Cohousing-L Mailing List: Rural Co-operative: co-housing, organic ranching and farming

[Guy Koehler, Rivendell Ranch (rivendell_ranch]

Why the dickens did Guy Koehler start this conversation about private
ownership and median cost of housing?

Two and a half years ago I bought a very, very rural 160 acre ranch with
traditional house on the Olympic Peninsula of WA State, near the Pacific
Ocean. I am attempting to develop this ranch into organic meats, dairy,
vegetables, herbs, flowers, mushrooms, camping and cob Hobbit cabins (and
other home-based businesses that residents may want to do). All of these
planned enterprises require more workers and people living here than just
me. I am sold on using Democratic Consensus as a decision making model,
co-operative non-profit economic leveling, taxing away personal wealth to
fund community needs both short and long term.

All buildings will be cob, and self-built (or other natural building
materials grown on the ranch); thus allowing private residences and common
buildings at a significantly lower financial cost. Labor will be very high.
I have no idea yet how to extract some of my equity from having purchased
the property, and disburse ownership to other residents and members. I am
currently leaning heavily to co-operative and csa formulaes.

Call me an ideologic extreme leftist, but by golly I'm going to bring this
to fruition.

I am looking for others who have experience and/or interest in helping to
make this happen.

Guy Koehler
Rivendell Ranch
Hoquiam WA 98550
www.geocities.com/rivendell_ranch
rivendell_ranch [at] reachone.com

_______________________________________________
Cohousing-L mailing list
Cohousing-L [at] cohousing.org  Unsubscribe  and other info:
http://www.cohousing.org/cohousing-L