# Custom Home Builder in Michigan Center, Michigan — Strouss Construction

> Custom homes, additions, garages and pole barns in Michigan Center, Michigan, on the Center Lake chain and the Leoni Township acreage around it.

Michigan Center sits just east of Jackson, and building here means knowing the difference between a lake lot and township acreage. Strouss Construction has been building in Jackson County since 1949, and the fourth generation of the family is running it now.

On Center Lake and the rest of the chain, homes are packed close to the water on narrow lots, and a lot of them started as seasonal cottages families have lived in year round for decades. A mile north or south into Leoni Township, the lots open into farm ground and wooded acreage.

## On the Chain of Lakes
The cottages ringing Center Lake, Olcott Lake and the Wolf lakes were never meant for winter, and that shapes the work. On a lake lot you are usually dealing with a narrow parcel, a house set close to the shoreline, tight access for a crew and equipment, and a high water table that pushes most new construction toward a crawl space or a slab instead of a full basement.

## Off the Water
Along Page Avenue, Napoleon Road and the section roads running out toward Gilletts Lake and Grass Lake there is real acreage, and that is where we build new homes, barndominiums, garages and pole barns with room to work. We also do additions on the older in town homes, small ranches and story and a half houses built for families working in Jackson, plus commercial buildings for local businesses.

## Where We Build Around Michigan Center
Center Lake, Olcott Lake, Big Wolf Lake and Little Wolf Lake, Leoni Township, Page Avenue, Gilletts Lake

## What We Build in Michigan Center
- **New Homes & Barndominiums** ([details](https://stroussconstruction.com/services/new-homes-barndominiums.md))
- **Additions & Remodeling** ([details](https://stroussconstruction.com/services/additions-remodeling.md))
- **Garages & Barns** ([details](https://stroussconstruction.com/services/garages-barns.md))
- **Commercial Construction** ([details](https://stroussconstruction.com/services/commercial-construction.md))

## FAQ
### Can you build a new home on a lake lot on the Michigan Center chain?
Yes. Lake lots on Center Lake and the Wolf lakes are usually narrow and deep with the buildable area squeezed between the road and the water, so the design work starts with setbacks, septic and how we get equipment onto the site. Many of these builds end up on a crawl space rather than a full basement because of the water table. We walk the lot with you before drawing anything.

### Where do permits come from if I am building in Michigan Center?
Michigan Center is unincorporated, so it sits inside Leoni Township and permits run through the township and Jackson County rather than a village office. That covers zoning and setbacks, the building permit itself, and septic and well approval if you are outside sewer service. We handle that paperwork as part of the job and tell you where each approval stands as it moves.

### Why do lake homes here end up on crawl spaces instead of basements?
The water table. Ground this close to the chain of lakes holds water near the surface, and a full basement dug into it is a lifetime of fighting moisture. A properly built crawl space or a slab keeps the house dry and costs less to get right. We make that call from the soil, not from habit.

### Do you take on additions to the older in town homes?
Yes. Much of Michigan Center is modest postwar housing, small ranches and story and a half homes, and adding a bedroom, a bath or a garage is often the right move on these lots. We tie the new roofline and siding into what is there so it reads as one house.

## Contact
Phone (517) 750-0031 · https://stroussconstruction.com/contact