PROFILE:
JAZEL HOMES
perennial
homebuilder by BOBBI-SUE MENARD
A custom Jazel interior
Knowing what works and what doesn’t
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ourneyman carpenter was a natural progression from growing up in a logging family for James Zeleznik. He arrived in Kelowna in 1980 and achieved his journeyman ticket in 1984. This was in the mid 1980s after getting laid off from a work site yet again in an economy that seemed permanently stuck in sluggish mode that Zeleznik decided to start building on his own. Since 1988 Zeleznik’s company Jazel Homes has been building in the Central Okanagan. Jazel Homes averages about 25 single family homes per year. “Sometimes more, sometimes less,” says Zeleznik. “We’ve managed to stay in business through two market downturns so far; this is the third downturn and we are still building.” Multi-family units are a part of the Jazel portfolio; their current project is Tesoro Arca in West Kelowna with a total of 80 units in the plan. “We have a couple of custom homes on the go at any one time,” adds Zeleznik. Current single family projects include a custom home in Osoyoos, several homes in Talus Ridge in West Kelowna and Stonewater on the Lake, an eight single- family home development on the water in Peachland. Jazel has worked with homes in every price point from the starter home to the dream home. “Most of our work is with home buyers on their second or third home. We are building what the customer wants,” says Zeleznik. Zeleznik says walking through each step of the process with the customer is invaluable from viewing the lot to handing over the keys. The company encourages its customers to be involved in the process of building the new home. After countless conversations with customers over the years Zeleznik feels customers should have a good understanding of what is happening as their home is being built. Jazel has had operation systems in place for years; it is a benefit of being in business long enough to know what works and what doesn’t. Zeleznik says making sure the process of building a new home is a smooth as possible helps keep the stress out of the equation for both customer and builder. “We have perfected some of our systems over the years so when a customer is looking for something 270A Campion specific we know what comes next and can respond.” N
St. Kelowna 250•765•0270 • www.koedawood.com NICHE
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