I was fortunate enough to visit in person with one of my favorite advocates for small cottage homes! Bruce Tolar lives in Ocean Springs, MS and I have been following him since I saw the first little yellow Katrina Cottage in Ocean Springs in 2006. Bruce often works with the Incremental Development Alliance where I have taken courses before on how to build what your city needs — small, affordable housing and commercial units.
Bruce developed Cottage Square in Mississippi and the community showcases some of the small scale modular homes that I find so attractive. Most of the homes are one bedroom and they have very little turnover in their rentals.
The homes are planned with a layer of landscaping, pathways, and more landscaping to allow each homeowner privacy. The community has a common area for mailboxes and a gravel drive throughout to encourage slow-driving and neighbor-waving!
There is a rain garden that was developed between Cottage Square and its neighbor to help take on standing water during heavy rains. The garden is rather beautiful and piqued my interest to get involved with a rain garden project here in Savannah with the Ogeechee River Keeper (they are building two more rain gardens for anyone who is looking to volunteer for a great cause and gain experience!)
Rain Garden at Cottage Square
Another great feature at Cottage Square is that Bruce and his team were able to create neighborhood commercial mixed in with the residential cottages. The day use offices complement the community and allow residents to walk to get a hair cut, nails, or back massage.
Residential and Neighborhood Commercial co-exisit nicely here.
The parking has never been an issue for the community. The municipality was very concerned about how parking would work and forced Bruce’s team to have excessive parking planned out for the community but as I walked through the community I realized there was a parking glut.
I am so grateful to Bruce for taking the time to visit and show me around. He has developed a modular cottage series that are beautifully-designed that i am looking to put here in Savannah. They are between 336 and 1259 sf and hope to be rolling out very soon in a variety of finish levels that will all include hardi-plank and JeldWen or Anderson windows.
If you have a need for a backyard cottage for a “she shed,” mother-in-law suite, or just as a monthly income-producing home, a Bruce-Tolar designed home is where its at as far as I’m concerned! I can, of course, help orchestrate the planning and budget process if you are ready to take it off paper! Cheers!