Subject: A new co operative community in N.C.

From: [email-masked] (Susan Milner)
Date: Sat, 11 May 1996 12:02:05

Dear Architects or people who are interested.
I am interested in having an agricultural community designed 
outside of Winston-Salem, NC  Possibly on a "Kibutz" style 
premise.  Where people can live co operative.  Share, eat, work, 
worship, etc., together.  Having mutual values and goals in life.  
Is there anyone who knows of anybody who has either done this type 
of design work or is interested in doing it. Self-sufficiency, 
ecomony, sharing, and high standard of living among families and 
individuals, are all objectives of mine.  Any thoughts would be 
greatly appreciated.

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From: "Jason M. Roth" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 13 May 1996 18:12:44 -0400

Excerpts from netnews.alt.architecture.alternative: 11-May-96 A new co
operative communit.. by Susan [email-masked] 
> individuals, are all objectives of mine.  Any thoughts would be 

Neither I nor anyone I know has designed this sort of thing (although
FLWright designed several of his Usonian groups along somewhat similar
lines -- shared construction labor, common land, etc.), but I've thought
about it a fair amount. Some ideas you might want to consider include:
shared work resourced -- you mention an agricultural community, but if
you're heer, you probably have some attachment to the Information Age --
the inclusion of common-use copier, fax, and other modern office
necessities (but individual frivolities, so to speak)  would fit the
kibbutz into a wider range of needs; shared Green sewage system -- in
other words, a Living Machine or other environmentally-friendly waste
treatment system to be shared among the community; they work, and
provide aquaculture and pure water, but are only feasible on a scale
beyond a single family; in terms of overall design agricultural
communities walk a thin line between communal sharing and physical
distance -- you'll need to provide for either a clever way of clustering
homes while maintaining access to fields, or "Sunday houses", a concept
>from  rural Texas (I think) of the turn of the centruy, when families
would maintain a tiny house in town for the weekly trek for church,
supplies, and larger community. Another concept that might help would be
a mixture of private farm, individual garden plot, and communal fields
-- no need for everyone to grow separate corn, but not everyone likes
jalapeno peppers; meanwhile, any farm animals would have needs larger
than a garden, but may not be appropriate as a shared commodity.
Simply in terms of a shared, Green campus, UCBerkley (I think) has built
a group of buildings for research and living, out in the country,
utilising various Green and community (if not communal) concepts. If
you'd like, I can track down the reference (I saw it in an arch.
magazine).

Whatever happens, please keep us (or at least me) informed -- I'd really
like to know, as I would like someday to build and live in such a
community myself

JMR

93 SL2, blue-green

It's never too early to give up.

"What's the use of a good house if you don't have a decent planet to put
it on?."