Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re:Community and Boundaries

[Sharon Villines (sharonvillines]

> I think the trickier part is remembering to keep reaching out and not let
> one's community become an enclave.  I am strongly in Scott Peck's camp on
> this - any group whose membership boundary is difficult or impermeable is not
> and acannot be a community.  Such a group is an enclave.  To be a community,
> to Peck and to me, is to be inclusive in theory and practice.

This is an issue for us at the moment and I would appreciate some discussion
on it. There are two aspects (at least) to this issue. One is communications
and sharing of information about and between members--personal and
business--and the sharing with the larger community.

Takoma Village is located in a very active and organized urban neighborhood.
I think there are 10 neighborhood organizations from historic preservation
to orange hats to groups fighting massage parlors and disorderly bar
patrons. Thus Takoma will be participating in an active neighborhood rather
than being the focus of a new neighborhood organization effort.

Most of our members have an interest in making the commonhouse available to
the community for meetings, having non-resident members, and some are
already participating actively in the neighborhood even though we are
(still) not moved in.

BUT the issue of having a restricted email discussion list has become
entwined with the "enclave" issue. We have a list to which anyone can
subscribe. It has 119 members while we have about 49 adult members. We do
not approve or even know who these people are when they join.

The issues are around personal data (addresses, phone numbers, etc.), team
meeting minutes, announcements of vacations or hospitalizations, mortgage
info, etc. going out on the main list. Many feel the need for something
limited to members and a few other people who are active in the community
one way or another (significant others, for example). But the fear is that
everything will become private and segregated.

Where are the boundaries? Can a group be a group with no boundaries? Legally
we are a homeowners association with discrete financial responsibilities to
our members.

Sharon
-- 
Sharon Villines
In Washington, DC where all roads lead to Casablanca
Takoma Village Cohousing
http://www.takomavillage.org
http://www.cohousing.org