• The Brauner House in Okemos

OKEMOS - From the man dubbed as "the greatest American architect of all time" by the American Institute of Architects, Frank Lloyd Wright had designed thirty-three homes in Michigan, three of which are located in Okemos and were open to the public last week. The Greater Lansing Housing Coalition (GLHC), along with the Junior League of Lansing, announced that their 2013 Home Tour would highlight the three private homes. Scheduled for the tour were the Erling Brauner House, the Goetsch-Winkler House, and the Schaberg House.

The homes were all designed between the years of 1940-1950 in the "Usonian" style, small, single-story dwellings without a garage or much storage. The homes are often L-shaped to fit around gardens and terraces, incorporating the natural surroundings into Wright's design.

Despite the drizzly weather, Katherine Draper, executive director of the GLHC deemed the home tour a huge success. Each home on the tour was full of blue bootie wearing visitors (to protect the floors from mud)from noon until four p.m., at the Schaberg home there was even a line of people waiting to enter.

This event opening private homes to the public for viewing was held to raise funds for the GLHC and Junior League of Lansing to fulfill their community engagement missions.