Our Project
Project Description
We have an option on 9.8 acres near the
corner of Towne Hill Road and Upper Main Street.. Access
to the property is at the end of Easy Street off Towne Hill
Road. It is a 20 minute walk to downtown. (Click
here for a map of Montpelier; our site
is in the blue circle, toward the upper right of map.).
We intend to build 12-16 clustered units
of housing and connect the buildings with pedestrian walkways
rather than a street. The site plan includes 5 buildings
on the upper pasture, and 1 to 2 buildings on the lower
pasture. On the upper part of the land, two of the buildings
are in the "Vermont vernacular" farmhouse style
(big house, little house, back house, barn) and the other
three are designed in keeping with the character of the
neighborhood. The Common House will be one of the "barns"
on the upper pasture. A barn in the lower pasture will be
for uses such as workshops, storage, and guest accommodations.
Our cars will be parked in two or three parking areas on
the periphery of the neighborhood.
Views of proposed
building site; click to enlarge images.
All homes will have porches
or decks facing a central walkway to encourage neighborly
interaction. The centrally located common house/community
center will have shared facilities such as a meeting room,
dining room, mail room, library, recreation room, and laundry.
These amenities are intended to further encourage residents
to gather informally and to foster a greater sense of community
and cooperation. In order to encourage a diversity of household
sizes, approximately a third of the units will have one bedroom
with about 700 square feet, a third will have two bedrooms
with about 1100 square feet, and another third will have three
bedrooms with about 1500 square feet.
Click
here for a brief history of Montpelier
Cohousing.
The Values that Shape this Project
Community:
Our project is founded on the values of collaboration,
cooperation, mutual support, diversity and respect. We wish
to live in a small neighborhood where the residents know each
other better than in typical urban neighborhoods that are
designed more for the convenience of cars than people. The
neighborhood will be incorporated as a condominium or homeowner's
association. We will own separate units or houses, and share
access to common buildings, gardens, recreation spaces, work
shops and parking. Each home will have its own private yard.
All of the residents will be Members of the Board of Directors
which will make management decisions for the shared facilities
and property. All households will pay association fees to
support the management costs of common facilities and land.
We intend to maintain connection and cooperation with the
surrounding neighbors as well.
Project engineer Don Marsh, with
site plan |
One of many, many planning meetings
|
Sustainability:
To the extent that it is financially possible, we will
build our homes to high energy-conservation standards, with
greater insulation that is commonly used, energy-efficient
windows, and southerly-facing exposure for passive solar and
photo-voltaic capability. We intend to heat our homes using
renewable energy sources, and we will search for building
materials which are longer-lasting and obtained from sustainably
managed resources.
Permaculture:
Organic food production for
the residents is another goal of the project. We plan on some
garden space, some fruit tree and berry bush space, as well
as space where we will practice principles of permaculture,
planting both annual and perennial food plants in complementary
association with one another in order to increase the productivity
of the land. We will also construct a rain-water collection
pond for recreation and food production uses.
Open
Space: We will cluster our homes not only for an increased
sense of community, but also to conserve the remainder of
the property as open space for horticulture, recreation and
wildlife. We will put a permanent easement on the open space
in order to conserve the resource for future generations.
We intend to continue making part of the property available
for the recreational enjoyment of the surrounding residents
by making specific recreation spaces available to all.
Compassionate
Communication: Following the principles outlined by
Marshall Rosenberg in his book Nonviolent Communication:
A Language of Life, we endeavor to listen to others compassionately,
thoughtfully and reflectively, to understand the feelings,
needs, values, and concerns expressed by all persons concerned
with our decisions and problem solving.
Diversity:
We are committed to creating
a neighborhood which is as diverse as possible, although we
will not exercise direct control over who is eligible to join
us. As a general principle, we encourage diversity in age,
spiritual orientation, ethnic origin and income. This is not
a matter of "tolerance," but a conviction that life
is richer and more rewarding when shared with peope who are
different from ourselves.
Affordability:
We seek funding to subsidize approximately four or
five of the units so that qualified households whose annual
incomes fall at or below the median household income for Montpelier
will be able to obtain financing for the actual unit cost.
The sale price for such units will be permanently controlled
so that future owners will still need to qualify.
