Burnsville Home Remodeling Show Attracts 94 Vendors

Though the snow and ice seems to be persisting longer than usual this year, there was one sure of spring over the weekend - the city's annual Home Remodeling Show, held each year in the gymnasium of .

The 2010 edition of the show, which took place Saturday, featured 94 exhibitors, compared to 80 last year. The show is organized each year by the Burnsville Chamber of Commerce, the city of Burnsville and Independent School District 191's Community Education Department.

Anne Haberman, member services manager for the Chamber, noted that vendors were selling everything from instant bath remodeling modules and mulch to patios and concrete.

(For do-it-yourselfers prone to over-reaching their physical limitations, there was also one chiropractor with a booth at the show.)

Home-remodeling industry experts have reported getting a boost from the slow housing market. In the current, devalued market, rather than putting their homes up for sale and “trading up” for a new residence, some people are more likely to stay put and improve their existing digs, according to some trend-watching pundits.

That theory makes sense to Dale Pavek, one of the owners of College City Remodeling in Lakeville: “A lot of people seem to be remodeling their kitchens and bathrooms, because they're staying in their homes longer,” he said.

“There seem to be a lot of people interested in doing smaller remodeling projects,” said another sales rep exhibiting at the show, Sandy Smith. That bodes well for her employer, Plymouth-based Kate-Lo Tile and Stone, which does a big business in decorative back splashes for kitchens and bathrooms.

Not everyone who came to the Home Remodeling Show had a specific project, or projects, in mind, said Stephen Lyons, owner of Eagan-based Enhanced Home Improvements.

“A lot of people come by to get ideas” for projects they'll pursue later in the year, said Lyons, whose company sells windows, siding, roofing, soffits, fascia and gutters.

And, of course, vendors are always eager to suggest ideas. Another Burnsville homeowner, Lori Cowan, was making her first visit to the show to get some ideas for replacing the stair-railing system in her home.

“The show seems to be a good place to talk to different vendors," Cowan said. "You can even make appointments at the show.”

Dave Peterson of Burnsville is a veteran do-it-yourselfer who has been to every Home Remodeling Show since the beginning. He was looking for ideas for his latest project, remodeling a basement bathroom. He also talked to other exhibitors at the show about putting in some energy-saving basement insulation, and replacing his gutter system.

“It's good to be able to talk to them (vendors) all in one place,” said Peterson, who spent last fall building a new garage on his property.

Some people go to the show with one project in mind and wind up getting ideas for other home improvements, like Terri Crane of Burnsville.

“I asked her about shower liners and she talked me into looking at some windows,” said Crane, who made an appointment for a home visit and an estimate on some new windows.

Although some vendors commented that business seemed a little slow at this year – possibly due to the late appearance of spring weather -- Haberman estimated this year's show drew about 500 attendees in its five hours (between its 9 a.m. opening and 2 p.m. closing.

“The vendors I spoke to said they were getting (sales) leads.”