Shipping container condos hit Detroit

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DETROIT, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- A development firm is set to build an apartment complex out of empty shipping containers in Detroit, officials said.

The firm, Three Squared, is scheduled to start construction in December on a model unit and sales center where a 20-unit complex near Wayne State University will sit, the Detroit Free Press reported.

The $3.4 million project would stack empty containers four high, cut in windows and doors, install plumbing, stairways and heating, and add amenities such as balconies and landscaped patios, said Three Squared Chief Executive Officer Leslie Horn.

Horn said many people find the concept strange.

"Even last week I met with some investors and one of them said, 'I'd rather invest after you have one built.' I think part of it is education," she said. "People still have a stigma because they don't see the versatility in container construction."

Horn said she is looking ahead to similar projects in other cities.

"We believe it's just the beginning of the capacity of our company," she said.