Cohousing Now!
Sharing Knowledge

Sharing Knowledge

Karin Hoskin ~ Executive Director

Before and after the NE Summit regional cohousing conference I took some time to visit some 17 different communities in the general Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont area. I am thankful that so many communities were able to meet with me and tour me around. My goal when touring as CohoUS Executive Director is to make connections, ask how the community is doing, hear about recent accomplishments and ask about current challenges. I like to hear about how the association can support each community at whatever phase it is in and remind people about our eNews and website tools such as our communities directory and classified ads - this tour I was able to specifically tell people a bit about some new and exciting updates coming to our website!

mosaic map of Cambridge Cohousing

treehouse at Pathways CoHousing


between Pathways CoHousing and Rocky Hill Cohousing

Many communities have similar challenges with participation, such as how to determine community needs, how to 'divide' up the work, how drum up excitement about seemingly mundane 'chores', how to track participation and what to do when someone is not 'chipping in'.  Multigenerational communities are working on attracting young families and considering the potential 'problem' of becoming a NORC (Naturally Occurring Retirement Community). Senior communities are working to find 'younger-seniors' as buyers and are considering in detail how to allow people to age further in place.  Because  these topics continue to be something that communities deal with, the conference committee will continue to offer sessions addressing these. 
emergency rolls in common house of Nubanusit Neighborhood & Farm

shiitake mushrooms at Cobb Hill Cohousing


"Please drive crazy slow" says Ten Stones Community

acoustic ceiling tiles at Burlington Cohousing East Village

Edgar of the Brazilian group harvesting in the Burlington Cohousing East Village community garden
 








Thank you to these communities for welcoming me:  Cornerstone Village Cohousing,  Cambridge Cohousing,  Jamaica Plain Cohousing,   Mosaic Commons, C amelot Cohousing,  Pioneer Valley,  Pathways CoHousing,  Rocky Hill Cohousing,  Pine St Cohousing,  Nubanusit Neighborhood & Farm,  Putney Commons,  Cobb Hill Cohousing,  Pinnacle Cohousing,  Bristol Village Cohousing,  Champlain Valley Cohousing,  Ten Stones Community and  Burlington Cohousing East Village. 









Conferences & Events




Thank you to co-chairs Laura Fitch & Mary Kraus; committee members Nancy Turkle & Karen Gimnig; Peter Lazar for registrations; Cat Belfer for cooking giant pots of chili; Nancy Bair for organizing volunteers from Pioneer Valley Cohousing; PVC volunteers, dinner hosts, and kids for directing parking; Musicians from Pine Street Cohousing, John Porcino for storytelling in the morning and DJ'ing at night; Lou for his Shakespeare performance; Raines Cohen presence & helpfulness at every cohousing conference;  Johnathon Freiermuth for AV support.

 Thank you to Intensive Leaders, Session Presenters, Exhibitors, Sponsors: Caddis, Fitch Architecture & Community Design, schemata workshop, Wonderland Hill Development Co, Village Hearth Cohousing, Cohousing Solutions, Fellowship for Intentional Community, Mary Kraus Architect; University of Massachusetts, Tour Participating Communities...

and most important of all...Thank You to the Attendees, 
we wouldn't have done this without you!

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Save the Date for next year's  National CohoUS Conference

The  2019 National Cohousing Conference will be in Portland Oregon on May 30 - June 2, 2019 Portland, Oregon. 

The theme will be "Community for the Health of it." 
 Loneliness is epidemic in the U.S. 
Living in an intentional community can be the antidote! 

Our Featured Keynote will be Courtney E. Martin, author of The New Better Off: Reinventing the American Dream, she explores how people are redefining the American Dream, she lives in Temescal Commons, a co-housing community in Oakland. 

If interested in becoming a sponsor for what we anticipate 
to be a well attended national conference click here .
 
