The 9-Lives of Urban Cohousing

We are still moving forward with the cohousing project. Just when I keep thinking that there are too many complications, too fast a schedule, unwilling property owners—the process takes a turn for the best and keeps going.

For a few weeks we were moving frantically ahead trying to develop a set of numbers to see if the project was even feasible, cost-wise. I toured a “Rastra-house” (Rastra is a recycled polystyrene block)  that is utilizing many of the same materials and systems that we hope to use and it is coming in around $140 square foot—way higher than we hoped to spend.

We spent a day picking out finishes at EcoDepot, ProSource and Carpet Gallery. We hoped to incorporate at least some the following: Bamboo floors, Marmoleum (linoleum), recycled glass tile, paperstone countertops and recycled rubber flooring. Choosing recycled and sustainable materials are a given, but not necessarily the most cost effective in the short term. For instance, we refuse to use vinyl windows (polyvinylchloride), the manufacturing of which is one of the largest producers of dioxins (for more information check out the documentary, Blue Vinyl, http://www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/bv.html). So instead we have to look to either wood or fiberglass. Cost for either is much greater.

We kept having Saturday morning brunches with families and our children to discuss our dreams for a sustainable project and I think the developers began to get a bit nervous at this point, the shared garage and emphasis on green materials was beyond their comfort zone. When we mentioned that we preferred to not use natural gas and instead look to more sustainable forms for energy, they looked genuinely freaked out. It was then that they offered to sell us the lot for a small profit and we could become our own developers. Cutting out a developers profit on a completed development helped tremendously with our number crunching.

The City lot that we now have the opportunity to buy is a standard size lot, nothing too special but it does have the opportunity for some views, is one lot away from a great park and is close to downtown and it is also surrounded by about 5 other empty lots. Gain control of these and we would be well on our way to creating a true “eco-village.”

The lots would have to be developed in a dense manner, duplexes on each lot, designed to work with the surrounding fabric, but also allow for a better use of city land and to alleviate high land costs. There is even the potential for a large, shared, south-facing community garden and possible “Common House” for meal sharing and social events. The potential is tremendous and luckily for us, the owner of at least 4 of the other lots is receptive to our ideas.

Time is still an issue. Zoning changes could be approved in less than 30 days in the City, potentially screwing up our plans for duplexes (the entire neighborhood is being re-zoned from multi-family to single-family). And the whole PUD (Planned Unit Development) process is a bit daunting. But things are still moving.