19-year old Eli Brotman had no construction experience when the light bulb went on for him.
“The whole idea started with a conversation between my parents and I about not giving them COVID because I'm 19,” Brotman says. “Like, I'm a pretty social guy. And so I kind of said jokingly, what if I built a tiny house in our backyard to add that extra barrier just to like space ourselves out?”
And that joke became a reality over Brotman's self-imposed gap year between high school and college. While he had help from a local architect, his uncle, and some friends, he pretty much built his tiny house himself, framing it up and installing the flooring, windows and even a compost toilet.
Brotman even has a name for his house.
“My nickname in the family is Buzz. So the Buzz Barn. The She Shed maybe if my mom takes it over once I go to college or something.”
After a party with friends in his tiny house a few days ago, Brotman has arrived at his Grinnell College dorm room in Iowa, where he might be called upon to at least build a few bunk beds.
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