Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Help/re: common house use

[Denise Meier and/or Michael Jacob (dmmj]

> One quotable line from a disgruntled neighbor:
> "With all due respect, the mayor of Chico doesn't live here"
> 
> (We got letters of support from the mayors of several towns that have coho
> projects already built). 
> 

Judging by some of the responses I got to this, I see my meaning was
unclear. I mentioned it not to say that getting letters from other cities
isn't effective. I think that the 4 letters we had did a lot to legitimize
cohousing in the eyes of our city council. However, it did exacerbate the
feeling of the neighbors that Sebastopol is doing something cool and
innovative at their expense.

Another quote from the same guy was "I've lived here 40 years. I don't
understand you people who have been here 10 or 15 years who think you can
say what's going to happen in this town..." 

Diagnosis: Extreme Xeno- and Neo-phobia.

A lot of people don't like the changes this town has experienced through
its (very moderate) growth over the years, and the influx of progressives
from the San Francisco Bay Area that has drastically changed the character
of the town. To them we represent just another step down the road to urban
crowding and "the Birkenstock Nation" 

Anyway, keep us in your thoughts on August 20.

Denise Meier
Sebastopol, CA