Making cohousing affordable: Strategies and successes, part 3 of 3

Mike, president of CoHo Ecovillage and a passionate advocate for those with disabilities.

For some, the American Dream is a big house with a three-car garage. For Mike, it’s a home in CoHo Ecovillage.

There was little doubt in anyone’s mind that Mike Volpe, the president of CoHo Ecovillage, was meant to have a home there, in the cohousing community now being built in Corvallis, Oregon. Mike wasn’t nearly as optimistic. Owning a home would mean giving up his Medicaid benefits, and that simply wasn’t an option. Mike has had primary progressive Multiple Sclerosis since he was 23. This particular form of MS is relentless in its pursuit, and it pursued Mike’s health with a vengeance, gradually taking away his ability to walk, to move his hands, and to see clearly.

What it hasn’t taken away is Mike’s unshakeable belief in living life fully no matter what he’s dealt. He’s a passionate advocate for people with disabilities and is active in the development of CoHo Ecovillage which will be completed next month.

CoHo Ecovillage has a commitment to diversity of all kinds. Six of the 34 units are reserved for people who earn less than 80 percent of the median income in Corvallis (see sidebar). This is in a city that requires no affordable units in new developments. Another unit is dedicated to people with developmental disabilities.

Originally, the developer thought they could keep another unit as a rental for Mike, but as building costs increased, that option became unviable. Unfortunately, Mike’s benefits give him $698 a month, making his income too low to qualify for any assistance programs.

Then in February 2007, seven dedicated CoHo Ecovillage members decided to form a nonprofit called “A Home in Community.” Their goal was to purchase a CoHo Ecovillage unit outright so it would always be available for a low-income person with severe physical disabilities.

Since CoHo was closing on October 5th, that left eight months to create the nonprofit, and then to develop the brochures, the marketing materials and the web site to serve as the means for raising $214,000 to buy the home. As of July, more than $105,000 has been raised with more money coming in daily. Only $500 was from a grant; $104,500 has come from the generosity of CoHo members, friends, family, local businesses, cohousing communities and folks who’ve heard about the goal and just want to help. The donations range from $25 to $12,000.

A $4,000 loan got the group started. The steps taken to create A Home in Community were:

1. Hiring an attorney. An attorney who worked in the development of CoHo became the legal advocate for A Home in Community. This helped because he already understood and was excited about the concept of cohousing.

2. Creating a vision and mission statement. This step took time, and Mike’s input was very valuable. Two goals evolved: 1) financing a home in CoHo, and 2) offering support to other communities wanting to include people with disabilities.

3. Deciding about nonprofit status. Becoming a nonprofit allows people’s donations to be tax deductible, and offers a greater opportunity to apply for grants and other funding sources.

CoHo Ecovillage’s future residents gathered at the construction site this past June.

4. Dividing up the tasks. With only seven people, all with busy lives, fulltime commitments to CoHo and a commitment to this project, dividing up the tasks became mandatory. Even then, seven people seemed not nearly enough.

5. Hiring an accountant. With A Home in Community applying for nonprofit 501(c) 3 status, keeping accurate records is important.

6. Developing brochure, flyers, logo and bumper stickers. Writing the brochure was instrumental for clarifying the mission of A Home in Community. Two people worked on developing the language and format of the brochure and flyers, and then sent drafts to the group for review. All contributors pushed themselves to the limit to create the materials and get them out quickly.

7. Determining the fundraising strategy. No one had fundraising experience, so much time and energy went into developing strategies. Because of the late start, few grants were available, and many of the dollars for this year were committed. Donations came from local people, cohousing communities and people who’d heard about the project from someone who’d heard about it from someone else and wanted to support it.

8. Selecting fundraising software. There are lots of fundraising systems on the internet that allow you to keep records of donors, send letters and emails, and connect a credit card donation page to your web site. One person spent many hours comparing features and prices before deciding on the online service to use.

9. Finding a fiscal sponsor. Establishing tax exempt status can take up to a year. A fiscal sponsor guarantees that donors can receive a tax deduction for the upcoming tax year. It also allows donors to be anonymous.

10. Developing a website. The primary purpose of the website www.AHomeinCommunity.org, allowed people to research AHIC and donate online.

CoHo Ecovillage is in the final stages of its seven-year process, and despite the weariness of its community, many members are supporting the fundraising efforts. Hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars have been donated. A Home in Community is applying for a loan for the remaining $109,000, but will continue its fundraising efforts until the home is completely paid for.

So what are we really creating here? How about this: 14 CoHo Ecovillage children growing up believing it’s normal to love people of all abilities; seeing a 3-year-old ask Mike if he’s thirsty then climbing up on a chair to give him a drink; having a community potluck and seeing Mike laugh instead of remaining isolated in his apartment; giving Mike and others with differing abilities a place to share their thoughts and ideas. That’s what it’s all about – that’s community – that’s CoHo Ecovillage.

For more information regarding CoHo Ecovillage, contact Anne at 541-974-1739. If you wish to donate, please go online to www.AHomeinCommunity.org.

In 2000, Bruce and Judy Hecht began a conversation with WNHS about developing a cohousing community that included affordable housing. With WNHS as the developer and Hecht as the project manager, CoHo Ecovillage began to come to life. Six of the 34 units were set aside for income-eligible people who were at or less than 80 percent of the median income of Benton County ($54,500 for a family of four). “Given the high cost of living in Benton County, many social workers, teachers, retired people, young families and health care providers fit in the income category,” states Sue Crawford, a member of CoHo Ecovillage’s marketing team.

Brigetta Olson, director of Home Ownership & Asset Building Programs at WNHS, says: “We have up to $80,000 in down payment assistance and no-interest, no-payment loans available for eligible home buyers. I thought this would be easy, but most of the first-time home buyers I see imagine living in CoHo to be like living in a condo or a townhouse. Their dream is a single-family home with a fenced yard.”

CoHo Ecovillage’s marketing team is diligently trying to fill the last two affordable units. “We included affordable housing because we didn’t want to be another high-end development project in Corvallis. We wanted to embody the true meaning of a cohousing community,” says Judy Hecht.