Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: so will it be cohousing?

[David Heimann (heimann]

Hello,

	Most of this thread has dealt with how a developer can caused a 
project to be built and have it be cohousing.  I was wondering about the 
counterpart -- how does a forming group interested in having a developer 
lead the building effort get this done?  The group would either need to 
know of a local developer who can lead a cohousing effort, or the group 
would need to get a cohousing developer from elsewhere on board who would 
be willing and able to pick up all the local development nuances.  Both 
appear to be non-trivial efforts!

	With Jamaica Plain Cohousing, a group started forming and 
identified a developer who was indeed interested in carrying out a 
development with us.  However, after a while it turned out he couldn't 
lead a cohousing development effort very well, and significant problems 
cropped up with development effort he had recently done or was currently 
doing in the local area.  We wound up "divorcing" our developer and 
self-developing the rest of the way.  It would have been very nice if in 
early 2002 (or earlier!) our group could have been able to find a 
cohousing-astute developer.  Is it easier for a developer to form a group 
than for a group to find a developer?  In any event, how would a forming 
group find the kind of developer mentioned in this thread?

Thanks,
David Heimann
JP Cohousing



Date: Fri, 9 Feb 2007 04:54:17 -0800 (PST)
From: Fred H Olson <fholson [at] cohousing.org>
Subject: Re: [C-L]_ so is it cohousing?
To: -cohousing-L mailing list <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Message-ID:
        <Pine.LNX.4.62.0702090449560.13030 [at] farnsworth.tigertech.net>
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Grace Kim <grace [at] schemataworkshop.com>
is the author of the message below.
It was posted by Fred the Cohousing-L list manager <fholson [at] cohousing.org>
after resoring subject line.
--------------------  FORWARDED MESSAGE FOLLOWS --------------------

I am writing in response to Rob Sandelin's comments:

 One of the interesting dynamics of developer driven community is when the
people actually get into their homes, will they have the commitment and
bonds to be a community?  Community is not made by a building, it is a
deliberate relationship that you enter into willingly and with purpose.
Without that relationship, all the common elements in the world will not
make a community happen. There are not a lot of developer driven
communities yet, so it will be interesting to evaluate them in say 5 years
after people move in, and see what happened. Intention is really
important, and I have wondered how a developer would create intention if
faced with a conflict between intention and sales. If sales are lagging,
would the developer hold on to the intention, or would they bale.

I have to admit that a few years ago I would have shared Rob's
sentiment.

However, I've visited more than 40 communities in Denmark, Pacific NW,
and North Carolina since then and have realized that there are many
benefits to developer led communities.  In fact, several of the
communities started in Denmark over 30 years ago were led by developers
and are still vibrant and cohesive in their intention for community.

The reality is that there are many communities that have seen
significant turnover since their founding/move-in.  And often the
families that move into a newly completed community do not include the
original founding members.  The bonds created in the community over time
create the cohesion necessary for a community to thrive over the long
haul.

I think the beauty of developer driven cohousing is that it puts the
difficult job of dealing with financing, designing, construction into
the hands of those who are accustomed to dealing with these issues.
I've heard from countless groups that saw many members leave during the
pre-construction phases over differences of how financing was effecting
their ability to purchase a home in the community or how the group went
about hiring (or not hiring) professionals.  Having a developer (third
party) handle the finances and construction helps the community focus on
building their community - getting their policies, rituals, etc in place
for the day they move in.

How many communities have we seen posting to this list about organize
meals, laundry, dues, etc. after they've moved in?  When a developer is
handling the mundane aspects of building the physical structure, the
community can focus on the infrastructure to make their daily lives look
more like their ideal of why they chose cohousing.  Obviously, this
implies that the families moving in are actively meeting and developing
their community during pre-construction.  I don't think this model works
if everyone just buys a house from a developer, moves in, and then is
expected to be a community the next day (the cottage housing communities
designed by Ross Chapin & developed by the Cottage Company in the
Pacific Northwest are a prime example of that).

As I said, I was not a believer of this idea a few years ago and
visiting Bellingham Cohousing (developed by Wonderland Hill and designed
by McCamant & Durrett) changed my mind.  This is a tight-knit community
that was caring and compassionate, and much more cohesive than some of
the more "traditional" cohousing communities that were self-developed.

grace h. kim, aia
principal schemata workshop
159 western ave west, #483
seattle, wa 98119
v.206.285.1589
f.206.285.2701
http://www.schemataworkshop.com