Cohousing-L Mailing List: RE: Common House fees

[Rob Sandelin (floriferous]

Sharingwood commonhouse use agreement is:

We do not allow outside use of the building unless there is a member liaison
in the group. So the Monroe Glee club can only use our building if there is
a Sharingwood member that is in the Glee Club.
Members can host 3 private parties per year in the space for free, on the
fourth use there is a small fee (We did this to discourage domination of the
resource-which we thought would be a problem for us since many of the
members attend the same church)
To use the space you first do a walk through with the commonhouse manager,
to ensure the cleanliness and working order of the building. When you are
done you do another walk through to ensure the same thing. Community host is
100% responsible for all damage to the building during an event they
sponsor.
Paying workshops are charged a flat use fee ($20?) + an hourly rate. (I
think our intent was to discourage  this kind of use, and it has worked, we
have done very few such events)
Parking is an issue for us and the hosts are responsible for guiding guests
to park in the right  place. (This is the largest problem issue from
commonhouse use)

One thing not on our list currently but from our experience would've been a
good addition:
Hosts must provide their own receptacles for trash and recycling. (Big
parties fill up the trash cans and bins for the whole week so there is no
room for the normal weeks worth of materials)

Rob Sandelin
Sharingwood


-----Original Message-----
From: cohousing-l [at] freedom2.mtn.org
[mailto:cohousing-l [at] freedom2.mtn.org]On Behalf Of juliemazo
Sent: Wednesday, August 16, 2000 5:03 AM
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: Common HOuse fees


As our common house nears completion we're trying to figure out protocols
for reserving space (guest rooms, et al) and fees for non-community use of
space.  Since I'm not a fan of reinventing wheels, I'd value learning from
the experience of other communities.  For example:

1.  Do members pay for use of guest rooms for their own personal guests?
If so, how much?
2.  Are guest rooms available for non-member guests?  If so, at what cost?
3.  Do you allow outside groups to rent space ( e.g., dining room, kitchen,
meeting room)?  If so, how do you charge?
4.  Is there a charge when members reserve common house space for a private
purpose?  If so, do you make a distinction between a member hosting a
private party, for example, and a member teaching a course for which a fee
is paid?

Please feel free to answer other related questions I should be asking but
haven't thought about.  Thank you very much.

In community, Julie Mazo, Pathways, Northampton MA