Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Social participation (was How do we hold each other accountable?)

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On Jul 28, 2010, at 3:58 AM, Moz wrote:

> One suggestion we have is having a professional chef do the hard daily
> work in terms of setting menus, working out a shopping list and doing
> the bulk of the prep and cooking. We supply the cash and the grunt.

One thing I've wondered is why no one has a caterer who uses the  
kitchen during the day in exchange for cooking meals at night. Or at  
least make a pile of sandwiches and cups of soup that people buy at  
coat and take home or sit down and eat in the CH. And buy some for  
lunch the next day. Our kitchen is hardly used during the day.

> I think we have perhaps
> four members who have ever cooked for 70+ people (and they are the
> most keen on the professional idea :). I've flagged it with a couple
> of chefs I know and they liked the idea of not having to spend half
> their lives cleaning.

One thing is that most cohousing groups have reported here that only  
1/3 will be at anyone meal. Except for special meals or celebrations  
our has been the same. In the summer, even fewer.

> we're
> still discussion whether it's theoretically acceptable to reject
> someone.

It depends on your legal structure and your state laws. A coop can  
pick and choose unless they have a pattern of rejecting a specific  
group of people. A very ritzy coop was taken to court for routinely  
rejecting gays. They had the network that could keep track. In a coop,  
you buy shares in a corporation and the corporation can be choosey.

Generally a condo can't pick and choose. It's covered by fair housing  
laws. Children can't be rejected unless the community is specifically  
fr over 55. The best you can do is design a rigorous pre sale  
orientation process so they at least know what they are getting into.  
But if they refuse, you have no recourse. And owners who want to sell  
are often uncomfortable unless more than one person wants to buy their  
unit. They don't want to lose a buyer.

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