Chem/env sens accessible cohousing communities vision: CeS-ACCESSable

[Guest guest]

<Many of us share the vision of living in CeS-ACCESSable (chemical and

environmental (e.g. mold, EMF) sensitivities accessible) cohousing communities,

if for no more compelling reason than sheer terror of the prospect of a future

in inadequately accessible Assisted Living and Nursing Homes.

While it is easy to fall into " glass half-empty " thinking, including regarding

funding concerns, how do we focus on " glass half full " thinking and leverage

access to resources that are being spent on other vulnerable subpopulations?

In a day when HUD-affordable senior cohousing and " green affordable " housing

are already here, technology and affordability are no longer our obstacles.

The following is provided as background on cohousing to stimulate our

dialogue.

We are seeking persons committed to making healthy-green (no/low VOC)

cohousing communities our reality.

Persons with knowledge of (or willing to become knowledgeable on) HUD

disability and housing ownership funding opportunities (particularly for persons

with disabilities), rural housing opportunities, private, and other funding

opportunities and processes are welcomed, as well as all persons committed to

healthy-green (no/low VOC) cohousing communities vision.

Please contact: cg_006@...

cg declares no financial or professional conflicts-of-interest.

cg declares very personal interest as a result of ongoing need of

CeS-accessible housing and community for personal respiratory health reasons.>

Backgrounder:

(Fair Use Notice)

Cohousing communities combine the advantages of private homes with the

benefits of more sustainable living, including shared common facilities and

ongoing connections with neighbors. These intentional neighborhoods, created and

managed by residents, offer an innovative solution to today's environmental and

social challenges.

http://www.eldercohousing.org/

http://www.cohousing.org/elder-cohousing.aspx

Also known as senior cohousing, elder cohousing [let us include CeS-disabled]

is designed especially for active adults, 55 and above. In elder cohousing

residents can choose to grow older meaningfully, consciously and independently

in a self-managed, close-knit community.

Senior cohousing neighborhoods are built with the future in mind.

• Using universal design, each living space can transition from a home for an

active lifestyle to one that supports progressing needs for accessibility.

[called " Age-in-Place " ]

• Common areas, indoors and out, are designed to provide easy access and

recreation for all levels of physical ability. [Ces-ACCESSable concept includes

ozone pool (without chlorine).]

• Studio residences can be included in a community’s common house to provide

living quarters to home health aides whose services may be shared by several

residents, allowing members to remain at home for all but major medical

emergencies. [potentially reducing individual expense and providing accessible

(VOC fragrance free) home health assistance]

Workshop: Elder Cohousing Getting Started Workshop with Zev Paiss and Neshama

Abraham, September 14-17, 2006 in Boulder, CO

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Books by Chuck Durrett (Architect who has promoted cohousing since 1980s)

Senior Cohousing: A Community Approach to Independent Living

Cohousing: A Contemporary Approach to Housing Ourselves

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A day in the life of a single-family house by Chuck Durrett, The CoHousing

Company

December 2004 http://www.cohousing.org/livingincoho_singlefamily.aspx

Wow, the single-family house – what a workout it can be. After 12 years of

living in Doyle Street Cohousing in Emeryville, CA, I'd forgotten how hard it is

to live in a " regular " house. How do so many people do it and stay sane?

We moved this past summer to a 1,150-square-foot, single-family house with a

white picket fence, a detached garage and a dog. We didn't move out of cohousing

because we became disenchanted with it, but because we are developing a

beautiful new 34-unit cohousing project in Nevada City, CA, where we can be in

the woods and in the city at the same time.

Nevada City is charming to be sure, but the whole " single-family house " dream

thing is, to quote my daughter Jessie, " like so over-rated. " For one thing, you

have to shop, cook and clean up just about every night. That also means you have

to get in your car, sit in traffic, find parking, play bumper cars, stand in

line, find your car, find the exit, sit in traffic and put away the groceries –

before you're even ready to start cooking.

It's different in cohousing. When dinner is served in the common house, you just

walk on over and eat a home-cooked meal. You might even get to take home

leftovers for tomorrow's lunch or dinner or a midnight snack. And speaking of

snacks, it's amazing how often one of our neighbors would serve snacks on

Saturday or Sunday afternoons, or whenever.

I baked a fresh pear crisp at my new house the other day. , Jessie and I

ate some of it, but there was no neighbor with whom we could readily share it

without making a big deal out of it or getting into the car to take it to a

friend. With cohousers, you can hand them a dish and rock on.

At Doyle Street we had dinner in the common house three times a week. We also

usually shared a spontaneous joint meal once a week with one of our neighbors or

when the coach of a weekend work day would cook a big breakfast. Or someone

would finish up on the common house outdoor grill just as I was ready to add

some of our own food. He'd even have some extra squash and show me just how to

cook it.

