Cohousing-L Mailing List: Raising money

[Berrins (Berrins]

We are on the "home stretch" at Pathways; everyone has moved in (last one in 
June) and the last bits of development work (landscaping and Common House) 
are proceding and should be done by next month. 

We had an initial guesstimated budget when we started.  We crude-tuned the 
budget when land and building costs were ball-parked by the contractor, 
medium-tuned it when the buildings were designed and fine tuned it as the 
sub-contractor bids came in and work progressed.

To stay within the budget, along the way we had to jettison many wonderful 
design plans.  Several of these were put on a list of things to be done 
"sometime in the future."  We have also come up with ideas  as the project 
was being built.  Some were done (called a change order), some not, and some 
put off 'til later.  This, as I understand it, is pretty much the way 
projects like ours are built.

Well, the future is almost here.  We want to start planning to get some of 
those wonderful design things back, not to mention be able to take of emergenc
y money needs.  So, we will soon be discussing ideas on raising money.  I 
know this issue has been discussed before, but we'll pay attention this time, 
I swear it!

What have other communities done to raise money above and beyond the 
association dues?  Volunteer contributions?  Assessments to the association 
dues?  Take out a loan?  Fund-raisers?  What works, what doesn't?  

    Thanks-

    Roger Berman
    Pathways Cohousing
    Northampton, MA