Among the historic homes on Moores River Drive, sits a white house that may seem out of place.
But it’s not.
It’s a modern home, its design firmly rooted in the Art Deco ideals of the 1920s and 1930s. It’s smooth and sleek, with vertical stripes of both singular and grouped windows.
“We get strong reactions,” said owner Joe Smalley. “Either people love it or they don’t. But we love it.”
The house was built in 2006 for Bruce Stewart, a landscape architect, and Barry Wood, an architect. They bought the property from the Country Club of Lansing. Joe and Liz Smalley moved into the house in 2017.
“It’s a double lot, and they positioned it on the highest point of the land, but the house was built to incorporate the land,” Smalley said.
The exterior of the home is faced in Michigan limestone and stucco, materials found in and on many other neighborhood homes.
“We really enjoy modern architecture and love Palm Springs,” Smalley said. “There are a lot of mid-century modern homes in Palm Springs. And there just aren’t many modern homes in Lansing.
“When we heard it was going to be for sale, it wasn’t even listed, and we contacted the owners and asked if we could see the house. We walked around and saw this view. It’s hard to leave every day. You’ve got a golf course in the front yard, a river in the back. It’s kind of a perfect spot.”
Great care was taken to preserve the curve of the natural landscape, including a deep slope and existing ravine.
“When you walk in, you walk over a bridge,” Smalley said. “That was done intentionally.
“The bridge is kind of cool. If you look across the street, going from the 8th hole to the 9th hole, there’s a bridge that goes across, so it was meant to look similar
[“source=cnbc”]