Living in cohousing was so much more convenient, practical and economical –

just like we had planned it. And as neighbors, we all experienced the joy of

cooperation and sharing, social skills that we had learned way back in

kindergarten. In cohousing, , Jessie or I (mostly Jessie) would go knock on

doors if we were missing two eggs for French toast or milk for the pancakes. We

never had to drive to the store to buy a dozen eggs when we only needed one or

two, or to get a quart of milk when we only needed a cup.

So now, for the time being, we stock the fridge with all the stuff we might

need, foraging around our 14-cubic-foot refrigerator like a coyote who can't

remember where he buried his bone. And did I mention all the leftovers that we

ate last week and are no longer appealing, but we won't throw away until they're

ripe?

Because we're cooking and eating at home more often, there's a lot more busy

work, too. It seems like I'm always cleaning the stove, washing the cutting

boards, loading or unloading the dishwasher, or taking out another load of

garbage or compost. By the time I finish cleaning up it's almost time to start

over for the next meal. It all feels so important at the time, but it's not.

" Jessie, will you please help bring in the groceries from the car? " I ask. " I'd

rather finish building our new cohousing than bring in the groceries, " she

replies. " We're working on it, " I sigh.

Nevada City Cohousing is two months into a 12-month construction process. We

plan to have dinner six times a week in the common house. I can't wait to get

back into cohousing so I can get my life back.

Chuck Durrett, coauthor of Cohousing: A Contemporary Approach to Housing

Ourselves and author of the recently released Senior Cohousing: A Community

Approach to Independent Living, has visited more than 285 cohousing communities,

researched 46 in-depth, designed 38 and lived happily in one for 12 years.

Pictures: McCamant, Chuck Durrett and their daughter Jessie Durrett out

for a stroll in Nevada City, CA; Doyle Street Cohousing, Emeryville, CA

-end-

Overview http://www.cohousing.org/overview.aspx

Cohousing is a type of collaborative housing in which residents actively

participate in the design and operation of their own neighborhoods.

Cohousing residents are consciously committed to living as a community. The

physical design encourages both social contact and individual space. Private

homes contain all the features of conventional homes, but residents also have

access to common facilities such as open space, courtyards, a playground and a

common house.

Old-fashioned sense of neighborhood

Cohousing communities are usually designed as attached or single-family homes

along one or more pedestrian streets or clustered around a courtyard. They range

in size from 7 to 67 residences, the majority of them housing 20 to 40

households. Regardless of the size of the community, there are many

opportunities for casual meetings between neighbors, as well as for deliberate

gatherings such as celebrations, clubs and business meetings.

The common house is the social center of a community, with a large dining room

and kitchen, lounge, recreational facilities, children’s spaces, and frequently

a guest room, workshop and laundry room. Communities usually serve optional

group meals in the common house at least two or three times a week.

The need for community members to take care of common property builds a sense of

working together, trust and support. Because neighbors hold a commitment to a

relationship with one another, almost all cohousing communities use

consensusglossary.aspx as the basis for group decision-making.

What makes cohousing communities unique

The cohousing idea originated in Denmark, and was promoted in the U.S. by

architects McCamant and Durrett in the early 1980s. The Danish

concept of " living community " has spread quickly. Worldwide, there are now

hundreds of cohousing communities, expanding from Denmark into the U.S, Canada,

Australia, Sweden, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Belgium,

Austria and elsewhere.

In a cohousing community, you know who lives six houses down because you eat

common meals with them, decide how to allocate homeowners dues and gratefully

accept a ride from them when your car’s in the shop. You begin to trust them

enough to leave your 4-year-old with them. You listen to what they have to say,

even if you don’t agree with them at first, and you sense that you, too, are

being heard.

Cohousing residents generally aspire to " improve the world, one neighborhood at

a time. " This desire to make a difference often becomes a stated mission, as the

websites of many communities demonstrate. For example, at

Sunward Cohousing near Ann Arbor, MI, the goal is to create a place " where

lives are simplified, the earth is respected, diversity is welcomed, children

play together in safety, and living in community with neighbors comes

naturally. " At

Winslow Cohousing near Seattle, the aim is to have " a minimal impact on the

earth and create a place in which all residents are equally valued as part of

the community. " At

EcoVillage at Ithaca, NY, the site of two adjoining cohousing neighborhoods,

the goal is " to explore and model innovative approaches to ecological and social

sustainability. "

Many other communities have visions that focus specifically on the value of

building community. Sonora Cohousing in Tucson, AZ, seeks " a diversity of

backgrounds, ages and opinions, with our one shared value being the commitment

to working out our problems and finding consensus solutions that satisfy all

members. "

Tierra Nueva Cohousing in Oceano, CA, exists " because each of us desires a

greater sense of community, as well as strong interaction with and support from

our neighbors. "

elder-cohousing.aspx-end-

The Cohousing Association of the United States

1750 30th St #617

Boulder, CO 80301-1036 USA

314-754-5828 (voicemail)

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