Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: profiles, Phila. projects

[Blaise J. Tobia (tobiabj]

We (Delaware Valley CHA) are still in the recruiting stage for all three
of these projects, but our most most crucial need is in the Germantown/Mt.
Airy project. This is a beautiful property, consisting of two former
mansions, a carriage house, and several smaller houses on a landscaped 2.5
acre site in the "Tulpehocken Station Historic District." It seems almost
custom-made for a Co-Housing project: it is currently divided into 20
independent apartments; we are looking at some recombinations, and at
turning the largest apartment into our "common house." We anticipate appx.
15 households in the final configuration, and at a total aquisition and
modification cost under one million dollars. The site is twenty minutes
from center-city Philadelphia by commuter rail or by car, and near Weavers
Way food coop. We currently have six committed households and several that
are "on the fence." Also, only one of our committed households includes
children, and they are worried about proceeding unless other children
become involved. We look forward to hearing from any Co-Housing fans in
the Delaware Valley, and to having word of these projects be promulgated
via the internet.
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Blaise Tobia Philadelphia, PA 215-387-9706 tobiabj [at] post.drexel.edu
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- artist/photographer/teacher (Drexel University/College of Design Arts) 
- interested in CoHousing personally, politically and artistically 
- serving as contact person for the Delaware Valley CoHousing Association,
   an umbrella group encompassing several potential site-development projects:
   one urban-retrofit (Germantown/Mt. Airy; close to happening)
   two new-construction (Shawmont and Lambertville; still in early stages)
=========================================================================
 
I'm trying out Joani's idea of an informative header. I hope it's not too
pretentious.
 
We (Delaware Valley CHA) are still in the recruiting stage for all three
of these projects, but our most most crucial need is in the Germantown/Mt.
Airy project. This is a beautiful property, consisting of two former
mansions, a carriage house, and several smaller houses on a landscaped 2.5
acre site in the "Tulpehocken Station Historic District." It seems almost
custom-made for a Co-Housing project: it is currently divided into 20
independent apartments; we are looking at some recombinations, and at
turning the largest apartment into our "common house." We anticipate appx.
15 households in the final configuration, and at a total aquisition and
modification cost under one million dollars. The site is twenty minutes
from center-city Philadelphia by commuter rail or by car, and near Weavers
Way food coop. We currently have six committed households and several that
are "on the fence." Also, only one of our committed households includes
children, and they are worried about proceeding unless other children
become involved. We look forward to hearing from any Co-Housing fans in
the Delaware Valley, and to having word of these projects be promulgated
via the internet.