Stirn Contracting

It's funny how things seem to come together. After Rick's father, Robert decided to retire from a large architectural firm, he went back to his love of carpentry and they formed a contracting business in 1971. Rick had just gotten married the year before and Stirnkorb Construction seemed like a good place to learn a trade. Over the next 15 years, Rick learned to build "stick" homes, from the ground up, nail by nail, board by board, the way craftsman did for hundreds of years. When Robert decided to retire a second time, Rick branched out and began a new business doing commercial contracting where they built a lot of restaurants and retail projects. Eventually he sold that business and partnered with Cincinnati Building and Contracting, specializing in commercial work. For 21 years Rick worked with CB&C until his own sons decided they wanted to learn the trade and work with their father. Stirn Contracting was started again in 2004. Working with both of his sons, Rick, Billy and Eric, decided remodeling work was the way to go. The breadth of their experience allows them to focus on kitchens and baths, basement refinishes, and room additions. They have completed as many as five bathrooms in one house alone, to a job as simple as a backyard deck. They still do most of the work themselves. Their specialty seems to be kitchens and baths, creating expansive "open air" rooms with the look and feel that is so popular today. Living spaces are created by taking out walls and expanding rooms so the kitchen and dining areas become the central point of entertainment for the family. "What we love is being able to create exactly what the homeowner wants" said Rick, "from the look and feel of spaciousness to the color and textures of the newest cabinets, granite and flooring. It's always a pleasure to see the final results and know the homeowners are excited about their projects." Eric says he enjoys the craftsmanship that goes into each job. Being part of a family business himself, he appreciates working with other families. "It is not just about working with customers, but it's about the relationships that develop along the way," said Eric. According to homeowners Jim and Jen Pavelka, "It was a privilege and a joy to work with Stirn Contracting on several renovation projects. Their creative vision, expert work, focus on value and commitment to integrity differentiates them from other contractors. Rick and Eric made our new house a home for our family." Rick says their goal for each job is to provide the kind of finished product the homeowner envisioned from the start-and sometimes a little bit better.