Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Orientation/Owners manuals

[Alicia George (ajgeorge]

At Takoma Village Cohousing we moved a lot of our orientation materials online. 
We realized that both newcomers and long-term residents could benefit from easy 
access to information about a million things besides our “official” policies 
and guidelines. So we created Fast Facts and put links on our website to 
information about everything we could think of. It’s organized in four main 
categories: General Information, Home Information, Shared Equipment, and Shared 
Areas. It’s easier to add or update a web page than a printed manual.

Chris, I will email you a PDF of the index to give you an idea of the topics we 
cover. It’s a constantly evolving list. Anyone else who wants a copy, please 
email me directly at ajgeorge [at] earthlink.net <mailto:ajgeorge [at] 
earthlink.net>.

In addition to the online resources, we have a team of trained “buddies” who 
are paired with newcomers to help them get oriented to life here. The buddies 
help new residents get plugged in to our communication and information sources 
(email, website). They also review the basics in person (e.g., these are the 
norms for using the laundry room, here’s where the recycling goes, this is the 
person who can help you find parking for your bike).

Alicia George
Takoma Village Cohousing
Washington, DC
(Celebrating 20 years this fall!)