Dayton Daily News
By Amelia Robinson
Sunday, February 7, 2010
DAYTON — As its aluminum vents effortlessly swung open and shut, the Solara Adjustable Patio Cover caught Terry and Joy Kiggins’ attention as they strolled around The Miami Valley HomeWorld at the Dayton Expo Center on Sunday, Feb. 7.
“I like this awning,” Terry Kiggins said of the programmable show-stopper promoted at the Aristocrat Product booth. “Joy’s been wanting to get something retractable.”
The Springboro couple attended the ninth annual home improvement show, sponsored by WHIO-TV and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, to look and — if they spotted something they wanted — buy.
Joy picked up an environmentally-friendly Swift Mop (the man hocking it said the microfiber wet-and-dry mop is like a Swiffer brand mop only better). Terry made plans to come back for a collapsible 20-foot high telescoping flagpole.
The six-day show featuring 200 companies ranging from hot-tub sales to a wine cellar business continues at the Dayton Exposition Center Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 12-14.
Standard admission is $7.
Despite a slower than normal opening weekend due to Friday’s snowstorm, organizers predicted that the show would attract 17,000 people.
John Adams, a local sales manager for WHIO, said the show is packed with innovation and luxury products including solar panels and hot tubs.
It also offers a variety of ideas for kitchen and baths, two rooms where experts say improvements can enhance a home’s value.
That’s the very reason the Kiggins hope to remodel their kitchen and bathroom.
“We really want to sell our house, so we want to improve it,” Joy Kiggins said, noting that they will also be able to enjoy the improvements — including maybe a granite shower stall — until the housing market is more favorable to sellers.
Because the real estate industry has struggled, Kim Fantaci, executive director of NARI, said many homeowners are at least postponing their mini-mansion dreams and upgrading property they already own.
“They are making the house they have their dream home,” she said.
How To Go
What: Miami Valley HomeWorld
When: Friday to Sunday, Feb. 12-14 — Friday 4-9 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Where: Dayton Expo Center, 3900 McCauley Drive, adjacent to the Dayton International Airport in Vandalia
Admission: $7 per adult, with children under 12 free
More info: www.miamivalleyhomeworld.com
