Cohousing picnic
We
had a great time at the picnic on 26 May. It was good to see some new
faces there, as well as some former cohousers who have stayed in
contact with the group. As is usual for a cohousing event, there was an
abundance of food. Three of us had visited the same pie stall at the
Farmers' Market, but luckily we'd made complementary choices, so we
ended up with an interesting range of sweet and savoury pies.
Yerrabi
Pond District Park is near to the site we're negotiating on with the
Land Development Agency, so we were able to give people a tour of the
site. Unfortunately no one took along a camera, so for once we don't
have a visual record of the event.
Negotiating for land (updated
March 2007)
Canberra
Cohousing is negotiating with the Australian Capital
Territory (ACT) Government for a parcel of land in Gungahlin, a
northern suburb of Canberra. The land is adjacent to what has grown
into a significant suburban shopping centre. As well as being
conveniently located near shops and public transport, the land backs on
the the Mulungarri Nature Reserve, a large tract of protected native
grasslands.
We have architects' drawings for 26 dwellings, with a mix of
one to
four-bedroom units and townhouses, incorporating environmentally
sensitive design features. We expect that properties will be purchased
by members at prevailing market prices.
Six of the dwellings are likely to be made available for
people on low
incomes, who are eligible for public housing. The ACT Department of
Disability, Housing and Community Services has offered our group a
government grant to develop community housing as part of the cohousing
development.
We
have recently commissioned a financial feasibility study from Community
Housing Canberra, to look at the number and the design of dwellings,
and the construction materials and inclusions. We plan to submit a
development application later in 2007.