If interested in volunteering in pre-conference prep or day-of activities, please contact karincohous@gmail.com

Registration will officially open in January.
Attracting Millennials to  Cohousing


Excerpt from Cohousing Mariah McKay of Haystack Heights Cohousing in Spokane involved with the Millennial Makers project:

I want  millennials  to consider shared living and cohousing as a viable housing option. A lot of us assume we're going to be renters for the rest of our days and that has financial implications. Instead, millennials can look at creative ways to buy homes together. You don't necessarily have to be married to buy a house. Our generation will have to find ways to provide housing for our family and friends in a difficult economy, in a difficult market, when hardly any of us have much personal wealth. How do we work with the financial system and work with the real estate market as it is now to try to preserve and create affordability in the future? It's something that our generation is going to have to consider because I don't think that the Baby Boomers and Generation X are invested enough in our housing crisis issues to deal with them. They don't see the crisis for the impacts it will have while we're trying to have kids and take care of our aging parents. I encourage people to band together to innovate and be creative in the housing realm. To read full article
Aging In Place


Excerpt from TAKING CHARGE: Participatory Models of Aging in Place, Designed by Seniors, for Seniors' in Senior Socail Living - subject Harbourside Cohousing 

WHAT IF THERE WAS ANOTHER WAY TO GROW OLD AT HOME?  Harbourside Cohousing is one of Canada's first senior cohousing initiatives. It is located on a large property that faces Sooke Harbour, on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The complex consists of a number of duplexes and fourplexes, and a larger, condo-style building that is referred to as the 'apartment house'. There are 31 units that are filled by single people and married couples; renters and owners. In total there are 45 people who are part of the Harbourside community, ranging in age from 60 to 88 years old. 
They call themselves an intentional community who came together organically around the idea of buying land and building a supportive living community that they themselves would run. Members are mainly retired professionals who have moved to Sooke to take advantage of the milder winters and beautiful landscapes. Over a period of five years the group worked collaboratively to flesh out the details of their community. This included governance protocols, community codes, financing and legal arrangements, and building designs. 
They also began the initial groundwork for what would become their co-care agreement: a promise to provide a supportive and stimulating environment where every member can age in place if they choose. This aspect of Harbourside is what sets it apart from other cohousing initiatives. The big idea is that seniors who live in close proximity, and who share space, responsibilities and sense of community, can work together to reduce the harmful affects of social isolation and address the issues that enable seniors to age in place. To read full article, click here.

 
Cohousing Call To Action and Opportunities


I recently attended the Northeast Cohousing Summit, a great weekend of inspired and motivated people who are hopefully going to move their dreams forward and live in communities that are supportive, healthy, and fun. I was inspired by the attendees and yet noticed that there was a specific demographic that was missing - two in fact. Young folks and families are talking about co-living so much lately - it's all the rage lately - yet very few came to the Summit. It got me asking, "why?"

My life's work has been focused on well-being through
community. If it doesn't work socially, why bother? I watch
my teenage neighbors build lasting bonds with the
community elders and have experienced the saging that
happens in a cohousing community first hand. I see the
neighborhood change as our elders say goodbye to this life and young families welcome another child into their lives, our lives. Teenagers graduate and go off to college only to use the lessons they learned during countless Common Dinners to making positive change in the larger world, like my daughter is doing.

I know that cohousing works on many levels because I live and breathe it, and I know that others people desire the same kind of connection that we have in my cohousing community. That is why I am dedicated to making sure that not only older adults are supported in community, but the younger generations are as well. That is why I ask you to please help me get the word out for the 2019 National Cohousing Conference in Portland, OR, May 30 - June 2.

If you know anyone who works for a parenting  magazine, radio show, newspaper, or a school, ask  them to share the conference to their network. If they want an interview, they can call me at 916-716-6721; contact Karin at  karincohous@gmail.com; o r take the opportunity to tell
them about it yourself. Tell them to finds news articles or read a book about cohousing such as Creating
Cohousing: Building Sustainable Communities. 

