northern home & cottage
“The idea was to build vertically and immerse guests in the soaring maple trees.”
– homeowner Derrik Lattig
HARBOR HOME, REIMAGINED P. 38
TO THE TOWER! P. 48
HARBOR HOME, REIMAGINED
By PATTY LANOUE STEARNS / Photos by JACQUELINE SOUTHBY
More than a hundred years ago, a small cabin with a stone fireplace sat facing the big water of Little Traverse Bay. Rumored to have belonged to a ship’s captain, the early-1900s cabin was the perfect perch to watch storms roll in and sunsets blaze across the sky.
It’s the kind of view that lodges deep in your chest—one that makes you want to honor it with something worthy.
Though the captain is long gone, the newest stewards of this spot share his reverence for the water and wind. They imagined a home that was both welcoming and enduring, a place where craftsmanship could sing. To bring that to life, they turned to architectural designer Frederick Crosley Ball of Harbor Springs for a contemporary design rooted in place, and to Chris Miller and his team at
Miller, Poineau & Naumes (mPn) in East Jordan to make it real.
Miller, mPn’s co-owner and general manager, calls the result “a one-ofa-kind work of art. Every room has something unique and distinctive.”
“The floor plan drives the design,” adds Ball, pointing to the thoughtful sightlines—how each room frames a view of the bay, how the light shifts across the day, and how, at night, the house itself glows like a lantern.
Inside, the mPn team brought that same intention to the smallest details: custom cabinetry, bespoke wine cabinets, oak-slat built-ins flanking the fireplace, sky-lit bathrooms and backlit onyx walls that lend an ambient shimmer.
A showstopper among showstoppers, the two-story glass elevator— encased in artisan metalwork—is the first of its kind in Michigan, says project manager Tom Comai, whose team refined every inch of the home.
Above, top: The primary living area is anchored by a hand-crafted steel fireplace surround. The relaxing space leads out to an indoor/outdoor room through sliding doors. Above: An open kitchen/dining area splashes out to a patio with an outdoor kitchen.
by a two-story glass elevator, the only one of its kind in
Above and left: The primary suite connects to the home from a long glass skybridge. Accessed
Michigan.
Everywhere, the goal was seamlessness. Rift white oak cabinetry with floor-to-ceiling doors, hidden-hinged kitchen panels, and granite counters creates an easy, quiet cohesion. Even the bunk room feels warm and intentional, with handcrafted white oak beds and custom steel ladders that turn function into sculpture.
There’s heart in the cozy corners, too. The lower-level man cave hums with character—fluffy shearling ottomans, a nailhead chest, and twin backlit wine cabinets crafted in-house. The three-season room invites long conversations under its pine tongue-and-groove ceiling, fire crackling in the limestone hearth, Phantom screens pulled tight against the evening breeze.
Outdoors, the home opens to the elements in a way that feels inevitable. The primary suite spills onto a private deck; guest rooms each have a private patio. Five limestone patios—one stretching 20 by 25 feet—
Top: Serenity and simplicity reign in the primary bedroom, with a fireplace, its own private deck and a view of Little Traverse Bay. Above: The spa-like primary bath features a wall of windows with built-ins below, a two-way fireplace between the tub and toilet, a walk-in shower for two, and a vanity with vertical lighting.
The “man cave” plays with texture to create an inviting place to hunker down. The team at mPn tackled the custom cabinetry to create a walk-in wine chiller that acts almost as an art wall.
anchor the landscape for morning coffee, grilling nights or watching waves break in the distance. There’s a pool, a hot tub and a full outdoor kitchen for long summer weekends.
Even the exterior design tips its hat to the bay. Painted hemlock siding and durable horizontal bulkheads ground the structure, while Ball’s living roofs— planted with wildflowers and grasses— echo the shoreline’s natural rhythm.
And the old captain’s cabin? It’s still here. The owners carefully moved it to a new foundation, gave it a fresh face and folded it into the family story. Inside are two guest rooms, a bath, and a snug living area that once again looks out to the big water.
Somewhere, that old captain must be smiling. For a full video tour of this home, check out the 2025 Northern Home & Cottage Virtual
Tour. You can snag an access code through mynorthtickets.com; all proceeds go to
of Northwestern Michigan.
Architectural Design: Frederick Crosley Ball, frederickcrosleyball.com
Builder: Millier, Poineau & Naumes (mPn), mpnbuild.com
Skylights: Ceeflow Inc. of Harbor Springs, ceeflow.com
photo by North of Nowhere
TO THE TOWER!
THIS MODERN RETREAT MAKES THE MOST OF A HILLSIDE LOT AND PEAK-A-BOO LAKE VIEWS— BY KISSING THE TREETOPS WITH A FABULOUS FOUR-STORY DESIGN.
By PATTY LANOUE STEARNS
Photos by ERIN ATWOOD, DUNE LIFE PHOTOGRAPHY
When the owners of the sloping parcel perched near Bellaire’s Intermediate Lake were looking for the right firm to design their vacation home, they had a couple of major requirements: Make it tall and narrow, like a tower— and make it like nothing anyone’s ever seen in Northern Michigan.
