Cohousing-L Mailing List: AirBnB in Cohos?

[R Philip Dowds (rpdowds]

Folks —

At Cornerstone, we now have several households developing an interest in 
running an AirBnB business out of their units.  Some of these units are row 
houses with a front and back door; other units are in one of our two apartment 
buildings, the greater of which is the common house with most of our common 
space.
Both townhouses and apartments have their own dwelling unit keys.
For the townhouses, you can enter from a public way or a walkway through the 
site.  But …
For the apartments, you must first enter common space, then go find the unit 
through common circulation.  A single key provides access to all the commons, 
so getting into an apartment is a two-key operation.
So the AirBnB thing raises, for us, some new questions about security and 
sharing of the commons. If any of you out there have had, or are approaching, 
experience with AirBnB, could you help with some questions:
In general, does it feel like a plus or minus?  Does it add life and interest 
to your community, or do you feel mostly puzzled, like, Who the hell was that?
What are your rules for transients using the commons?  Can they use the 
exercise room, or let their child join your children’s playgroup?
How do you control access to the commons?  Is it OK for your AirBnB 
entrepreneurs to freely distribute the common keys or door codes?  If you have 
door codes, do you change them at intervals?
Anything else you tell us?
Help is appreciated.

Thanks,
R Philip Dowds
175 Harvey Street, Unit 5
Cambridge, MA 02140

land:     617.354.6094
mobile: 617.460.4549
email:   rpdowds [at] comcast.net