Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Should cohousers rebuild (or redesign) the wheel

[JoycePlath (JoycePlath]

I just got hired by a developer in Arcata California to organize and design a 
new Cohousing project that will be part of a larger one hundred forty home 
development.  Fourteen of the twenty-four Cohousing units will be affordable 
(short for substantially below market and supported by a first time homebuyer 
program).  The developer had to make twenty percent of his project affordable 
so 
it was not too difficult to persuade him to include a substantial chunk of it 
in the Cohousing portion.  
The common house will have six loft type units on the second floor to help 
save some common open space on the ground.  A portion of the building will 
include a day care/afterschool program in the building that will be available 
to 
the housing development as well as others Arcata.  We are experimenting with 
the 
concept of sharing a kitchen.
Integrated into the larger development will be a 26 acre farm that will 
include a CSA,apple orchard, mushroom growing facility, restored wetlands, and 
some 
farm animals. Home owners will contribute compost and labor if the wish and 
receive organic vegetables for most of the year.  It is hoped that the cohesive 
quality of the Cohousing community will help pull of cooperation on the farm 
as well.  There are also plans afoot to use the common house kitchen to do 
cooking and food preservation classes for the greater community.
Joyce Plath, previously from Marsh Commons Cohousing