“The idea was that we would build vertically instead of horizontally, helping us preserve a lot of the natural landscape and creating a structure that will immerse guests among the soaring maple trees,” says Derrik Lattig, who along with his wife, Hunter, owns this and another small vacation cabin on the property under the name North of Nowhere.
All the Lattigs needed was someone to embrace their vision and pull it off, given the fact that it would be ensconced within a forest of 120-foot maples. A view of nearby Intermediate Lake during the winter months would also be a plus.
After interviewing a couple of architects, Lattig contacted Traverse City natives Dwayne Johnson and Marc O’Grady, partners of the
design firm Beag+Haus, based in Grand Rapids and Ashburn, Virginia. The pair checked out the site’s rolling landscape, nestled within Antrim County’s Glacial Hills Natural Area outside Bellaire, and deemed it daunting, but not impossible.
“The Lattigs showed us their design ideas and we ran with it,” says Johnson, noting that it was a challenge to put the structure on such a steep hill. Some of the trees had to go, a lot of grading had to be done, but after three years—only one of which was the actual construction—The Tower was up and running.
“It wouldn’t have been possible without them,” says Lattig, who adds that Johnson and O’Grady met his vision: “You’ll never see something like this in Michigan.”
Today the rustic-modern tower, part of the Lattig’s five-acre vacation compound, stands nearly 40 feet high. Four 480-square-foot levels offer loads of natural light and serene views from every window, including that sought-after seasonal panorama of Intermediate Lake from the top level. There’s also an outdoor patio with a seven-person hot tub and fire pit for more cool-season relaxation.
Builder Tom Brady of Traverse City’s Sage Homes recalls how thrilling it
Previous page: Tucked snugly into the woods, this vacation home is focused on leafy views from every level. Top photo and above: Built-ins, big windows, high-end furnishings and an open plan make this snug top floor feel vast—even more so from the suspended outer deck.
KLEES POND
372± Acres | 3BD / 2 BA | Rogers City, MI | $1,500,000
This recreational retreat includes a private 23-acre pond with a covered bridge, a family home, guest cabin, plantations, orchards and select equipment to help maintain the grounds, all within a 4-hour drive from Detroit.
LAUGHING WHITEFISH POINT
485± Acres | Au Train, MI | $1,975,000
Forested land offering over 6,000 feet of Lake Superior frontage near Laughing Fish Point. The extensive forest provides privacy, recreation, wildlife habitat, and beauty. This unique tract is ideal for investment, a kingdom estate, or other potential uses.
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TWO MILE CREEK RETREAT
399± Acres | Watersmeet, MI | $399,000
Two Mile Creek Retreat boarders the Ottawa National Forest in Ontonagon County. Just 8 miles from Highway 45 and 10 miles from the Michigan-Wisconsin border, this property offers privacy and an abundance of recreational opportunities.
HESSLER LAKE RETREAT
355± Acres | 3BD / 1BA | Millersburg, MI | $899,000
A wooded sanctuary including 6-acre Hessler Lake, known to attract bass, bluegill, white tail deer, and northern Michigan elk. With a small cabin, detached garage, and pole barn, this property presents a rare opportunity to build a lasting family legacy.
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was doing the framing and cablesuspended top deck. “It was a fun, unique build,” he says, remembering how he and his crew had to install the top-floor kitchen via an outside lift.
The unusual exterior meshes a composite material that mimics Japanese shou sugi ban (a traditional Japanese technique of charring wood) with two concrete panels that jut out to add
extra interior space and exterior visual interest.
Inside the three-bedroom, twoand-one-half-bath home, clean lines, lots of built-ins and custom touches punctuate each level.
Starting with the basement there’s a secondary living area, game room with kitchenette, wet bar, shuffleboard table, half bath and queen
Below: The two bedrooms, one king, the other queen, on the third level share a wet-style bathroom with all the luxuries of a high-end spa.
sleeper sofa. A four-foot-wide stairway begins and floats up all four levels to the top.
The main level is home to a custom-built bunk room that offers two queen- and two full-size bunkbeds, a spacious double-vanity bathroom and a large walk-in shower.
Above that, the third level’s two bedrooms—one queen, the other a king—are paired with a spa-like bathroom with freestanding soaking tub.
At the top is the main living area, which includes an open-concept living, dining and kitchen space with upscale appliances, dedicated coffee bar, electric fireplace, frame TV, and a suspended deck where you can step outside and take in the magical scenery of Glacial Hills and the glorious winter blue of Intermediate Lake.
Despite the challenges and intense
physical work—like bringing all the supplies up a steep, icy road in winter— builder Brady says it was exhilarating to see the tower come to fruition. Owner Lattig admits he’s not the only one smitten with the playful home. “Honestly? Our guests love it.”
Top: To preserve the forested feel of the lot, the homeowners kept the footprint small and built up.
Left: This bunk room’s four beds—two queen, two double—on the main level make for pajama party heaven.
Architectural Design: Marc O’ Grady and Dwayne Johnson, Beag+Haus, beaghaus.com Builder: Tom Brady, Sage Homes, sagehomestc.com resources
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