Cohousing-L Mailing List: re2: Gutter cleaning in an aging community

[S. Kashdan (s_kashdan]

Hi all,

Kim Clark of Winslow Cohousing wrote, "Our volunteer system is becoming 
obsolete as fewer members are willing or
able to do ladder work. Some of the work requires climbing to the second
story to reach the higher gutters."

At Jackson Place cohousing, in Seattle, Washington, there are many tasks 
that are beyond the
abilities of some or most of our residents to accomplish, even though we
have several young families and individuals.  This is true because of the 
way our project is built. Things like gutter cleaning are scheduled into
our reserve expenses and all of us together pay for them out of our reserve
funds, since they are considered as part of important facilities maintenance 
expenditures.
We hire professionals who are licensed and bonded in the state of 
Washington. This takes the burden off individual owners and ensures that the 
property is maintained in good condition, which is in everybody's interest. 
Through this kind of reserve fund planning, we are able to keep monthly dues 
under control for everyone and avoid unexpected  onerous costs.  If you 
don't already have gutter cleaning in your reserve study schedule, you can 
add it as a line item, and it will be included in the overall yearly 
contribution to your reserve fund.

This is a different way of accomplishing the task than the way you have been 
doing it, but has the possibility of avoiding individual members' concerns 
of not being able to do the gutter cleaning or paying for it themselves.

Best,
Sylvie, for Jackson Place Cohousing, Seattle, Washington State

Sylvie Kashdan
810-A Hiawatha Place South
Seattle, WA  98144
(206) 784-5619
s_kashdan [at] hotmail.com