Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Does your community have a Teen Room?

[John Carver (jcarver]

On 15/01/2013 3:16 PM, Sharon Villines wrote:
> ...The ages and stages change so quickly nothing lasts for long.

I think that's the answer - adapting  to change.

We designed our building with a designated teen room, but when we moved 
in there were no teens. Then there was one. In the meantime we had more 
under-10s than could reasonably use the space we had intended for them, 
so the teen room became the kids' room.

When there are teens around now they seem content to use other spaces 
without too much conflict - the lounge, the exercise room, and they can 
play ping pong in the atrium.

We have other rooms that don't get used for their original purpose, or 
not at all. We would have done better with fewer, larger rooms. My 
advice to forming communities: avoid creating special purpose rooms - 
instead create a variety of rooms for 'multi-purpose'. Design for change.

John Carver
Pacific Gardens Cohousing Community
http://pacificgardens.ca/