Ness City teacher to speak at Tiny House conference

The exterior of Ness City High School’s tiny house.

By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post

The instructor of the building trades class at Ness City High School will speak about the school’s tiny house project at the international People’s Tiny House Festival Aug. 3-5 in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The buildings trades class, which is comprised of about 20 students, built its second tiny house this spring.

Brent Kerr, instructor, said the school could not afford to build a full-size house and, even if they could, it likely would be hard to sell in their small community.

Kerr and the school board saw the tiny house as a means of teaching students valuable building and carpentry skills.

“Not every school gets the opportunity to build a house. I know there was no way to build a large house in Ness City,” Kerr said. “In the tiny house, the students did all electrical. We didn’t use an electrician, but we had everything checked. They did the HVAC, plumbing, siding, windows and doors. They got to do the whole deal.”

Kerr and his students were a featured attraction at annual Western Kansas Technology Education Fair at Fort Hays State University this spring. The school brought the house, which was in progress at the time, and opened it up for tours.

The house has since been completed and is for sale on a lot in Colorado.

Ness City High School’s tiny house kitchen.

Kerr said by speaking at the tiny house festival, he hoped to not only promote the teaching of building trades through the construction of tiny houses, but also find a buyer for the school’s tiny house.

If the house does not sell by the festival, Kerr hoped to transport the home to Colorado Springs and exhibit it there.

The school is asking $57,000 for the house. The funds raised from the house’s sale will go into the construction of a third tiny house and to upgrade NCHS shop equipment. Kerr said if the tiny house program continues to be successful, he would like to create a scholarship for NCHS students seeking post-secondary study in technical trades.

Much of the NCHS tiny house was custom built, including the concrete counter tops. The home is only 200 square feet, but includes a sleeping loft, bathroom and kitchen.

Gloria VonFeldt of Victoria is part of the tiny house movement and a promoter for the Colorado Springs festival.

She lives with her sister in a standard house now, but dreams of owning a tiny house and using it for travel.

VonFeldt and festival founder Marcus Alvarado said buying and living in a tiny house is more than economical living, it is about sustainable living. Tiny houses make a smaller environmental footprint. Some choose to have their tiny houses classified as RVs, so they can move with jobs or for travel.

Ness City High School’s tiny house loft.

Others use the tiny homes for bed and breakfasts for extra income, yet others are baby boomers who want to downsize and live more simply. Yet others see tiny houses as a way to address social issues, such as homelessness, especially in metro areas where space is at a premium and housing is expensive.

The Ness City tiny house is right in line with want a tiny house can run. It varies greatly depending on the materials used, the square footage and how much labor the owner wishes to put into the project. Most tiny homes run between $60,000 and $120,000.

Ness City High School’s tiny house bathroom.

The festival has assembled a variety of speakers and panels, who will discuss topics such as travel, construction, buying a tiny home and zoning, which differs from city to city and state to state.

The festival will also feature booths and vendors centered on sustainable living through other means. Alvarado said this year’s festival is expecting as many as 20,000 people from 31 states and six countries.