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Passion for architecture drives family businessPamela Cotant
Nearly 50 years later, Hart DeNoble, now owner of Hart DeNoble Builders, can still picture the distinguished architect wearing his signature wide-brimmed hat. "I remember my mom and dad making such a big thing about it," said DeNoble, who found himself sharing his father's love of architecture. DeNoble also went to job sites with his father, who was a carpenter before he became a building inspector for the city of Madison. Given these early influences, it's not surprising the younger Hart DeNoble became a carpenter and eventually turned to high-end homes that involve more design work and customization. "I knew when I got into the carpentry trade that I wanted my own business," said DeNoble, whose company is located at 7923 Airport Road. "I'd have some control over what I was going to work on." DeNoble, 55, graduated from West High School and then started a four-year apprenticeship, which involved some drafting and welding classes at Madison Area Technical College and some work at job sites. He did mostly commercial work, which provided invaluable experience he still draws on. He worked for builders for eight years, and in 1979, at age 29, he started a partnership with Richard Eberle. Called Eberle-DeNoble Builders, the company started building mostly medium-priced homes. By the mid-1980s, Eberle-DeNoble Builders had moved into higher-end homes. In 1985, its second home in the Madison Area Builders Association Parade of Homes swept nine of 10 categories in a newspaper readers' poll. The only category it didn't win was the one for favorite contemporary home because it didn't qualify. In 1993, DeNoble bought out Eberle, who was turning more toward development, and changed the name to Hart DeNoble Builders. DeNoble and his wife, Debby, have four children: Jason, Robin, Ben and Zach. Jason, now 32 and the oldest, became interested in carpentry and architecture when he was young, like his father. "He used to drag me around to job sites on nights and weekends," Jason DeNoble said. At Memorial High School, Jason DeNoble took all the design/drafting classes available and considered a career in architecture. After graduating, he went into the Marine Corps for four years. When he came back to Madison in 1996, Jason DeNoble joined his father's company, working for 2 years in the field and in the office during slow times. As everything fell into place, he set aside his dream of becoming an architect and figures that was a good move. "I probably couldn't sit still long enough," said Jason DeNoble, now a project manager. "I enjoy going out to the job sites and really enjoy working with clients." Hart DeNoble's son-in-law, Jason Franzen, is also a project manager at the company, working side-by-side with the other Jason. Ben DeNoble worked at the company off and on for four years, mostly in the field. He moved to Los Angeles, where he hopes to do work in residential rehabilitation. Hart DeNoble's nephew, Gar Holcomb, is a field project manager/expeditor. Hart DeNoble initially started working out of his home but as more space was needed, an outside office was created and then moved a number of times. In 1998, the business moved to its current location, which was questioned by the two Jasons because at the time it was in the "middle of nowhere." But Hart DeNoble was aware of plans for a Highway 12 bypass, which became reality seven years later. Now the company sits on a prime spot right off the highway and on the corner of the new Middleton Corporate Center. Hart DeNoble Builders has built up its reputation, so now most of its clients come in "pre-sold," often referred by friends or repeat customers. The company stands behind its homes with a three-year, 100 percent warranty. On average, the company builds homes for $175 to $250 a square foot and measuring 6,000 to 8,000 square feet. The two Jasons offer a youthful enthusiasm and freshness and like to research new products and ways of doing things. At the same time, the senior DeNoble brings his experience to the table. "We're still continually learning," said Jason DeNoble, who thinks he can be more honest with his father than he could be with another boss. Hart DeNoble said he's learned to listen to his project managers because they have a different perspective, but he's also not shy about turning down some wild ideas from his more youthful counterparts. The biggest challenge facing the company is the cost of land around Dane County, which has doubled over the last four years, reducing the amount of money a client has to spend on the house itself. Buyers have become more educated and homes have become more complex with new building materials and greater technology. Hart DeNoble said his biggest regret is not getting a degree in architecture to go along with his love of the field. While he works alongside Steven Hunter, the designer at his design/build firm, Hart DeNoble feels a little like a "Wizard of Oz" character who wants something symbolic to prove what he already possesses. "A lot of respect comes with being an architect," said Hart DeNoble, who considers himself a designer. "That would just lend credibility to the builder/designer title." The company will enter a new chapter when it breaks ground on a 14-acre, 180-unit condominium project with Temple Construction of Madison, a company run by a father-son duo. Designed to re-create the feel of a European village, it will be different from anything else in the area, Jason DeNoble said. "We're expanding into another area, yet still retaining our prime expertise, which is building high-quality single-family homes," Hart DeNoble said. pcotant@mailbag.com madison.com ©2009 Capital Newspapers. All rights reserved. |
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