Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Density vs. privacy

[ElizBlank (ElizBlank]

As most of you know, at Doyle St.  we are very dense, 12 units on less than
1/3 acre (including parking for 11 cars). So our experience won't help the
Santa Rosa group. But, Marty, I would suggest that high density does not
automatically limit privacy. At Doyle St. the shared walls are very thick and
constructed in such a way as to prevent sound transmission. In three years I
have never heard the tiniest bit of sound from  either of the units I am
between, and none from below me. Also, it doesn't take long to learn which of
your neighbors need or desire more privacy than others, and I hope we can all
continue to be sensitive to that. I would also hope that anyone living in
your community whose needs for interaction OR privacy were not being met,
would have a way of letting his or her feelings be known to the relevant
individuals or to the group. To me, these considerations are much more
important than how you place your units. Particularly since you live in
beautiful Northern California, I would vote for clustering your houses as
close as comfort will allow, and with many shared walls to maximize shared
outdoor space.

Joani Blank (soon to be changing email address once again)
Doyle St. CoHousing