Luckily, a brand new building, Lofts on Main, was wrapping construction just outside of downtown Brookings. The company, Brookings Built Green, approached the couple to be one of the very first tenants of the 23 studio/loft apartments, and they moved in (early) this past August.
“It’s a really cool spot in a really great area,” described John, who was drawn to the new, modern space.
As they entered the 350-square foot unit, they knew they had to only bring what was necessary for the move. There are options to have lofts fully furnished, and the Johnsons thought that was the best move, being that they were keeping their home in the Southern Midwest as well.
“It came with dishes and pots and pans,” said Jasmine. “Even the box spring was in here; we just had to get a mattress.”
Entering their home, it is definitely cozy. The nine-foot ceiling opens up the room immensely and has a Haiku ceiling fan. The main floor consists of a kitchen, living room, one bathroom, and two built-in closets and wardrobes.
A black, metal spiral staircase in the corner leads up to an open landing that has just enough room for their full-size bed. Leaning over the ledge of the bedroom, you can overlook the entire space.
“It’s nice for when we need to do laundry, we can just throw it over downstairs,” laughed Jasmine.
The washer-drier combo is located in the bathroom, which also has a stand-up shower. Jasmine’s favorite function in the bathroom are the built-in drawer organizers. Jasmine, who owns JGabriel Cleaning Co. in Oklahoma, loves the concept of keeping their items separate and organized.
“It breaks up his side and my side, and the rest meets in the middle,” she said.
Her cleaning talents, she noted, have definitely come in handy with the move.
“I keep things very tidy,” said Jasmine, looking over at John. “The closet space, of course, is a bit challenging for us. [We’re] trying to condense a lot of things into one. So we’re making the best of it.”
The closet by the front door holds John’s clothing and accessories, while the other closet near the bathroom (designed with mirrors on the doors to visually open the room) has some of Jasmine’s clothing. Trying to get creative, she decided to make the top of her stand-alone closet her shoe rack.
“I fit my entire closet here, but she’s a different story,” said John with a smile.
According to Jasmine, she could fit 10 percent of her things in her closet, and the rest had to stay home. “John’s very easy and simple, and I’m over-the-top. He pretty much has everything he needs, but during [football] season, he wears the same thing almost every day,” she said in her defense.
To avoid “cluttering,” Jasmine said the best thing to do is to stack items. She stacks a lot of her clothing, stacks towels in her closet, stacks luggage by the staircase, and stacks toiletries next to the luggage.
One of the best features of the loft are the large windows that have automatic roller shades.
“He’s really big on natural sunlight, so he wakes up and loves opening the shades,” said Jasmine. “Even when it’s snowing out, it’s so pretty to watch.”
When the shades come down, it blocks all light, which they said is perfect to block hot summer sun, and is also great for getting a good night’s sleep.
They also enjoy the peace and quiet with their sound-proof walls and ceiling, which comes in handy in a college town.
“It’s really quiet. During the weekends there can be some loud music, but for the most part, it’s chill,” said John.
The majority of neighbors, they mentioned, are college students and young business professionals. If they want to get away, the couple is blocks away from downtown and also from nearby neighborhoods.
“It’s so nice and peaceful to do neighborhood walks,” said Jasmine. “And if we’re feeling like something else downtown, I love to beat John in pool!”
There are a couple of businesses on the first floor of the loft building, and one is John’s favorite – his barber.
“That was my barber that used to be around the corner, and now I just need to walk downstairs to get a haircut,” he said.
A local brewery is said to be moving in soon as well.
Along with the surrounding bonuses, the loft building has a large community patio that overlooks downtown.
“I go out [to the patio] with my players, and we have dinner,” said John. “When the weather is really nice, there are TVs out there as well.”
When the couple spends a night in, they cook and watch Netflix on their smart television that also came with the unit. Deep cabinets and an oven/microwave combination help for storage and for saving space.
The couple will continue to commute back and forth to Oklahoma to see family (including John’s 3-year-old daughter, Jordyn), but they have made the best of their condensed living situation.
“All of our basic needs are definitely met,” said Jasmine.
And in regards to living with one another in (essentially) a large room? She joked, “By the time I get on his nerves or he starts to get on my nerves, it’s time for him to go to work.”
For more information on The Lofts on Main, visit brookingspm.com.
