Life often is divided into a series of milestones - first day of school, first love, first job. Although these rites of passage may look different for everyone, for generations these checkpoints often included a first, or “starter” home.
Unfortunately, that dream of building equity has become harder to obtain in Ottawa County and in much of the nation because of a persistent housing shortage and a mismatch in local zoning ordinances.
Now, after nearly two years of careful research and design work, the Ottawa County Department of Strategic Impact and project partners introduced a tangible solution to this shortage at last Thursday’s Ottawa County Housing Commission meeting - free small-footprint home plans, designed for Ottawa County, by Ottawa County.
“Ranging from 440 square feet to just over 1,000 square feet, these completely nonproprietary home plans have been painstakingly designed with Ottawa County in mind,” outgoing Housing Commission President Jared Schuitema said. “We are absolutely ecstatic to release these plans and hope to see them be built in a variety of county locations.”
Available online now at miottawa.org/small-footprint, this collection of four different layouts, each with four interchangeable exterior themes - including In Town, Lake Dune, Rural Farm, and Rural Forest - provide 16 residential options that will complement practically any corner of Ottawa County. The public can flip through different designs online and after completing a simple survey will be able to download the plans of their choice.
DSI staff took care to ensure the website was user-friendly to showcase all the design options. “Because our design consultant and DSI intern developed so many different exterior choices, it was important we included a flip-through gallery function,” said DSI Project Support Specialist Rich Lakeberg, who with support from Grand Rapids-based WebTecs, Inc., designed the custom web pages.
The creation of these plans was truly a team effort. The design process was guided by Holland-based design consultant Nick Rolinski and local real estate and construction experts. The designs themselves were developed in detail by Hope College civil engineering student and DSI intern Matt Daub. Supporting the duo through all iterations included DSI, the Housing Commission, and more than two dozen local partners representing an array of disciplines and sectors.
“We worked with a lot of partners of whom we have to thank for providing their expertise to develop this construction set that we feel is high quality and will really stand the test of time,” Daub said.
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Next Steps: Revisiting zoning regulations and recruiting builders
With the home plans live, now comes the more difficult part - constructing them. In most areas, modern zoning and ordinances all but prohibit smaller homes. Why? Broadly speaking, as the post-World War II economy boomed, development patterns changed. Homes grew larger and car ownership became more widespread. These cultural shifts encouraged larger lot and setback requirements, which virtually outlawed small-footprint homes. DSI staff are working to encourage cities and townships to reconsider these policies.
“All the units of government that may be interested in this have to consider they may have a mismatch in zoning,” Rolinski said. “The small footprint house is an important thing to keep on the menu - we can help them reclaim that.”
The work group is also actively seeking partners and nonprofits to get shovels in the ground to build versions of these homes in 2026.
“A handful of nonprofits, landowners and builders have reached out to us over the past year,” DSI Director Paul Sachs said. “It’s only a matter of time before these home types return to our communities.”
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About the Small-Footprint Home Development Concept
The Ottawa County Housing Commission is dedicated to identifying solutions to combat the rising cost of housing and lack of availability in the County. One viable solution is the idea of smaller-footprint homes. At around 1,000 square feet or less and situated on appropriately sized lots, these more traditionally sized abodes ideally could sell for significantly less than the current median price for an Ottawa County home, which hovers around $400,000.
The goals of this project are to increase housing stock by providing nonproprietary home plans, collaborating with local leaders to overcome policy barriers, and recruiting builders to construct modest residences - without the use of grants or subsidies.
For regular updates on the Small-Footprint Homes Development Concept project, attend a Housing Commission meeting held monthly at the County Administration Building in West Olive or online. For more board information, visit the Boards & Commissions Information Hub page or email Strategic Impact at plan@miottawa.org.
Unfortunately, that dream of building equity has become harder to obtain in Ottawa County and in much of the nation because of a persistent housing shortage and a mismatch in local zoning ordinances.
Now, after nearly two years of careful research and design work, the Ottawa County Department of Strategic Impact and project partners introduced a tangible solution to this shortage at last Thursday’s Ottawa County Housing Commission meeting - free small-footprint home plans, designed for Ottawa County, by Ottawa County.
“Ranging from 440 square feet to just over 1,000 square feet, these completely nonproprietary home plans have been painstakingly designed with Ottawa County in mind,” outgoing Housing Commission President Jared Schuitema said. “We are absolutely ecstatic to release these plans and hope to see them be built in a variety of county locations.”
Available online now at miottawa.org/small-footprint, this collection of four different layouts, each with four interchangeable exterior themes - including In Town, Lake Dune, Rural Farm, and Rural Forest - provide 16 residential options that will complement practically any corner of Ottawa County. The public can flip through different designs online and after completing a simple survey will be able to download the plans of their choice.
DSI staff took care to ensure the website was user-friendly to showcase all the design options. “Because our design consultant and DSI intern developed so many different exterior choices, it was important we included a flip-through gallery function,” said DSI Project Support Specialist Rich Lakeberg, who with support from Grand Rapids-based WebTecs, Inc., designed the custom web pages.
The creation of these plans was truly a team effort. The design process was guided by Holland-based design consultant Nick Rolinski and local real estate and construction experts. The designs themselves were developed in detail by Hope College civil engineering student and DSI intern Matt Daub. Supporting the duo through all iterations included DSI, the Housing Commission, and more than two dozen local partners representing an array of disciplines and sectors.
“We worked with a lot of partners of whom we have to thank for providing their expertise to develop this construction set that we feel is high quality and will really stand the test of time,” Daub said.
—————
Next Steps: Revisiting zoning regulations and recruiting builders
With the home plans live, now comes the more difficult part - constructing them. In most areas, modern zoning and ordinances all but prohibit smaller homes. Why? Broadly speaking, as the post-World War II economy boomed, development patterns changed. Homes grew larger and car ownership became more widespread. These cultural shifts encouraged larger lot and setback requirements, which virtually outlawed small-footprint homes. DSI staff are working to encourage cities and townships to reconsider these policies.
“All the units of government that may be interested in this have to consider they may have a mismatch in zoning,” Rolinski said. “The small footprint house is an important thing to keep on the menu - we can help them reclaim that.”
The work group is also actively seeking partners and nonprofits to get shovels in the ground to build versions of these homes in 2026.
“A handful of nonprofits, landowners and builders have reached out to us over the past year,” DSI Director Paul Sachs said. “It’s only a matter of time before these home types return to our communities.”
—————
About the Small-Footprint Home Development Concept
The Ottawa County Housing Commission is dedicated to identifying solutions to combat the rising cost of housing and lack of availability in the County. One viable solution is the idea of smaller-footprint homes. At around 1,000 square feet or less and situated on appropriately sized lots, these more traditionally sized abodes ideally could sell for significantly less than the current median price for an Ottawa County home, which hovers around $400,000.
The goals of this project are to increase housing stock by providing nonproprietary home plans, collaborating with local leaders to overcome policy barriers, and recruiting builders to construct modest residences - without the use of grants or subsidies.
For regular updates on the Small-Footprint Homes Development Concept project, attend a Housing Commission meeting held monthly at the County Administration Building in West Olive or online. For more board information, visit the Boards & Commissions Information Hub page or email Strategic Impact at plan@miottawa.org.
