Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: pre-built or owner built

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On Jun 19, 2011, at 5:17 PM, Deryk Wenaus wrote:

> What are the benefits and detractors for the standard cohousing model where 
> you plan everything out then build it all then move in vs an alternative 
> model of only selling lots to members and then people build their own houses. 

The first isn't the standard so much as the only way some communities could get 
started, both because of funding and because of the real estate expectations in 
some areas. 30 years ago, condominiums were not standard in all areas. They 
were highly suspect in many small cities and particularly in rural areas.

I personally prefer the attached unit model and believe it makes the most sense 
economically, environmentally, socially, etc. One attachment to free standing 
homes arises from the desire for privacy. This is a serious concern. One way to 
address it is with the very best soundproofing materials you can find. 

Amplified music, screaming children (and adults), game playing devices (weird 
repetitive noises), love in the afternoon (and night), cats rolling marbles 
overhead all day, widely varying sleep/stomping schedules, etc., are what drive 
people to the "give me space" options on both sides. It's both the fear of 
being spontaneous and the fear of listening to others be spontaneous.  Some 
sounds and people you get used to and others you don't. 

While I prefer attached dwellings, I still don't like not being able to 
rearrange furniture at midnight or allow little feet to run around happily 
chasing each other. The pre-war buildings in Manhattan that were built of cast 
iron are still prized because there is absolutely no sound transfer from one 
unit to the next. And it is because of the cast iron. Before researching this, 
I thought sound dampening came from soft surfaces. It does but only for 
reverberations inside a room. The important sound transfer stuff is the result 
of the density, or lack of density, in the construction materials that transfer 
sounds throughout the walls and floors. That two-year old running across my 
wood floor becomes a thundering elephant to my downstairs neighbor.

Cast iron is now prohibitively expensive unless you are building a huge 
building or a parking garage but there are other methods and materials that can 
be used. 

Take it seriously and you can build the kind of buildings that will support a 
close, conveniently social, multi-generational community.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org