Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Retrofit Cohousing Panel for National Conference in NC (Jane Calbreath)

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On Nov 8, 2014, at 10:14 AM, Ann Zabaldo <zabaldo [at] earthlink.net> wrote:

> Taking old buildings and rehabbing them is an altogether different story.  
> Eastern Village was a gut rehab. (Their 10 year anniversary is tonight!!)  It 
> was done all at one time.  Ditto Swan’s Market.  
> 
> A while ago there was a thread on this list about coming up w/ another name 
> for “retrofit” cohousing when it has the meaning I detailed above.  So maybe 
> we can look at this again.

I don’t know why retrofit would have to be done at separate times. 

Retrofit means adding new components to old technology, etc. It’s adding 
something to use in a new way.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retrofitting

The Eastern Village project was a new use for an old building— and many of the 
features of the design came out of the original structure. The change from an 
office use to a residential use changed the spirit of the building and I don’t 
think cohousing would ever have been built there unless the building was 
already there.

Sharon