Cohousing-L Mailing List: BIG Co-housing. Who Loves It? Who Hates It?

[Lion Kuntz (lionkuntz]

Brief Introduction.

Name: Lion Kuntz,
Location: Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, California, USA
Had 30-year career-adventures in community activism, media,
eco-projects, property management. Presently
semi-disabled/retired.

I want to know how people feel the chances are for a co-housing
success story in a large mixed-use single-building multi-family
structure.

I don't expect a lot of people to be familiar with the prime
example in my mind, but some Californians and San Franciscans
are. I am thinking of Opera Plaza on Van Ness Blvd, SF, CA,
commercial on ground floor (restaurant, boutiques, theaters) and
residential above. The example I am focussed on is described by
realtors as "luxury condos", but in fact the floor plans are
probably similar to what many co-housing developments typically
offer. Located as it is across from City Hall, where parking is
scarce, the building includes subterranean garage parking for
residents and customers of businesses located there. The ground
floor is one city block, roughly one hectare or 2.5 acres, and
the building height (if I remember correctly, I am 60 miles
north of there) is 6 stories. I would guess it has probably one
hundred units.

What is the reaction to co-housing proposed on this scale? Both
positive and negative reactions are welcome, but I anticipate
more negatives, so to follow-up... What needs to change before
it approaches your threshhold of acceptability?

The nearest actual co-housing project is about 12 miles from me
in Cotati, called FrogSong. It is a small town main street
development with storefronts on the street level (which are not
associated with the co-housing) and housing town-houses and
apartments in a court behind and above the stores. With 30
residential units and 2.3 acres footprint it is one-third of the
scale of Opera Plaza. From all reports FrogSong is a stellar
success, so what is the "tipping point" before "too much of a
good thing"?

http://www.cotaticohousing.org/
http://www.builderonline.com/industry-news.asp?sectionID=26&articleID=159617
http://www.cohousingco.com/proj_Cotati.htm
http://www.cotaticohousing.org/gallery.shtml

This is not purely theoretical -- for three years I have been
exposing the world to a concept for a larger project, on the
scale of Opera Plaza on my website, to which 450,000 visitors
have logged in. Although I favor urban developments, rural land
is often very much lower cost, so a rural version of this
concept may be considered first before it is seen in cities. I
have never used the term "co-housing" as a descriptor, although
a majority of the elements in my concept are probably found in
the average "co-housing community". Depending on what the
home-owners association wanted, it could be co-housing from the
roots up.

The key points: 
*** BIG (hectare, city block)
*** MIxed-Use, commercial space on ground floor
*** 100 families.

Would you consider it? If not, what needs to change before you
would? What is the one most important objection or barrier from
you considering something like this?

Sincerely, Lion Kuntz
Sonoma County, California, USA


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