Tom Huneke is an engineer, his wife Julia a former bond trader with Edward Jones.  Combined, they make one brainy homebuilder.  They’re also very approachable folks.

Tom and Julia are every bit as nice as the homes they build.  Their new community, The Estates at Dames Park, is the first effort for this husband and wife team.  Located just north of the historic town of O’Fallon, Mo., (established in 1856) the 46- Home development is priced from the $170,000s and is directly across Highway P from O’Fallon’s new Dames Park complex.  The Estates at Dames Park offers ranch, 1 ½ story and two-story homes priced from the $170,000s to nearly $300,000.

With more than 60 acres O’Fallon’s Dames Park will have a running track, three athletic fields, a playground, tennis courts and a walking trail.  The Estates at Dames Park also has a walking trail that culminates across from the entrance to the city park.

You don’t have to wade through layers of management to find the boss of this outfit.  “When you buy a home from us, there’s no middle man,” Tom Huneke said with a grin.  “You talk to the owner of the company.” 

Tom and Julia staff the sales office in the Kingston II display.  The Estates at Dames Park opened in May “and business has been great,” he said.  “Lately we’ve been selling one home a week.”

The 30-acre development has only 46 homes on sites that average nearly 11,000 square feet.  “We’ve got quite a bit of common ground with trees,” he said.  All home sites will accommodate a three-car garage.

“We bought these home sites because the street wasn’t straight and the ground wasn’t flat,” he chuckled, ergo, the sidewalks of all Huneke Homes are curvy as well and flair out as they approach the porch and 18-foot-wide driveway.

The rolling hills of The Estates yielded a dozen walkout home sites, ideal for the atrium version of the Huneke’s best-selling Regency ranch.  The 1,802-square-foot Regency is of the increasingly popular “split-bedroom” design.  Drama is added with it’s vaulted great room and open kitchen.  A peninsula counter with breakfast bar overhang separates the kitchen from the great room and the Regency has both a breakfast room and large formal dining room.

            The Regency’s large master bedroom is located on the opposite side of the home from the secondary bedrooms.  The master bath features a double vanity, separate tub and shower and walk-in closet.  Both of the bedrooms are spacious and one includes a walk-in closet.

            A step-saving main-floor laundry is located next to the garage.

            The Regency can be built as an atrium ranch.  This 16-foot-wide, $15,750 addition extends from the back of the home and is designed in such a way that it can be adapted to any of the three ranch models offered by Huneke.   Features include an attractive, freestanding L-shaped staircase with handrails on both sides.  The lower level of the Regency can be finished for only $24 a square foot, Tom Huneke said. 

            You also can tour the Kingston II two-story.  This 2,250-square-foot home offers four bedrooms and 2 ½ baths with a moderate base price.  A Kingston also is available.  The Lexington, which at 2,454 square feet features a rear-located switchback staircase that opens up the foyer. 

            Three story-and a half models offer various configurations with three, four or five bedrooms, a second-floor loft and a two-story loft and a two-story great room.  They range 2,465 to 3,007 square feet.

            “When we first opened all we sold were two-stories, then story- and-a halfs, and now we sell mostly ranches,” Huneke said.

            No matter which you choose, standard on all Huneke homes are Dutch Lap vinyl siding shutters, aluminum porch columns, enclosed vinyl soffits and fascia, soaring roofs with architectural-grade shingles, a fully sodded front yard with decorative mailbox, 18-foot sealed concrete driveway, a vaulted ceiling in the great room, oak foyer flooring and painted six-panel doors with 2 ¼ - inch trim and 3 ½ -inch baseboards.  Huneke values all the standard features in his homes at more than $37,450.  Still you can find options to make the home truly yours.

            “Most homebuyers want the columns and plant shelf and the hardwood kitchen floor,” Huneke said.  “They like the window over the tub in the second bathroom.”  At a mere $300, the rectangular window high on the wall fills the hall bath with light. 

            This is a move-up community, Huneke said.  That’s why all homes include brick front elevations, among dozens of other upgrades that are standard in Huneke homes.  For instance, all bedrooms come with ceiling lights.  That’s a little thing, but you’d miss it the next time you tripped over the cat in the dark.  Huneke’s upscale features also include thoughtful things like 18-foot-wide driveways.  “When you get out of the car you’re not stepping on the grass,” he said.  And there’s a coat closet just inside the garage. 

            While many builders give you 175 amp electrical service, Huneke the engineer ups that to 200 amps.  He also puts cut-off valves under each sink and treats the home for termites.

            “We put a lot of money in the extras,” he said, “like architectural grade shingles and steep gabled roofs.  These homes have 2-by-8 fascia boards with returns and covered soffits.  We offer four different front elevations and on walkouts we require that the home also has extra large louvers (for attic ventilation).”

            “We put three-dimensional brick on our homes like you’ll see in West County, and the homes are set 50 feet from the center of the street.”

            To visit The Estates at Dames Park, take I-70 to north on Highway M through O’Fallon two miles to left on Highway P a half-mile.  For more information call 636-447-7797.