Latrobe woman's tiny vacation house gets online magazine spread

For Jessica Hooper, part of the appeal of tiny house living is that “when you strip away the clutter and distractions in life, you are able to focus your energy on what is truly important.”

That’s what the Latrobe resident told readers of Tiny House Magazine, an online publication that features her tiny vacation getaway on the cover of the current issue.

The 160-square-foot structure fulfills Hooper’s dream of being able to afford a vacation home in the Laurel Highlands, where she vacationed with her family as a child and now takes advantage of the hiking trails, ski runs, paddleboarding and whitewater opportunities.

She calls the house “Eventyr,” a word with Old Norse roots that means “an adventure, fairy tale (a folktale), something exceptionally great.”

She bought the house as a shell and spent 18 months working on it, completing the project last April. She purchased a lot at Roaring Run Resort in Donegal Township, where it now sits amid the woods.

Hooper, a mechanical drafter for Elliott Group in Jeannette, said she’s a member of “the very tight-knit tiny house community” online, where people share inspiration and information about the minimalist lifestyle.

The publisher of the online magazine saw her Instagram story and invited her to write about it.

Hooper originally intended to buy property before buying the house, knowing it might take time, considering zoning regulations that often require larger square footage for permanent structures. But before she found land, she found the exact shell she wanted in Plymouth, Mich.

Hooper and her boyfriend, Nick Song of West Mifflin, towed the shell back to her home in Latrobe, where it drew interest from passersby and even Latrobe police.

Then it was time to get to work on the interior.

Trial and error

“I’m a self-taught builder, so there was a lot of trial and error,” she said. “I definitely did a lot of over-engineering, making things a lot stronger than they needed to be.”

“This build taught me so much about myself and challenged me in ways that I never could have imagined,” Hooper told the magazine. “There were projects that I completed, tore apart and then completed again. Some days my nerves were at their breaking point.”

The shell was wired and plumbed, with walls finished in shiplap. The rest was a blank slate.

Hooper, with help from Song and other friends, built two sleeping lofts, one big enough for a queen-sized mattress and the other holding a double. The kitchen has a sink, full-sized refrigerator, open shelving, cabinets and a four-burner propane-powered range with oven.

The sitting area has an electric fireplace and sleeps one on a futon. The bathroom includes an oversized shower.

White walls are accented with pops of turquoise, brown and gold. Electric heat keeps the space cozy in cold weather.

“I wanted a vibe that was a little bit rustic, with some modern touches,” Hooper said.

Courtesy of Jessica Hooper

Jessica Hooper’s tiny house sits on a lot in Roaring Run Resort in Donegal Township.

She and her friends knocked out a deck in about 4 hours over the summer, too. She plans to add benches to the deck and skirting around the foundation this year. Unfortunately, the resort said no to a hot tub.

The long search for property finally ended when Hooper saw an ad for permanent campsites for sale at Roaring Run Resort.

“I was certain I had seen every campground in the Laurel Highlands and none of them had aligned with my vision or they didn’t allow tiny homes,” she said. “I immediately contacted the resort manager and shortly after, I was touring the property.”

It had everything she wanted, including hiking trails a few steps away, proximity to the other outdoor activities she enjoys and on-site amenities.

“I just fell in love with it,” she said. “It’s very private and stress-free. There’s a pool and food trucks in the summer, mini-golf and other activities.”

After she bought the property, family members told her about a tie to Roaring Run that she was too young to remember. Her uncle had been a manager at the resort during the 1980s.

There to stay

Hooper paid $30,000 for the shell and spent an additional $20,000 to $25,000 to finish the build. She pays extra on the loans every month and anticipates having both house and property paid off in five years.

She learned financial discipline from her grandparents, who raised her.

“I bought my house in Latrobe when I was 23,” she said. “My grandparents taught me that, if you want something, you have to go after it.”

Shirley McMarlin | Tribune-Review

The sitting area of Jessica Hooper’s tiny house.

Although the house is now closed for the winter, Hooper has helped pay down the loans by renting it through Airbnb. It rents for $160 per night, minimum two nights, and the resort handles the bookings.

Renter reviews have been positive.

“There was only one person who said it was too small,” she said. “What did they expect? They rented a tiny house.”

When it’s paid off, she said she might give up on renting — or else she’ll keep renting and build another tiny house on a nearby lot.

“I just don’t ever want to move it again,” she said.