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

[Lion Kuntz (lionkuntz]

--- Eris Weaver <erisw [at] sonic.net> wrote:

> Lion said: 
> > 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) 
> 
> I must correct you here. Our community OWNS that commercial
> building and
> it is a source of income for us. One of our members is paid to
> manage
> the business. One of the spaces is used as office space for
> the
> businesses of three of our members.

Thanks for the correction. Nothing on any webpage has a word of
suggestion that the home-owners accociation owned the commercial
units. In my mind that would have been a prominent point I would
make: "It is a source of income for us".

Anything further you care to say about this is welcomed, as
financing is a critical concern in getting developments built.

Also, local availability employment of residents is considered
to be a plus feature.



> > 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?
> 
> One thing that is important in cohousing is the ability to
> know
> everyone; making decisions by consensus requires a deep level
> of trust,
> and a manageable number of people participating. Our 30 units
> include 52
> adults, which I believe is close to the upper limit that can
> work
> together in this way in any practical manner. I suppose that a
> large
> building such as you are describing could work as cohousing if
> each
> floor or wing of 25-30 units functioned as its own community
> with each
> one sending representatives to a federation of some sort. But
> 100 units
> couldn't function in the way that we do, I don't think.
> 
> 
> Eris Weaver
> FrogSong, Cohousing in Cotati, CA

Thanks for the reply. The array of multi-family mixed use
housing organizations spans absentee corporate or private
ownership, condos, co-operatives and now co-housing. From the
looks of things there may be more people who desire a sense of
community than places where it presently is available. From
several co-housing lists I saw people discussing dealing with
larger developments to make part of it co-housing as its own
section.



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