July 17,, 2015

DETROIT - It took just a little over six hours to build, that's a big perk, Leslie Horn, one of the minds responsible for building the city's first shipping container building.

Horn, CEO of Three Squared Construction, and her brother, Patric, said the three-floor, 2,800-square-foot building is 70 percent complete.

Before cutting the ribbon to open the almost-complete structure for tours Friday, Leslie said "I think we're going to change people's minds today."

When the project was first announced seven years ago, people thought the Horns were crazy, she said, but now that the Trumbull Avenue building is standing and sturdy in North Corktown, the company is ready to prove to people that the shipping container homes are a viable residential solution.

"(We're) creating new history in Detroit," she said.

The North Corktown building is essentially two homes, which for the time being will serve as model units. The lower unit is a two-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath 1,800-square-foot apartment with a full kitchen and balcony.

The upper unit, according to Patric, is a one-bedroom, one-bathroom 1,000-square-foot apartment with a balcony.

The North Corktown complex features a rear entry for both aparments.

The two units will serve as a starting point for the company's next two projects called Rosa Parks Squared in Woodbridge and Kaline Squared in Corktown.

Jan Dijkers, and associate broker with The Loft Warehouse, said the units will sell from between $150,000 for the smallest, 640-square-foot unit to $350,000 for the largest, 1,800-square-foot units.

Patric said Three Squared hopes to have the other two developments done by the end of the year.

The North Corktown Structure, once finished, will have taken less than 60 days to construct.

While the building didn't necessarily cost less to build than a traditional building of the same size, it took a fraction of the time to get up, Leslie said.

Patric estimated that a brick-and-mortar apartment building of the same dimensions would have taken anywhere from a year to 18 months to build.

"It works everywhere," he said, saying that shipping container structures are an efficient, cheap, strong way to boost residential living space in growing areas of the city.

Corktown and Woodbridge are two of the most densely populated neighborhoods in Detroit, with rent prices climbing every day.

Once completed, the Kaline development will have eight individual units for sale; on Rosa Parks in Woodbridge, there will be 25 units for sale.

"This will be good for hipsters," one visitor said to another while walking through the model Friday.

The North Corktown structure took nine shipping containers to build, six 40-foot containers for the main body, and three 20-foot containers for the balconies. The stairwell was not made from containers.

Eventually, Three Squared plans to build out the stretch of vacant land behind the home, which they also own.

Leslie said she was proud of her team.

"This team has been able to adapt," she said. "We are pleased for a lot of different reasons."

Aside from the sheer oddness of the building, Leslie said she doesn't anticipate them being tough to sell. Once completed, the interiors of the homes will have tile or vinyl floors, and plenty of windows.

Dijkers said there is plenty of interest from potential buyers.

The quick-to-build homes could find a niche in a booming Detroit housing market.

Ian Thibodeau is the business and development reporter for MLive Media Group in Detroit. He can be reached at ithibode@mlive.com, or follow him on Twitter.

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