they need.”
They’ve built more than 3,500 homes in 35 years, many to different generations of the same family and, for Elaine, it’s still all about the people.
“Because we’re a smaller, local builder,” says Elaine, “we find ourselves building homes for multiple generations. That’s one of the reasons it’s so important to offer different homes for different lifestyles. We do a lot of customization of floor plans, or even complete new floor plans – which is where Grace really excels! She’s had more than one new home idea brought to her on the back of a dinner napkin.”
True to this core philosophy of diversity in terms of product offering, McKee Homes is currently building in several different Airdrie communities (Bayside, Chinook Gate, Cooper’s Crossing, Reynolds Gate, Lanark Landing), with show homes in each. They’re also building in Vista Crossing in Crossfield and Mandalay in Carstairs.
For example, in Bayside, McKee has lots available backing onto green space and water. They have a bungalow and two-storey show
home but, what’s really got them excited is the opportunity to build ‘carriage suites’, complete with separate entrance, making multi-generational living that much easier.
Down in Lanark Landing, McKee is building ‘green street’ row homes the likes of which have never been seen in Airdrie.
“Your front door opens onto a large shared green space, and an attached garage with living space at the back” explains Elaine of the 20-some row homes soon to be under construction. “We’re always looking to the future, to be innovative – we’re building a net-zero home - but want to stay attainable, so that the next generation of home buyers can afford to stay in Airdrie.”
In addition to innovation and affordability, McKee Homes’ also has a well-earned reputation for quality and reliability. People trust them, and that’s not lost on the McKee staff.
“A lot of the details that go into our homes are behind the walls,” says Elaine. “It’s all about pride in workmanship and I can’t say enough about how our team of trades and employees have contributed to our visions. Especially over the past couple of years.”
Many of their employees and contractors are Airdrie residents themselves, including Elaine and Grace and their families, meaning the people building your home are literally your neighbours.
“We’re local,” says Elaine, “and we’re committed to the community. We don’t just build homes here. We grew up here. We live here. Our kids went to school here. Our family has literally grown along with the city, and with our homeownerss.
“Airdrie is a huge part of our life and we hope that shows in our work.” life
