Architects:HGA Architects and Engineers

Area:227ft²

Year:2014

Photographs:Paul Crosby Photography,Pete VonDeLinde

Manufacturers:Centria,Dakota County,Douglas Fir,Maple Wood,Marvin,Sansin,Virginia Tile & Stone,western red cedar

Electrical Engineer:HGA, Ben Gutierrez, Greg Aune

Lighting Design:HGA, Chysanthi Stockwell

Civil Engineer:HGA, Kenny Horns, Bradley Roath

Mechanical Engineer:HGA, Leighton Deer, Julie Hagstrom

Structural Engineer:HGA, Tony Staeger, Bryan Greger

Landscape Architect:Ross Altheimer, Travis Van Liere

Principal In Charge:Jim Goblirsch

Principal Designer:Steven Dwyer

Project Manager:Erica Christenson

Project Architects:Rob Good

Landscape Project Team:Erica Christenson, Trygve Hansen, Nissa Tupper

Landscape Architect:Ross Altheimer, ASLA, LEED AP; Travis Van Liere, ASLA

Project Manager:Erica Christenson, ASLA

Landscape Project Team:Erica Christenson, ASLA; Trygve Hansen, ASLA, LEED AP; Nissa Tupper, ASLA

City:Farmington

Country:United States

Text description provided by the architects. Nestled into the hillside of a new regional park within the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area, three new camper cabins - built by county employees with the aid of high school students in a vocational training program - weave their way into a stand of pine trees. They serve as a key amenity in the first phase of the parks master plan.

The concept for the cabins riffs on the idea of a treehouse, but instead makes it accessible to all by building a “house in the trees” entered from a bridge at the crest of the hill along adjacent ski and hiking trails.

At 227 square feet with an 80 square foot deck, the cabins provide ample square footage, electricity, lighting, heat and natural ventilation with framed views into the surrounding forest bringing modern comfort to the overnight outdoor adventurer. Two full-size bunks with built-in-storage, dining and sitting areas provide optimized cabin accommodations for four individuals while sleeper sofa and additional folding seating, hidden via built-in-storage, can comfortably accommodate six. The cabins are supported by a bathhouse farther up the hill.

Built on concrete piers to minimize the impact on the surrounding wilderness, the cabins hover between 14 and 16 feet above grade with trees almost at arms-reach, creating privacy and intimacy with the natural environment. Above the concrete pier foundation the structure is comprised of a red cedar glulam chassis, cedar and pine framing depending on visibility and exposure, and red cedar cladding throughout.

Dark cedar shingles on the exterior blend seamlessly with the beauty of the pine forest, in which it is situated while the interior is stained naturally to create an immersive warm environment. Floor-to-ceiling glass at the deck frames the forest, creating a focal centerpiece from the interior.

Project gallery

Project location

Address:Whitetail Woods Regional Park, 17100 Station Trail, Farmington, MN 55024, United States