Thirteen, including twolovely and well-behaved grandchildren,joined this ASK Salt Spring gathering to welcome cohousing (https://cohousing.ca/what-is-cohousing/) advocates Wendy Beatty, Bob MacKie, and Islands Trust Local Trustee, Laura Patrick. After our Acknowledgment and a chance for each of us to introduce ourselves, we learned how each of our guests had become enthusiasts for shared/cohousing, a tried and true model made even more relevant by today’s overheated real estate prices.
Bob is “excited and delighted” by the concept of owning one’s own small home in a larger community of folks sharing common spaces and social opportunities. Generally called cohousing, this living arrangement generally refers to a group of people who live together in a space that was specifically designed for that purpose.
Wondering how long he will want to maintain his home and property alone, Bob is not delighted about moving to a high rise in Sidney or Victoria. He is excited, however, by co-living on a large property with individually-owned small homes circling shared spaces. So much so that he is motivated to facilitate monthly meetings with like-minded Salt Springers to further refine this intriguing concept.
Wendy is one of Salt Spring’s modern “Golden Girls” (https://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/from-strangers-to-housemates-why-some-canadian-seniors-are-turning-to-the-golden-girls-model/article_c0461b24-878f-4c34-8f5b-84f9a75cb670.html), an increasingly-popular shared housing model very loosely based upon the popular seven season series that began in 1985. (Shared housing generally refers to a group of people sharing a traditional home that was not originally designed for sharing.) Wendy expressed her delight in 11 years of successfully sharing their jointly-owned home in Vesuvius.
Laura was excited to join this conversation, happy that folks all over Salt Spring are getting together to explore housing options that work for them. As the Official Community Plan (OCP)’s review process (https://islandstrust.bc.ca/island-planning/salt-spring/projects/salt-spring-official-community-plan-review/) gets underway, she is hopeful that residents all over our island will get together to talk about the form of housing they need and ponder how our OCP can better support these options.
We learned that cohousing can take a wide variety of forms with a multitude of different financial models. While we were unable to adequately explore each of these options in this gathering, Bob suggested we begin with two books, both of which are available in our Library:
- Senior Co-Housing Handbook (https://newsociety.com/book/the-senior-cohousing-handbook-2nd-edition/?srsltid=AfmBOor0znyAR-0yNPvj6EmJtJKDEe2LORDUmfLlUcAS5_mTrthLXMZ5), with multiple copies in the Library in the Book Club section.
- Community Led Housing (https://www.communityledhousing.ca/community-led-housing-free-mini-course), a recently-released book co-authored by Margaret Critchlow. Margaret is a resident of the impressive Sooke cohousing community, Harbourside: https://www.ic.org/directory/harbourside-cohousing/?srsltid=AfmBOornKo-rWsoPX2innJa12ETh-1dm4ojZOm7Axt5hrEOvJsN36Qbl which was completed in 2016 with 31 strata-owned homes.
We soon recognized that there are multiple models for this ownership arrangement. Bob pointed out, and Laura heartedly agreed, that an early step in the development process is seeking professional help.
Bob has begun the work needed as a facilitator of the SSI Cohousing Group that meets regularly in our Library. So far, over 50 locals have indicated their interest and many have heard from others-living in successful BC cohousing communities. Bob has concluded that the next step is to gather these interested folks to assess who are ready to proceed and to define their vision for this cohousing. Interested? Your next opportunity to join this conversation will be Wednesday, November 26 at 3:30 in the Library.
Want to learn more? You can also get some of your questions answered at: ssicohousing@gmail.com. But, be aware: You will not get all the answers you may want just yet as this Salt Spring innovative housing option is just an idea. It will be up to those interested in cohousing to define this innovative community in the coming months.
We then switched our attention to Wendy and her small, successful shared housing community, defined as a group of people sharing a traditional home that was not originally designed for sharing. Over a decade ago, she and three other women were fortunate enough to find a six-bedroom home in Vesuvius with two living rooms, a large kitchen and pantry, lovely grounds, and even a pool. It had been the home of foster parents of seven, each living with disabilities. When it was no longer needed for this, Wendy and her group were delighted to give it a new purpose.
Vital to this living arrangement was a legally-written agreement defining financial responsibilities and options for opting out if necessary. It was decided that they would get a mortgage, each contributing to the down payment. If one of them wanted to end this living arrangement, they would get their down payment back plus interest. This agreement was tested when one did decide to move out, and it was proven to be a solid, legal agreement.
While not detailed in this legal agreement, living routines are in place with three women sharing the cooking responsibility for the evening meal while Wendy, not an avid cook, handles all the bookkeeping and either fixes things herself or employs outside workers.
All women are over 70 years old with enough income from government pensions to pay their share of the mortgage. Added to this, of course are other expenses. Costs for all needs, including food for the shared meals, repairs, insurance, and other expenses, are shared equally. While the group met frequently as these living patterns were being established, they still meet formally, if less often, when issues arise.
It was clear that Wendy loves living in this amazing home (that has doubled in value since purchased) with others she appreciates. The home is lovely, comfortable, and easily large enough for private space. So, asked a participant, what is the biggest challenge? Without missing a beat, Wendy’s answer was: Personalities! Not unlike family, no matter how much the appreciation for one’s co-occupants, conflict is inevitable. Happily, as they age and better understand each other, these conflicts seldom create waves – unless it is one of those rare days when they all wake up grumpy :).
When asked what she thought was their recipe for success, Wendy replied that seeking home sharers that have the same living styles is important. All who live together in this Vesuvius home are neat, intent upon keeping shared spaces uncluttered. One who employed more of a “leave it where it lies” philosophy would not likely fit well into this home.
Switching to Bob’s cohousing concept, he envisions 24 units. The form of tenure is not known yet, but it could be strata, tenancy, or even co-op. It was clear, however, that such an arrangement would be many times more complicated than Wendy’s shared housing. To illustrate this, he read the chapter headings of the book he had recommended, “Community-Led Housing.” The majority of the chapters focused upon identifying the right people for this arrangement, getting professional and legal help to guide agreements, and developing consensus-based decision-making skills before even considering land purchase, building design, or construction.
Just beginning this process, Bob is comfortable with not having all the answers, confident that the myriad of details will sort themselves out with the right folks at the table. Laura agreed, reminding us that any new project will face hurdles like zoning, permitting, housing agreements, and financial complexities.
Our time for this gathering over, we thanked Wendy, Laura, and Bob for a lively and very interesting discussion, appreciative of Wendy’s lived experience, Bob’s courage guiding this yet-to-be defined community initiative, and Laura’s enthusiasm for exploring multiple housing options, all of which may be needed to solve our complex housing challenge. (Thanks, Bob, Laura, and Wendy!)
Just in case you are interested. . . .This report has been written by Gayle Baker, founder of ASK Salt Spring, currently also a Salt Spring Local Community Commissioner. It has been reviewed and edited by Wendy, Bob, and Laura.