Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Collective housing

[macats22 (macats22]

Susan's email reminded me of the year I lived in a former rectory that had been 
linked to a church that had been closed. It used to be a home for retired 
priests.  It had 6 living suites, 4 of which had two enormous rooms with a 
private bath and 2 of which had one room with a private bath.  Shared space 
included a double kitchen (one a smaller "serving" kitchen, but with a full 
sink and lots of storage and the other a completely furnished kitchen with 
enough space for a table, which we didn't actually do). Other, a large living 
room and a large dining room - large enough for a table that could seat 20-25 
people. And the hallways between the common areas were wide enough that we 
created a library space, complete with chairs and a couch. 
 
My suite was large enough that one room was a bedroom and the other was a 
"living room," in which I occasionally had private meals with friends.  There 
was another section with four offices, so I even had a small home office of 
about 8x10.
 
For those of us who don't mind, or like, to live more closely with others, but 
also want to have our private hideaway, this set up was terrific.  I stayed 
only a year, but my friends continued on for a few more until the diocese 
didn't renew the lease.
 
M.A.
 
 
Michael Anne Conley
macats22 [at] aol.com
 
 
-----Original Message-----
From: Sharon Villines <sharon [at] sharonvillines.com>
To: ssweitzer [at] sustainer.org; Cohousing-L <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Sent: Fri, 22 Apr 2005 12:05:29 -0400
Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Collective housing


On Apr 22, 2005, at 11:17 AM, Susan Sweitzer wrote: 
 
> essentially we are 
> finding that shared kitchens and shared bathrooms seem to be > particularly 
> complicated for North Americans. 
 
In situations where I've shared spaces, what made it work well was having a 
room large enough to be also a sitting room so everyone can be alone without 
going claustrophobic and having a small sink in the room. 
 
I lived in an old religious retreat which is where I learned about sinks 
bedrooms. It reduces time in the bathroom and allows for some food preparation 
in the room. I vowed ever after to design bedrooms with a small sink in the 
corner. 
 
I would think the single rooms would work best in cities where people spend 
less time at home. It isn't uncommon for people in cities to come home at 10:00 
and leave again at 7:00, and spend weekends camping (or at the office again). 
 
Sharon 
--- 
Sharon Villines 
Building Community: A Newsletter on Coops, Condos, Cohousing, and Other New 
Neighborhoods 
http://www.buildingcommunitynews.org 
 
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