Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Cohousing California legislative alert

[Raines Cohen (rc3-coho-L]

Melanie -

I've been in touch with Bob for quite some time over these and earlier
bills and the process that creates them. I should say that although
they are "of interest" to cohousing neighborhoods and professionals
operating in California; the positions he indicated (oppose on all) do
not necessarily represent those of Cohousing California or
California's cohousing neighborhoods. While Bob is our informal
"legislative advisor," and participated in conversations at the
gathering at Pleasant Hill Cohousing last October and the Communities
Convergence in Berkeley we put on in November, he is not our lobbyist
and his priorities and stands on the issues may differ.

Because California has been "ahead of the curve" in creation of
condominiums over the last few decades (relative to many other
states), there have been abuses by developers and conflicts between
owners and neighbors and heirs and so forth, and all the usual issues
of shared ownership and an inexperienced board operating the
community, WITHOUT the benefit of common purpose and professional
training and shared values and resident participation that we get with
cohousing. The predictable result: lawsuits, and eventually
legislative action in Sacramento (our state's capital).

While updating the law to take into account modern realities and new
understandings and lessons learned in the courts is all well and good,
unfortunately this growing body of "Common Interest Development" (CID)
law typically does not take into account either pre-existing
cooperative housing like where Bob lives, or cohousing communities
where the residents ARE part of the development team and co-investors
in the project, often with all unit-owners serving as boardmembers and
using consensus decision-making rather than winner/loser "democratic"
votes.

For example, we (California cohousing neighborhoods) are now required
to select directors using secret ballot voting. And other things have
passed that OVERRIDE provisions in your bylaws and even CC&R's,
related to satellite dishes, parking, insurance, and all kinds of
things... mostly not an everyday issue, but something that WILL come
up in the event of a lawsuit or disgruntled member.

We are preparing analyses of this year's new crop of measures, and
will be posting them on the Cohousing California website that's under
development, with an invitation to be posted here to join the
conversation and to join us in advocating on them, and partnering
(where appropriate) with groups with more impact, like the Executive
Council of Homeowner Associations, the California condo/HOA lobby.

In the case of the solar bill (AB1892... with AB2830 similar for
wind), my understanding is that the concern is that a cohousing group
would not be able to prevent a member from doing their own individual
one-unit solar, even if they had a plan to use the same valuable
roofspace. AB1280 would require a 45-day response, which isn't enough
time for a well-considered decision on something with major potential
impacts, in my experience. While the positive intent of preventing
condo associations from arbitrarily preventing or delaying member
installation of solar is great, the net effect is to take away the
ability of the group to come up with more effective cooperative
solutions... and there is no exemption for self-managed or smaller
HOAs.

For AB2259, limiting sub-leasing, the bill would take away the right
of groups to limit rental of units. While not currently an issue in
California's cohousing neighborhoods... it could be, for instance if
more than 25% of units were rented, the group would not be ALLOWED
choose to restrict it further (or at all), and members would not be
able to sell their units as easily because banks would consider it a
higher risk and not make the best loans available to buyers.

If our principles of community living are about co-creating collective
opportunities to live more sustainably, then we need to be alert for
changes in the law that can inhibit our ability to do so, by taking
away our autonomy and independence.

Raines Cohen, Northern California Cohousing Regional Organizer
Cohousing Coach, Planning for Sustainable Communities (at Berkeley (CA) Coho)