Another Place
At Another Place - a verdant 10.5 acres of sugar maple and white pine 5 miles inland from Lake Michigan in rural Benzie County, MI - we are dedicated to slow building, land stewardship, and artistic research.
The cabin operates as a living laboratory and the building process brings together artists, designers, builders, and fabricators to test regenerative construction methods in real time.
The straw panel cabin at Another Place is an experimental building project exploring how architecture can emerge from local agricultural waste, collaborative design, and ecological care. Designed by Elle Gover and Ellen Rutt in collaboration with Bale Craft, the cabin is Michigan’s first permitted structure built with prefabricated straw panels — demonstrating a viable path toward low-carbon, healthy construction.
About Straw
Straw is the dry stalks left over after grain crops like wheat, oats, and rye are harvested — a natural byproduct that's been around as long as farming itself. Because it's generated in massive quantities alongside grain production, straw is one of the most abundant and affordable agricultural materials in the Midwest, readily available and waiting to be put to good use.
About Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs)
Straw SIPs, Structural Insulated Panels, are made from compressed agricultural by-products and offer strong insulation, low embodied carbon, and non-toxic interior environments. As a building system, they address intersecting climate and housing challenges while supporting regional material supply chains and new forms of rural and creative infrastructure. Straw SIP construction can reduce embodied carbon by 60–70% compared to conventional construction, and in some cases even make a building carbon-negative at the time of completion.
The straw panel cabin at Another Place is an experimental building project exploring how architecture can emerge from local agricultural waste, collaborative design, and ecological care. Designed by Elle Gover and Ellen Rutt in collaboration with Bale Craft, the cabin is Michigan’s first permitted structure built with prefabricated straw panels — demonstrating a viable path toward low-carbon, healthy construction.
The straw panel cabin at Another Place is an experimental building project exploring how architecture can emerge from local agricultural waste, collaborative design, and ecological care. Designed by Elle Gover and Ellen Rutt in collaboration with Bale Craft, the cabin is Michigan’s first permitted structure built with prefabricated straw panels — demonstrating a viable path toward low-carbon, healthy construction.
