File spoon-archives/aut-op-sy.archive/aut-op-sy_1997/aut-op-sy.9710, message 150


Date: Tue, 28 Oct 1997 20:21:10 -0600
From: Michael Novick <mnovick-AT-laedu.lalc.k12.ca.us>
Subject: AUT: It's A Small World After All: Disneyesque Communitarianism


UNUSUAL HOUSING REVOLT SPREADS


Promptly at 6 p.m., a spoon clanging the side of a cup signals everyone to
attention. The cook for tonight offers a synopsis of the menu: squash soup
and salad, and after a moment of silence, everyone digs in. 

It's supper time in the Nyland community. 

The dozen or so families gathered for the daily ritual at this unusual
housing development have not come merely to eat. They are here to take time
away from their busy schedules, to catch up with what is going on in each
other's lives and to practice the arguably dying art of neighborliness. 

Forsaking the modern suburban setting, with its privacy fences and
pedestrian-unfriendly design, these people have opted for a decidedly
different style of living they call cohousing. 

The cohousing movement, loosely described as a cross between the modern
townhouse development and a commune, has been spreading across the nation
in the past decade as an alternative for people longing for a sense of
connection in a bustling world. 

Residents say they are trying to recapture the time when neighbors
regularly interacted, looked after one another's children and could count
on each other not only for a cup of flour, but for a helping hand in time
of need. 

"I do an awful lot of traveling. I used to worry that my wife would have a
problem and there would be no one to help her since we knew only a few
people in our subdivision," said Bob Bruegel, a businessman, who has lived
in Nyland CoHousing Community with his wife since it opened five years ago. 

"Now I don't worry because she can get support from my new extended family
here." 

The inhabitants - including young families, singles and empty nesters - are
hardly the bead-wearing, flower children type. 

Yet in buying a home on the former farm near Boulder, the residents have
opted to sacrifice time, some personal amenities and privacy for the sake
of greater social interaction. 

There are few garages. Almost everyone parks in a large lot at the edge of
the premises and strolls through the community to get home. 

No streets run through, only pathways. The houses, all of which have front
porches, are clustered closely and built on small lots. 

Each household is expected to cook and serve supper about once every six
weeks as well as volunteer for communitywide duties such as gardening or
landscaping. 

Borrowed from an experiment in Denmark in the late 1980s, cohousing has
taken root in Colorado, California, Georgia, Massachusetts and New York.
About 28 developments are in existence and that number is expected to
double in the next few years. 

"People are looking for more than a house. They are looking for a house
connected to a neighborhood and a neighborhood with meaning," said Kathryn
McCamant, an architect from Berkeley, Calif., who is credited with
launching the movement in the United States with her 1988 book "CoHousing:
A Contemporary Approach to Housing Ourselves." 

Cohousing proponents blame the post-World War II suburban model for an
array of societal problems. 

Attached garages, with remote door openers, make it possible for people to
enter their homes without interacting with their neighbors. Cul-de-sacs,
privacy fences and large lots further isolate people. The lack of sidewalks
and presence of wide busy roads make a car a necessity, exacerbating
pollution. 

In recent years, though, a quiet revolt against the suburban model has
emerged. 

Coinciding with cohousing is another movement called "new urbanism," which
seeks to recapture the neighborhood charm of turn-of-the- century America.
Under new urbanism, house lots are smaller, front porches are prominent and
garages are detached and moved to the rear. 

The style also features multiuse buildings, such as apartments over grocery
stores that were common in earlier decades, as well as residential and
commercial buildings within walking distance of one another. 

One of the most prominent examples of a development incorporating elements
of new urbanism is Celebration, a self-contained community in Florida that
Walt Disney Co. built last year. 

"With the rise in double-income households, families are wanting a place
that is more convenient for them, where they can scrunch more activities
into a shorter period of time," said Shelley Poticha, executive director of
Congress for the New Urbanism, a group of architects who are promoting the
developments. 

"People want to be in a supportive environment that is people oriented and
not just car oriented," she said. 

What distinguishes cohousing from other forms of new urbanism is the high
level of community involvement. Residents generally initiate the cohousing
developments and plan all the details from the beginning to the end. 

The residents of Nyland CoHousing Community have designed their development
with a country/resort feel. Much of the 42 acres are left open or used for
a community garden. The 42 houses, some trimmed in lavender and aqua,
resemble Martha's Vineyard cottages. 

But this is not utopia. A few bikes and a car were stolen and from time to
time residents bicker about things such as barking dogs. Still, residents
say they have found a comfortable blend of social interaction and solitude. 

"I can participate in singing and dance classes at the Common House. I can
take a walk or hang out on the porch with my neighbors," said Melinda
Evans, who lives in the community with her husband and two children. 

(Copyright 1997) 

_____via IntellX_____ 

{A5:NewOrleansTimes-1028.00584} 10/28/97 


In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is
distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and
educational purposes only.

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