If you had to pinpoint the center of the American Tiny House movement, you could make a good case for Colorado Springs. The city attracted 40,000 visitors to the first Tiny House Jamboree last summer, and it’s getting ready to host a second one August 5-7. Not only is it centrally located in the nation, it’s also within 100 miles of some of the nation’s most tiny-friendly municipalities, including Walsenburg which recently eliminated minimum-square-footage laws. And as of last year, C-Springs is home to the main factory for the company that started it all: Tumbleweed Tiny House.

Founded by tiny houser numero uno Jay Shafer (who has since left the company to pursue more experimental small-house ideas and speaking tours), Tumbleweed produces some of the most recognizable models out there, both houses on wheels and groundbound cottages. As HR manger Justin Hall says in this Colorado Springs Gazette article, Tumbleweed didn’t actually build tiny houses until relatively recently. They originally catered mainly to DIYers, contracting out labor when somebody wanted to buy a complete house.

Tumbleweed still sells plans and offers instructional videos and workshops, but as requests for custom-built houses skyrocketed, the company established a manufacturing division. Today they crank out a new home every 3 days on average. That means C-Springs grows a healthy chunk of the entire tiny house market, making the city a natural choice for that market’s biggest gathering.

Thanks again to Brett Silverstein.