Let's make sure that the 2019 Conference is attended by all ages who want to live in a supportive, high-functioning community where they know and care about their neighbors. 

After all, if it doesn't work socially, why bother?
~ Chuck Durrett

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The Cohousing Association is rolling out another great opportunity to learn about cohousing. We will be hosting sessions with process and facilitation professionals to share their expertise and answer your questions. We hope you will take advantage of this no-cost opportunity to receive support from your greater cohousing community. 

Each session will be 60 minutes, starting with a short talk by the presenter followed by ample time for questions from those who attend. 

If you, or someone you know, has an expertise in process or facilitation in cohousing and would like to be added to our presenter list, please let us know.

Please forward this invitation to your community, especially your facilitation team, an
d anyone you may know who would like to join us.

Sponsored by The Cohousing Association, the sessions are free of charge. If you like the program, donations to support it are always welcome here

Wed, Oct 10 -  recording available here
Jerry Koch-Gonzalez, Facilitating While Listening

Thurs, Oct 18 - recording available  here
Karen Gimnig, Getting Connected: Going Deeper than "Company Manners"

Wed, Oct 24 - recording available here 
Laird Schaub, Working Constructively with Emotions

Thu, Nov 1
6pm Pac, 7pm Mt, 8pm Cent, 9pm East
Yana Ludwig, Introduction to Consensus

Wed, Nov 14
4:30pm Pac, 5:30pm Mt, 6:30pm Cent, 7:30pm East
Ted Rau, Keeping Meetings Short(er)

Tue, Dec 4
6pm Pac, 7pm Mt, 8pm Cent, 9pm East
Alan O'Hashi, Facilitation Techniques: Aggressive Behavior Intervention

Tue, Jan 8
6pm Pac, 7pm Mt, 8pm Cent, 9pm East
Ronnie Rosenbaum, Improving Communication

For more details, including how to join these sessions, click here Any questions? Contact Karen at karencohous@gmail.com


Coho/US Notes

So much gratitude for these two...


Catya Belfer served CohoUS as our Technical Director until October 2018 working on our website, registrations and all behind the scenes technical things with an amazing swiftness




Jenny Goodwin served as our Outreach Associate until October 2018 spreading the word about Cohousing through social media, writing blogs and articles for Cohousing Now! eNews and letting everyone know about conference events

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Is it Karin or Karen?
 
Karin Hoskin
(pronounced car-in) is the Executive Director for CohoUS and works with the Board of  Directors
 to strategically encourage and grow the cohousing movement; this includes coordinating conferences; answering inquires and strengthening the association as a resource for those creating or living in community. S he lives in Wild Sage Cohousing in Boulder, CO and can be reached at karincohous@gmail.com






Karen Gimnig
(pronounced care-un) is the Associate Director for CohoUS. Her current main focus is coordinating the website revamping project (it's going to be great!), hosting WebChats and collaborating with various CohoUS committees.
she lives in East Lake Commons just outside of  Atlanta, GA and can be reached at karencohous@gmail.com



Ready for the quiz? Who is who in this photo?




Short hair (currently)
glasses (sometimes), smiling faces (always)!

Karen G on the left, 
Karin H on the right, feel free to contact either of us for anything, we'll happily redirect to the other if needed!





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Many communities have begun working on their 2019 budget as we have at CohoUS! 

Please consider making a donation and recognize that you are investing in the 
future of cohousing and giving others the opportunity to experience the vi
brant lifestyle you enjoy!

We suggest a community donation of $25 per 
household per year, or a donation of $2 per household per 
month.

Donations can be made at this link or a check mailed to :
CohoUS
4710 16th Street
Boulder, CO 80304

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Established Communities = 166
Forming = 144

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Like receiving eNews? Please support Coho/US, serving as a clearinghouse and connector to grow and nurture cohousing across the country. 

