In this issue:

• 2023 in Review
• Katie's Upcoming Speaking Events:
• Kids in Urban Cohousing
• The Art of Neighboring: An Introduction to Forming Cohousing Communities in the Bay Area
• National Conference
• Meet CS' Current Clients

CoHousing Solutions was busy in 2023

2023 was a big year for a number of our clients that finally got to move into their homes. For communities that tied up land before the pandemic closed down the world (who could have guessed that risk?), its been a long and crazy road to realizing their community dream. Others are just starting on their development path, as new communities have gotten property secured and are now moving forward with their design and development process. Wherever you are in your journey to create the community that works for you, we at CoHousing Solutions are honored to support you in that effort. 

We love celebrating your milestones ‘cause we know how much work it takes!

Here's to a successful, community-filled 2024!



Cheers,

Katie + Andrea

1. January: Skagit Commons in Anacortes, WA received final Certification of their elevator, a detail that had hung up 15 households' (the second half) ability to move into their almost finished community. Those 15 households, including one of our 500 Communities Affiliates, Shelly Parks, immediately commenced move-in with much support from those already settling into their new homes. We are happy to report that by year’s end, Skagit Commons is making good use of its Common House with dinner, parties, and other fun events.

2. February: Kawartha Commons, located in Peterborough, Ontario (yes, Canada!), cruised through the pandemic hoping that a local developer would be ready to do cohousing on his property. In 2023, the community moved on, signing a purchase agreement for an even better 1-acre property and thus kicking their development into high gear. At year's end, they have moved forward with their architect (Cool Earth) on their design: a 4-6 story urban building that leaves much of the land for gardens.

3. March: Katie presented Prepare for Property - Cultivate Your Local Market as part of the Cohousing Institute's programming. The session, which focused on how communities can prepare for property purchase, was very well received. You can find the recording here.

4. April: Katie gets a new hip, heals with the attention and love of her community, and hires Andrea (left) as Marketing + Outreach Manager. Read Katie's recovery story on our blog, and Andrea's bio on our website.

5. May: In mid May, Burns Village & Farm in Burns, TN held their Site Programming Workshop with their architect, Jack Wilbern of bwdarchitects. The Workshop was nearly postponed when Jack had an emergency which had him flying to Chicago rather than Nashville. Luckily, Katie was able to bring in Architect Mathilde Bethe of Studio Co+Hab (and previously of Katie’s old firm McCamant & Durrett Architects). With Mathilde's knowledge of working with cohousing groups, she was able to jump in on very short notice. Jack was able to join them the second day as they developed the concept for their emerging neighborhood. 

Mission Peak Village in Fremont, CA (above) receives unanimous approval of their design from the Fremont Planning Commission. For those of you who have not been through a California planning approval, THIS IS A VERY BIG DEAL! 

6. June: CoHousing Houston, the first cohousing in Texas, is well under construction and ready to go vertical, having installed the underground pipes for the geothermal system, poured the concrete foundation and slabs, and finally getting the building permits out of the City of Houston. Here they are on the construction site at year end, looking forward to move-in in 2024! 

P.S. They also had a nice article in the Oct. Texas Monthly! Read it here.

8. August: A number of clients get serious about new properties. SpeciallyAble Cohousing is looking to build a community for their families, all of which have adult kids with intellectual/developmental disabilities. This group honed in on a property in Oakley at the edge of California’s Bay Area. While it looked good through most of the feasibility period, new information from the civil engineer raises questions about the costs to develop this property, confirming that money spent on feasibility can be money well spent. Early in the New Year, this group will need to decide whether to proceed with this property.

A group focused on the NY Hudson Valley has identified a property in Highland (above), just across the river from Poughkeepsie. NY State offers special challenges for forming cohousing, but this tough group of founders is ready to move forward on this beautiful 40 acres with two ponds.

It will be fun to see how the site plan evolves in 2024. The group is working with Caddis Collaborative, partnering with local architects LMV. Let us know if you are interested in finding out more about this group, as NY State does not even allow them to have a website at this time. 

9. September: Bozeman Cohousing: 42 homes on a five acre property in the middle a Bozeman…what a great community this is! Families have started moving into the first homes to get their Certificate of Occupancy. Like many cohousing groups before them, construction was delayed and families ended up “bunking together”, including several families sleeping in tents in another’s backyard. All that makes their new homes feel down right spacious!

