Detroit Developer Begins Second Quonset Hut Housing Project

Prince Concepts, the real estate development company behind the award-winning Quonset hut village ‘True North,’ has started its second Quonset hut housing project called ‘The Caterpillar’.

According to the company, The Caterpillar will have six special residential units and two live/work units in one large 46’ x 192’ SteelMaster Q-Model hut.

“The apartments will have 24’ tall ceilings, ethereal natural light, calming curves, and a Jetson’s style genesis chamber that residents will use to transform from ‘just barely awake’ to ‘ready for action,’” Prince Concepts announced in a post on Instagram. “Instead of front yards, the hut will be lifted and have a stoop that will look out onto a heavily planted park/garden.”

The Caterpillar will be located right down the street from True North in the Core City area of Detroit, Michigan.

Edwin Chan teamed up with Philip Kafka of Prince Concepts to create True North in 2016. It’s the first time in 60 years that Core City has seen a major development.

This team designed True North’s Quonset huts at different angles and in different shapes and sizes to create open, outdoor spaces to enhance the community feel of the area.

There are rental units inside a few of the True North buildings that range from 475 to 1,600 square feet, an Airbnb called QuonsetHaus, a small coffee shop and a yoga studio.  Translucent and transparent polycarbonate allows natural light to pour inside of the prefabricated Quonset huts, and crews used other affordable materials to keep the spaces cost effective.

Construction for The Caterpillar is set to start in late 2019.