Home

Cohousing Directory - Community View

Formed:
2004
Established:
2008
Fresno Cohousing (a.k.a. La Querencia)
Fresno - 2658 East Alluvial Avenue
,
California
,
United States
(On Alluvial Avenue between Chestnut and Willow)
Website:
www.fresnocohousing.org
Contact:
Pamela Rank
Address Status:
Good as of 10/1/2008
Phone:
866-246-7717
pamrrank [at] fresnocohousing [dot] org
Lynette and Larry Bassman
Fresno, California United States
Address Status:
Good as of 9/3/2008
info [at] fresnocohousing [dot] org
For other images and photos please see our website, www.fresnocohousing.org

The newest and greenest intergenerational cohousing community built by McCamant & Durrett/Cohousing Partners and Byldan Construction has solar panels installed and is ready for you to move in.

“This is the most sustainable construction we’ve ever been able to incorporate into a community,” states Architect Chuck Durrett. Using low toxic materials and designed for energy efficiency, every home also comes with 1.5 Kw of solar panels, the common house with 2 kw. “The slow-down in construction has allowed the community to get very high value for its construction dollar.”

La Querencia is a 28-home community on 2.8 acres in Northeast Fresno. Fresno is located in the heart of California. The community is close to good schools, shopping, a bike path and the new Unitarian Universalist Church of Fresno (Has applied for LEED Certification). Fresno offers a cornucopia of cultural activities, including festivals, events, galleries, concerts, opera and theater and ample outdoor recreation opportunities. Fresno is close to three national parks, Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon as well as national forests and wilderness areas and ample outdoor recreation opportunities.

ECO-FRIENDLY FEATURES INCLUDE: Photovoltaic Solar Panels on Every Home, Passive Solar on Pool, Whole-House Fans, Energy Star Appliances, Natural Light, Dual-Flush Low-Flow Toilets, Low VOC and High Recycled Content in Flooring, Paint, & Work Surfaces, Dual Pane Windows, Advanced Framing Techniques, Cellulose Insulation, and more

See the story of our solar panels at http://www.cohousing.org/cm/article/solar.

ADDITIONAL AMENITIES INCLUDE: Gym, Pool, Accessibility Lift, & Hot Tub, Community-Wide WiFi, Workshop, Vegetable Garden, Common House with Gourmet Kitchen, Water and Waterfowl View, Guest Room, Children's Play Room, Youth Room, Lounge with Fireplace, Front Porches or Balconies and Trellises

Beautiful 2 – 5 Bedrooms homes, mid $300s to $400s.

For more information: www.fresnocohousing.com or Contact Pam at (866) 246-7717.

Status: ALMOST COMPLETE

Former/Other Names:
La Querencia
Community Affiliations:
Network Affiliations:
Coho/US
Last Updated:
10/1/2008
Visitors Accepted
Visitor Process:
Join us for open house any Sunday from 1-3 p.m. or contact us at info@fresnocohousing.org, or call Pam at(866)246-7717 for a different time.
Cohousing Details
Cohousing Status:
Building
(Just about done.)
Year Completed:
2008
(We are currently in the very final stages of construction.)
Area:
2.8 acres (1.1 hectares)
Number of Units:
The community will have 28 units
Square Feet in Common House:
2500
(We have a very elegant gourmet kitchen (although each individual home has its own kitchen), dining/multipurpose room (with bamboo flooring), sitting/TV room, guest apartment, shared laundry (although every home has connections for its own laundry facilities), kids room, mailroom, and dining patio - all a part of the Common House.)
Architect:
Katie McCamant and Chuck Durrett.
Developer:
Cohousing Partners
Commercial Lender:
VanDyke Mortgage
Population
Adult Members:
Child Members:
Non-Member Residents:
Gender Ratio:
Open to new adults:
Yes (We are open to people of all ages and family configurations.)
Open to new children:
Yes (We are especially encouraging families with children to join.)
Government
Decision Making:
By consensus (We use formal consensus for most important decisions, and supermajority for others.)
Identified Leader:
No (We are non-hierarchically structured.)
Leadership Core Group:
Yes (We have a coordinating committee that is made up of liaisons from all other committees.)
Labor and Money
Financial Style:
Members have independent finances
Labor Contribution:
Expected (Members are expected to be on at least one committee, and come to meetings regularly. After move-in, we will all share the work of maintaining our community. We have recently developing an official participation policy, which will be in place once we move in.)
Join Fee:
Yes (Members have to qualify for a mortgage, which generally requires a down payment, the percentage of which depends on your lending institution. There are no fees other than that.)
Regular Fees:
Yes (There could be capital calls at some point if we as a group decide to make upgrades or improvements, but nothing like that is anticipated for the near future.)
Land and Buildings
Community:
Urban (People from a big city would be more likely to see our location as suburban, but here, it is considered an urban location here.)
Land Owners:
The community
No. of Residences:
28 (There are no commercial buildings. In addition to the homes, we have a 4000 square foot common house designed for fulltime community use, plus a completely outfitted workshop, optional garages, and a pool building that houses an exercise room and a teen room.)
Food, Etc.
% Food Grown:
1-5% (The percentage is just a guess but we plan to have a community garden and edible landscaping with fruit and nut trees, berries and herbs, plus we expect that some residents will have their own gardens in their backyards.)
Shared Meals:
2-5 times/week (We are planning on four or five common dinners per week, with more spontaneous gatherings likely.)
Dietary Choice or Restrictions:
Diet is up to each individual (Our community is not bound to any particular dietary philosophy, but we will respect the food needs of all members when creating common meal menus.)
Dietary Practice:
Omnivorous (We have a mixture of dietary practices in our group.)
Alcohol Use:
Used occasionally (Some members use no alcohol, but others use alcohol occasionally.)
Tobacco Use:
Seldom used (Currently there are no smokers among the membership, but we have not formulated a specific policy about smoking yet.. There is currently a suggestion that smoking be prohibited throughout the community, but this has not been approved.)
Social Factors
Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender Friendly:
Yes (We are committed to diversity.)
Shared Spiritual Path:
No (All are welcome, with or without a spiritual/religious path. The only requirement is agreement and compliance with our mission and values statements.)
Specific Path(s):
(No shared spiritual path.)
Educational Style(s):
Public schooled (Residents are free to make their own school choices. There are excellent award-winning schools available.)
For other images and photos please see our website, www.fresnocohousing.org
Click on an image to see the full-size version.
Become an Editor
Current Editor(s): lbassman
Print this page

For information about editing your community listing, click here.

If you want to discuss this post or receive email notifications of other postings, login or become a member. It’s free.