Architect Erik Bonnet of Studio Co+Hab moved into his home here, having been a founding member with his wife. Erik and his Studio Co+Hab business co-founder Mathilde Berthe met while working at Katie’s previous firm, McCamant & Durrett Architects. Well done, Erik & Mathilde!

The 2023 500 Communities Class met in-person at Nevada City Cohousing to kick off their year-long intensive on professional roles in developing cohousing. You’ll get to meet many of them at the 2024 National Cohousing Conference in Denver. 

10. October: Because breaking bread together is such a key aspect of community, Katie offered her insights for a successful meals program as part of the CohoUS Fall offerings. You can see the recording here.

Katie also joined Washington Commons Cohousing in West Sacramento (right and below) for one of their site tours to see the progress on their stunning building. Construction is in its last leg, with move-ins projected to start in early 2024!

Also along for the tour was a film crew gathering footage for a future short documentary on ways to address the loneliness epidemic. The crew had interviewed Katie at Nevada City Cohousing a few days earlier, and were excited to see another community. We can't say much more about the film yet, but be sure to stay tuned.

11. November: Heartwood Commons Tulsa: Oklahoma’s second community is nearing completion and getting ready for move-in in 2024. 

Katie is interviewed by LivXplore - a real estate consulting firm serving the Bay Area - for their podcast. Along with hosts Sean and Isaiah, she discussed cohousing development, navigating zoning, the relevance of cohousing in today's world, and more. Watch the episode here.

12. December: And to finish the year out with one last big milestone, Berkeley Moshav’s architects (Gunkel Architecture) submitted 309 sheets of drawings for building permit! Look for this community to be starting construction in Summer 2024. 

Upcoming Events Featuring Katie

Kids in Urban Cohousing

Hosted by: Berkeley Moshav

Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024 at 6 pm (PST)

Online Via Zoom

Could urban cohousing be right for your family? Join us for a one-hour event with Katie McCamant, a cohousing expert who raised her own daughter in the urban community of Doyle Street Cohousing. There will be plenty of time for Q&A. This is sure to be a great event - RSVP today!

The Art of Neighboring: An Introduction to Forming Cohousing Communities in the Bay Area

Hosted by: Mission Peak Village, Washington Commons & Berkeley Moshav

Save the Dates!

Saturday, February 24 in Fremont, CA

Sunday, February 25 in Berkeley, CA

More Details to Come!

Join us for this rare opportunity to get to know three cohousing communities forming in the Bay Area. Guest speakers include Katie McCamant and Danny Milman, Development Manager with UD+P (and 500CP Affiliate!). Members from each community will share a bit about their project, estimated timeline, and ways you can get involved. Stick around for conversation and refreshments.

Want to receive the latest updates on this event? Email andrea.budde@cohousing-solutions.com to be added to the list!

2024 National Cohousing Conference

Join us in Denver, CO in August of 2024. The main conference is August 2-4 with pre-conference intensives and tours beginning on August 1. Early bird registration will begin in early 2024, with limited space available. Register here to be the first to know when registration is open and receive updates about the conference. Learn more here.

Meet CoHousing Solutions' Current Clients

Adams Creek (Hood River, OR)

Auburn Cohousing (Auburn, CA)

Berkeley Moshav (Berkeley, CA)

Burns Village & Farm (Burns, TN)

C Street Village (Novato, CA)

Cedar Cohousing (Minneapolis, MN)

CoHousing Houston (Houston, TX)

Cohousing of Greater Baltimore (Baltimore, MD)

Columbus Cohousing (Columbus, OH)

Emerson Commons (Crozet, VA)

Hager Homestead (Littleton, MA)

Heartwood Commons (Tulsa, OK)

Kawartha Commons (Peterborough, Ontario)

Mission Peak Village (Fremont, CA)

Newark Area Cohousing (Newark, DE)

NY Hudson Valley (Highland, NY)

Rooted NW (Arlington, WA)

Shift Esperanza (Costa Rica)

SpeciallyAble Cohousing (CA)

Washington Commons Cohousing (West Sacramento, CA)

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neighborhood a reality.

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to help you create your sustainable neighborhood. Our team pioneered the development of cohousing in North America, and we have helped create dozens of successful communities.