Shawnee
living
One of Eichler’s admirers was Donald Drummond, a Kansas City builder. “Drummond’s vision, who in my mind was ahead of his time, was building modern residential architecture displaying iconic, open-plan, glass-walled houses that can, surprisingly, be found throughout Kansas City neighborhoods,” he says. Once Steve settled on the type of house to build, his research was about to pay off. Wasting little time, Steve, a project manager for a material procurement company, wife Cathy, a registered nurse, and their 5-year-old son Graham decided it was time to look for property. “We looked in the paper and found a vacant, half-acre lot in Shawnee. Not only was the lot big enough, it was also very affordable, which is one great thing that
remains a plus about Shawnee,” he says. “Oh, and ironically it was less than five minutes from where I grew up.” top left Steve Worden searched for unique details to punctuate the home’s interior, including these pendant light fixtures for the dining room. Photo by Bob Greenspan
sHawneemagazine
above Left Unique artwork such as pieces by Cathy Worden’s uncle, Robert MacDonald Graham Jr. hangs throughout the home. Photo by Bob Greenspan
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above right It wasn’t until Steve found
the perfect piece of land in Shawnee that he could proceed with building his dream home.
Making good design happen Steve formulated plans for his modern creation in 2001 when they bought the lot; he was inspired by a house on Kansas City’s Westside designed by local architect Thomas Knittel. “I realized it was exactly the type of home I’d envisioned, so I worked with Knittel to modify the original plans,” Steve says. Joining him on the project would be his brother Chris and master carpenter Nels Dermond; Steve would tap into skills he used while working some construction after high school. Construction began in earnest in 2002 on the 2,100-square-foot home using mostly industrial materials accessible right off the shelf. Once the slab