Banks Throw Co-Housing Project a Curveball

I have to check in here as I always do when cohousing comes up.

Kids, PLEASE check out something called "the Internet" and do even the least little cursory reading. Your comments are ignorant and puerile...I'm frankly embarrassed for you.

NOW, listen, this is a coop. No huge stretch of the imagination there. People have their own apartment, doors, windows, a kitchen, bathroom...normal. Please log that in your brain.

In fact, many cohousing developments in the US have nice condo complex-like homes with a main street twist, white picket fences and a town "green" of sorts.

Basically, the difference is a cohousing development is an intentional community. This one will specificall differ from the "regular" NYC coop/condo in that it is not landlord sponsored (so you have very old tenants who continue to rent and newbies who got ripped off and then realize the building has all sorts of problems--e.g. recent conversion of Brooklyn 30's and 40's era rental apartment houses into coops). They are not condos where the profit goes to the developer and then the, these days, the buyers have to worry that the other units will sell...and some lose their shirts (there ARE true condo horror stories out there across the country).

See, the cohousing group comes together, usually, for years before anything is built. Eventually, there is a process in place, relationships, understanding, the issues are hashed out...basically a sense of community is recreated and rules of governance better than any regular contentious co-op in NYC.

So, if you want your own apartment with very low utility costs (elec, heating, H/W, broadband access, etc.), privacy (and YES, again, your own home with a, yes, real kitchen, hello), the option to have people around, a dinner you don't necessarily have to prepare when there's a group dinner. Knowing that there's nothing to worry about when you go away (even for three months...a favorite of academes)...plants, mail, pets, and if you have young kids, there are lots of responsible adults who may be able to "sit" for you/back and forth exchange.

There are a lot of plusses. My problem with the site they have found is the area is a little depressing and not particularly where I see myself living. I was so excited when they were in negotiations to build at the St. Michael's Church/Carlton Mews project in Fort Greene...but that was going to be too expensive.

Well, all the power to them. At this stage in life I keep wondering if maybe a cohousing community in "the country" might be a better option for us. Depending where the husband unit's career goes in the next couple of years (academic), and, sadly, which family elder passes away and when, I'm pretty much hoping to totally retire and garden in some place that's pleasant with clean air and less stress before he retires. I'd love a college town with a good medical center.

We can always rent a pied-a-terre in NYC/Brooklyn if we're that desperate to have a place to stay when we're here but we can also spring for a B&B as needed. Plus, there appears to be a growing number of homeowners who, instead of renting out the garden apartment to a tenant, are opting on short-term and vacation rentals. Temporary solution would probably be cheaper and have less worry involved. I wouldn't want a studio or one-bedroom apartment with mail piling up if we didn't come back for 3-months. See, that's were a Brooklyn cohousing living situation would be good in terms of security, safety, having you apartment looked after, etc. but it would be unfair, to a cohousing community, possibly against the founding parameters, to count on buying a studio but only be in residence a couple of weeks or months a year.

Anyway, please, read up a little on co-housing before running your mouths.

Posted by: BrooklynGreene at June 16, 2009 12:07 PM

Well at least, I see
People, even "young", can read
Some miss the content

Posted by: BrooklynGreene at June 16, 2009 1:18 PM

Goodness, BxGrl, the factory has been closed...kaput for a long time as I remember.

Frankly, knowing a bit about sustainable architecture and passive house concepts, I have to say a new building from the ground-up could be easier than a reclamation of an old brick building...but at least they'll be using an existing structure which is already a big plus.

Using an existing heavy masonry structure presents some problems. Trying to isolate the existing walls from wicking up ground water (inserting a vapor barrier/damp-proof course...maybe there are new products?)can be tough.

And the need to insulate the existing heavy wall, thus losing their mass for passive house purposes since they'd be outside the insulation is a real loss. The design then has to incorporate/add in a lot of new mass inside the insulated shell which might entail structural changes, costs, new materials that have a high embedded energy (e.g. cement).

It does make a lot of sense to reuse a factory building. It was so much nicer when it seemed like it would happen in Fort Greene though, but that's life. Ho'hum.

Please note that I didn't not name-call. And I'm not "militant" or "fanatical" about this cohousing project. I just think it's a great idea, know that the people doing this are making a huge effort and growing emotionally, socially, spiritually most probably.

What offends me and makes me see red and "sound" "militant" is the level of ignorance and the reflex for 20 and 30 somethings to flip off cutesy comments that are ignorant, loopy and/or destructive.

Posted by: BrooklynGreene at June 16, 2009 2:08 PM

I'm sorry, not "destructive" then...just "annoying" and not very cordial toward the people who are involved in the project.

Denton doll, I chuckled at the bike riding idea!!! Hahahahahaha! I haven't been on a bike (or a horse for that matter...or rollerskate either) for something like a million and one years! :-) I was/have been thinking about on of those adult tricycles but haven't bothered...I'm kind of scared of the danger of an accident.

My very close friend passed away a number of years ago on the Cape. She had an adult tricycle she desperately wanted me to take back to NY. This was at Christmas time when she seemed to be doing half-way decently and we were praying and hoping. I couldn't take the tricycle or another thing she pressed me to take. I guess her soul knew she was closer than she seemed. She passed away at Easter.

Posted by: BrooklynGreene at June 16, 2009 3:04 PM

Rob,
All the best! There are some very snippy younger people on brownstoner who say all sorts of biting and pointless things, thinking they'll be one step closer to cool heaven I guess. Well, it just makes them sound ignorant and flippant--very teenagery.

I'm glad someone involved in the project piped up finally. I can imagine the group has to be careful for legal reasons but it's good you cleared some things up for any of the the snippies if they bothered to read your generous comments.

Thanks,
BGLady

Posted by: BrooklynGreene at June 16, 2009 6:07 PM