Cohousing-L Mailing List: Public vs Private [was Takoma Village Has a New Face Book Page!

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

The new Facebook page for Takoma Village is truly lovely and presents the 
community very well.

https://www.facebook.com/takomavillagecohousing

But to what end? Why Facebook?

I have a personal problem with marketing, marketing, marketing in general, but 
especially in advertising a private community. After a community is moved in 
and there are few spaces available — in most cases none in many years—it feels 
like publicly saying we have a great place and you can’t join, and secondly it 
changes or can change a private community to a public place. One plan, for 
example, is to advertise in-house concerts. In-house concerts were started as 
intimate community events for members and friends. Now it feels like I’m living 
in a place that invites tourists. 

CohoUSA had a similar problem a number of years ago with their business plan. 
They wanted to promote cohousing and help cohousing groups form. One plan was 
that built communities would support that. But the goal of communities is to 
move in and be a community. Most cohousers are cohousers to live in the 
community, not promote it for others. The purpose of cohousing is not to create 
more cohousing communities —it’s hard enough to create one. So after move-in, 
people turn inward, at least for awhile.

I do post on Facebook and will soon be putting up an organizational page. But I 
never post anything about where I live. To do that would feel like publicizing 
private home that is not just mine.

The question is what is the effect of self-promotion? Does it encourage 
community or drain resources and attract people who can’t join?

This isn’t a criticism of anything on our Facebook page, but a concern about 
the effect and reasoning behind it. What does it reveal? How does it contribute 
to our community? And how has your community coped with this?

I might also add that were are in an urban environment that is being more and 
more crowded every day and where there is little to no chance of a cohousing to 
be developed because of land values.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines, Historic Takoma Park
In Washington DC, Where all roads lead to Casablanca