When Cindy and I sold our newspaper and house up north, we bought a piece of land near Brownsville and decided to build a house.

We started asking around for good builders in the area. Several names were mentioned, including John Holzwarth.

We met with John and talked our ideas over with him. Cindy and I both felt he would be a good builder. Heíd done good work in the past. (Thatís an understatement.) He was reputable and trustworthy.

It was an amazing project to watch as things progressed. Lining up contractors was an adventure. The excavation man was busy with many other jobs but fit us into our schedule and his. We both had to be flexible.

The people that poured the concrete foundation came and went in a day. I never even saw them, they were so fast.

Timís plumbing was done in evenings and on weekends for the most part, because he had another job. Putting up the trusses took a special trip by a neighbor with a boom truck.

Brad and Pat did their electrical work as the work on the rest of the house progressed. Same with Matt and the heating system.

Everybody worked around each other, John and his crew included, because they had other jobs they were working on too.

It was a finely choreographed dance in a way. It wasnít like some people might imagine, or something you see on TV, where a big crew comes in, works on a house, and finishes it in a couple of weeks. We broke ground on August 31, 2003, and moved in on February 28, 2004.

We saw everything that was done, we asked questions, made some changes and didnít make other changes at the advice of the various contractors.

We ended up with the house of our dreams.

Iím thinking of all this in the context of the discussion on whether Houston County should adopt the Minnesota State Building Code. My conclusion is that the county should not do so.

For one thing, throwing the building inspections into the process would have added delays. It was hard enough for all those guys to get coordinated, let alone to do it around the schedule of Joe Inspector.

It would have added a substantial cost. No one knows quite how much, but Iíve heard figures from $4,000-$8,000.

And it would not have been necessary. Thatís the most important thing to me. Were we just lucky? No. We did our homework, we chose good contractors (all of whom were licensed), we watched them work, and we got a good product in the end.

I know there are shysters out there, but unethical and incompetent builders donít last long in a small community. If someone puts on a bad roof, word spreads in a hurry. When you start doing your homework, you will hear about it. Same with all the other trades.

I feel bad when I hear of people getting taken advantage of by contractors. But there are recourses for those victims, places like the Better Business Bureau and licensing agencies. Legal action works too, such as small claims court or a private attorney.

I hope the county board does not vote to adopt the Minnesota Building Code.

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