Cohousing-L Mailing List: Hiring Inhouse Labor

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On 8/18/2003 9:03 AM, "Laura Fitch, A.I.A." <lfitch [at] krausfitch.com> wrote:

> I have a 2 minute walking commute in community!  It couldn't be better!
> Pioneer Valley Cohousing has a long history of hiring insiders to
> develop, design, build, provide legal services, etc. for our community.
> We also had the foresight to build a "home office building" where 6 of
> us have our professional offices and share copier, fax and conference
> room with the community at large.  We also have continued to hire each
> other individually for any number of things - web site design, additions
> to houses, cabinetry, consulting, etc. etc.

Could you say more about how you hire each other? Do you have contracts? How
do you sort out all the expectations?

In cohousing this seems to cause so many problems but I'm wondering if it is
not the practice but the fact that we often hire "inside" people without
doing our homework on costs and qualifications. We hire insiders who really
do not have the skills but want to "play" with doing something and not
professionals.

If you think about it, the "old boys" hire inside all the time -- in fact
it's the only way they hire. According to a recent New Yorker article,
Condoleeza Rice, for example, had been an insider for years before most of
us outside of California ever heard of her.

How do you compensate the community for the use of space? Do you have
exclusive access? How do you "share"?

Sharon
-- 
Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org

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