Partial message: Inbetween cohousing
From: Michael Persons (mppphydeau.com)
Date: Wed, 23 Apr 1997 23:09:21 -0500
Sorry, I sent this out before it was finished!

>Hi folks,
>
>I'm a member of Commonweal cohousing in Grafton, MA.  We're in the gathering
>members stage, and we're having a little trouble finding people.  I've been 
>reading this list for about six months, and I've seen people discuss zoning 
>problems, battles with town/city government, battles between members over 
>house plans, pet policies, shared chores, and shared cost, but I don't think
>I've *ever* seen someone have a problem with finding members, except us!
>Have I missed something, or is this just not normally a problem?
>
>From reading this list I've deduced that there's three different kinds of
>cohousing:
>
>1.  Urban cohousing.  Finding members usually not a problem because of the
>large pool to draw from.
>
>2.  Ecologically aware cohousing.  Two different subtypes:
>
>       a.  Cohousing in college towns or areas with high level of awareness
>           of ecological/"green" issues.  Amherst/Northampton in MA and
>           Raleigh-Durham NC are examples.
>
>       b.  Rural cohousing with a strong 
... ecological bent.

I suspect the ecological awareness facilitates group formation, shared
values and 
all that.

Of course these are stereotypes, but I noticed them because our group is
none of these.
We're not close enough to the city for the urban dwellers, but we're not
out in
the country either.  Our site is next to some existing condo developments
(we can
see them thru the trees a bit) and the highway is half a mile away so we
can hear
the trucks go by.  Also, we're not particularly "green".  We plan to have
energy-
efficient housing, but none of us (as far as I know) are *intensely*
concerned with
ecological issues.

(A side note:  I corresponded with a person who was interested in cohousing
but
didn't think they'd be welcome in a coho group because they raced cars, and
didn't
think it was ecological enough for the folks who would be in cohousing.
Hmmm.)

Our central MA region is not known to be particularly progressive, either.
It's
a bit frustrating.  We have a great relationship with our developer, we
haven't had
to put up a huge chunk of money, and the town is amenable to our
development.  Our
prices are reasonable and we have a tight control on the costs.  All we
need are
the people!

Has anyone else had problems finding members?  Do you think there is any truth
to my broad-brush stereotypes?  Any comments would be welcome.


Thx
Mike Persons

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