Barefoot Backyards was a three year long project for the award-winning custom home builder that just recently came to fruition.

Before Barefoot Backyards, Woodside ran a construction company called Woodside Construction. He’s been building built custom homes in North Kitsap and Jefferson Counties since 1990.

He began looking for something different in 2003. His wife Karla was in real estate at the time that he was doing construction. After coming up with the idea, they began attending trade shows and getting into the outdoor environment, until the concept of Barefoot Backyards emerged.

This business is simpler and more relaxing than the construction business.

“Now we have a simpler life,” he said.

Woodside has been a member of the Homebuilder’s Association since 1995, and became one of the founding members of the “Build a Better Kitsap” program. Build a Better Kitsap was the original model for the environmentally-friendly method of construction that has come to be known nationally as “Green Building.” The National Association of Home Builders (HAHB) and a number of environmental groups have based their national “Built Green” programs on the original Build a Better Kitsap design.

Build a Better Kitsap received a grant from the Department of Ecology to design environmentally sustainable method of construction which takes advantage of recycled materials as well as renewable resources. It was the third design of its kind on the country, but was the first public/private design to emerge.

“We were pioneers with flaming arrows in our backs,” he said. Their motto, Woodside said, was not to move a few people a mile, but to move 100 people an inch.”

Woodside has continued to maintain a “green” influence in his work. Although he does not use strictly durable and “green” materials, he carries materials and products that will sustain for a lengthy time.

According to Woodside’s beliefs, a big part of being environmentally sound is providing goods that will last for an extended time. By doing so, a person can cut down on wasted goods that need to be replaced frequently. His outdoor decks, spas, and grilling equipment are all made from quality materials that came from quality manufacturing, and that will remain durable for more than the usually expected periods.

“We try to provide time,” he said. “We give people their lives back.

His new showroom is meant to be an interactive environment, where customers can get one on one conversation and can try out the massaging spas.

“I want to have the client be able to experience what they buy.”

	Aquatic Fitness Center® at Barefoot Backyards

Barefoot Backyards also has the Aquatic Fitness Center, a spa designed for exercise along with relaxation. The tub is large enough to allow the user to run, walk, swim, row, and relax all in the same spa.

Barefoot Backyards is the exclusive carrier of these Dimension One Spas and Aquatic Fitness Centers in Kitsap, Mason, Jefferson, and Pierce counties on this side of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.

Woodside grew up in Seattle, and moved to Kingston in 1990 because of the simplicity and opportunity to continue his craft. He used to manage large restaurant building projects in Seattle, and began to notice that every time he looked around, the city had become a little more crowded. He enjoys the small knit community in the Kitsap County.

“My favorite part of Kitsap is knowing who your neighbors are,” he said. In contrast to busy Seattle, “It’s almost a sigh of relief.”