Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: guest rooms

[Eris Weaver (eris]

Ken Cameron-Bell wrote:
> We are following the same procedure here at DayBreak, but we are still a
> growing community and we wonder what will happen as more people move in
> and
> we have more demand for the guest rooms.

Eris again.

It really hasn't been an issue most of the time, and we've been here seven
years. The one exception is around holidays...but most folks are good
about not hogging them. For example, if Tina booked the guest rooms for
Christmas last year, she'll back off so someone else can have 'em this
year. We also have several neighbors who are willing to put other people's
guests up in their own homes. We do have two guestrooms with a third
"overflow" room, so we may have more space than some communities do.

The problem with a policy about how many nights per year each person gets
is record keeping and enforcement. Do you really want to keep track? What
will you do if someone goes over? Plus not everyone uses the guest room
that much.

Our community's philosophy is pretty much use what you need, give what you
can, and it will all balance out. (We also don't charge individuals for
laundry - a family of four obviously does more than my family of two - but
again, we figure it all evens out since larger units pay more dues, etc.)
We have tried to consciously cultivate a culture of generosity. Of course,
there are occasional conflicts & resentments...but they pretty much get
worked out.

-- 
Eris Weaver
Facilitator & Group Process Consultant
707-338-8589
eris [at] erisweaver.info
http://www.erisweaver.info