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Professional Services



Events









Cohousing condo project to break ground in Manchester
by Charlotte Rene Wood Richmond BizSense

A group focused on the cohousing trend has a site in mind and a veteran developer on board to help it bring the concept to Richmond.

Richmond Cohousing is working with seasoned Richmond development firm Robin Miller & Associates to create a four-story, 19-unit condo project to 901 Porter St. in Manchester.

The building will have privately owned condos ranging from one to three-bedrooms, each with a full kitchen. Staying true to the mission of cohousing, the building's design will be centered on a common area that includes a kitchen, dining and meeting area, as well as a play area for children. The space can be utilized for planned and spontaneous gatherings and interactions.

"We have a shared intention to live collaboratively and you do that through building design," said Karl Zweerink, Richmond Cohousing member. "The fact that the common area will be accessible through the entrance to the building will encourage interaction between residents and reduce the isolation a lot of living arrangements can create."

Cohousing has caught on around the country and cohousing associations have formed in several midsized and large U.S. cities.

"Cohousing is not a new concept, but there's a recognition that as our lives get busier, it's been harder and harder for people to stay connected with their neighbors," Zweerink said.

read full article here


At Home: Nine families share a modern building built on a solid concept

By Sandy Deneau Dunham / The Seattle Times

By its very nature, a "concept" is intangibly abstract: a notion, an idea, a feeling. Certainly not anything you can see, or hold, or assemble.

But nature adapts. And now, in one ever-evolving Seattle ecosystem, 28 people in nine families are living in an ultra-collaborative community that is so concretely conceptual, it is practically, and purposefully, built on trust.
This is Capitol Hill Urban Cohousing (CHUC), a modern-in-every-sense-of-the-word mixed-use building designed by married architects Grace Kim and Mike Mariano, founders of Schemata Workshop. (Their office is on CHUC's ground floor; they live with 10-year-old daughter Ella on the fourth.)

With design features that promote everyday interaction and openness - a lively rooftop garden with a P-Patch and furnished deck, a central courtyard visible from all nine units through curtain-free windows, and a communal kitchen that hosts three organized community dinners a week - CHUC has stood as a solid representation of intentional, intergenerational community-building since its completion in 2016. This year, it also epitomizes the one-word theme of the 2018 Seattle Design Festival.

"Last year, the theme was 'power,'" says Sarah Haase, chair of this year's festival (she also works at Schemata Workshop). "This year, it's 'trust': in our systems, experiences, public spaces, infrastructure. It's essential that the public live in a sustainable, equitable city. That's been called into question in Seattle, nationally and globally. We're hoping to have a discourse: specifically, how design can elevate trust through the process and outcome, and the ways design could encourage it."

read full article here 
Resources


Communities magazine has released a new issue on 'Networking Communities' which is now available for free or by donation for digital download ( click here)

Just as no person is an island, no intentional community is an island. ICs are connected to other communities and cooperative groups locally, regionally, nationally, internationally-whether those connections are actively cultivated or simply present in shared participation in a cooperative experience.

Intentional cultivation of those ties-the fostering of networks-can make each participant group stronger and more resilient.

In Communities' "Networking Communities" issue (Fall 2018, #180), authors share their journeys in exploring and creating networks-among communitarians, among communities, even among networks of communities and among communities researchers.

Authors discuss the joys and benefits as well as trials and tribulations of organizing networking gatherings, of attempting to address social justice, ecological, and related challenges through collective visioning and action, of working toward an equitable and regenerative future in concert with others, of exploring the edges of cultural evolution, of learning from others' experiences as well as their own. They talk about the potential of further networking to help us create the future we want to see!

We hope you'll draw helpful information, inspiration, and insight from their stories in this Networking Communities issue. Now available for free or by donation for digital download at  ic.org/communities.


We at CohoUS are working earnestly to make sure these Community Directory listings are as up to date as possible. Please review your listing and make edits as needed.
Thank you!