"Creating a new community way of living in Tulsa, where neighbors become friends."
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We Were Featured in Vintage Newsmagazine!
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Our community members Suzy Sharp, Claudia Vandiver, and Jan Owen were recently interview for an article in LIFE's Vintage Newsmagazine. The magazine talks about cohousing's cooperative processes, and how an intentional community like Heartwood Commons can be an excellent option for successfully aging in place.
“Everybody says ‘age in place,’ and usually what they mean by that is the home they’re currently in. I would suggest that the ‘place’ is really the important part. Having a place where you’re surrounded by people who care about you and are looking out for you as you are for them – having that kind of community in which to grow older is the ‘place’ where you want to be.”
-Suzy Sharp, future resident of Heartwood Commons in Tulsa.
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Our Vision Becoming Reality
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We have begun our Community Workshops! During these workshops we will be creating the dream, and laying out the plans for what our community will actually look like.
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The day before the workshops began we gathered on our beautiful 4.8 acre site to get a fresh look before jumping into the planning.
Some came to the workshop Saturday morning with clear ideas of how they thought the community could be laid out on the land. Others not so much. But we all trusted the process our architects, Bryan and Molly, would lead us through.
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That afternoon, we divided into 3 groups, each with a map of the land to layout our ideas.
Round 1: We were hesitant at first but soon the ideas were flying. The layouts were pretty rough. After all it was our first time. But we found some things we liked, and some we didn’t.
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Round 2: We switched groups did it again. We realized there was one layout we all kept circling back to. There were lots of “I like this” and “I like that” and “Oh, that’s a great solution.” It dawned on us ,we were looking at what would become the layout of our community!
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The next workshop was designing our common house.
A place where we will build connections, share meals, conversations, and activities.
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We envision our living room to be a comfortable space for visiting, book club meetings, games, family gatherings, and shared movies. It will have a wonderful cooking kitchen and a large dining room that can also be used for all types of gatherings - music, dance and volunteer projects. The common house will be the home of a Grand Piano (donated by John and Pat) and two guest rooms that will provide homey accommodations for visiting family and friends. It will also include a laundry room with large washers and dryers, and an art studio/craft room that is sure to be overflowing with creative works. Our common house will have lots of natural light, an east orientation, and be surrounded by gardens. It will have a screened porch and large patio. The west side will be our welcoming public entrance. In addition to this lovely common house, other common use buildings we envision include a wood shop, bike storage, and wellness pavilion for yoga/contemplative practices, and a hot tub. We’ll also have community gardens, a dog run, and plan to include a tornado shelter. After all, we do live in Oklahoma!
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In April, we will be entering the "Private Home Design" phase of our workshop series, and w
e’re so excited. During this workshop we’ll look at the design elements we want included in our private homes. Things like light, accessibility, storage, porches and so much more. We can’t wait to see what the collective creativity of our group comes up with for our one, two, and three-bedroom home options.
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If you’ve been thinking about cohousing and you’d like to help create the community, literally, now’s the time get involved.
Or call us at: (
918) 519-5298.
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A Story From our Community
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Why I Want to Live In Cohousing
By Lynn Rivers
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Having neighbors who become friends as we join in gardening, having coffee on the common house patio, having some community meals together on a somewhat regular basis, and walking that includes stops to catch up with other cohousing residents and, is the meaning of living in true community for me.
At this point in my life, I’m completely ready to downsize from a large, work-intensive home and yard to a much smaller townhome. With a common house for socializing, cooking, working together on whatever needs doing, a workshop, and a good place for art and craft creation, that small townhome won’t seem so small. Our cohousing group plans to be as sustainable as possible, where our footprint is smaller, our energy sourcing will include geothermal and solar, and we find ways to make our 4.8 acre site hospitable to humans and the natural environment alike.
Once I’m spending less time on my own home and yard maintenance, I expect to use that time and energy in expanding what I can do for the common good here in Tulsa. Because I’ll be supported in this friendly, like-minded community, I will pass that along to the larger Tulsa community.
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Join us at these upcoming events
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Live Longer and Healthier, the Cohousing Way
Thursday, April 11th, 6:30PM (Doors open at 6:00)
Zarrow Pointe, 2025 E 71st St, Town Center Building
(1st building past the outdoor pool)
Learn how living in a cohousing community can help you live longer, healthier and happier. Bryan Bowen, our architect from Boulder, will talk about living in cohousing for 14 years and what he's learned from designing 15 communities. Molly Jones, our local architect, will share how Heartwood Commons is taking shape following our Site Design and Common House Design Workshops. Plus you'll meet members of Heartwood Commons and learn how you can get involved in living the cohousing way.
Reservations requested to (918) 304-8117 or
greencountrycohousing@gmail.com
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Come Home to Tulsa
Saturday, April 27th, 10:00AM - 11:30AM
Zarrow Pointe, 2025 E 71st St, Town Center Building
(1st building past the outdoor pool)
Join us for an informal conversation about the
benefits of cohousing and an update on Heartwood Commons. Come learn how you can get involved. After the presentation we'll head right down the street for a tour of the land and a lite lunch.
Reservations requested to (918) 304-8117 or greencountrycohousing@gmail.com
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Open House Day and Land Tour
Saturday, April 27th, 11:30AM - 1:30PM
7131/7141 S Quincy
We're so excited to join with cohousing communities across the country in National Cohousing Open House Day. Come see for yourself the beautiful 4.8 acres on which we will build 32 right-sized homes, a beautiful 3,000 sq ft common house, and other amenities. Come meet the members of Heartwood Commons. We'll walk the land together, imagine the possibilities, and share food and drink.
Reservations requested to (918) 304-8117 or greencountrycohousing@gmail.com
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We're a local group of friendly, engaged and proactive adults who are working together to create Tulsa’s first cohousing community – a vibrant neighborhood where neighbors know and care about one another.
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Views of the newly acquired land
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Want to find out more about Heartwood Commons?
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Please note:
for the time being, you'll also receive periodic emails from
CoHousing Solutions
, our development consultant. Their newsletters contain information about the cohousing movement and developments across the country.
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