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Wolf Creek Village Cohousing Ground Breaking
Construction To Follow
Published on Mar 17, 2008 - 1:59:27 PM
By: CoHousing Partners
Photo courtesy of Tony Finnerty at www.flipperty.smugmug.com
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Grass Valley, CA - The heavy rain, hail and snow held off until the after the Wolf Creek Village Cohousing Ground Breaking held on Saturday, March 15th at 12 noon. Seventy-five future residents of Wolf Creek Commons, Wolf Creek Lodge, Mayor Mark Johnson, City Council members Chauncey Poston and Janet Arbuckle, City staff, CoHousing Partners, McCamant & Durrett Architects were all present to celebrate this environmentally conscious new neighborhood.
Kathryn McCamant, President of CoHousing Partners, the developer of the project welcomed guests. Kathryn, also an architect and author spoke about how special this cohousing project is for her. She began by saying, "I know that in creating a neighborhood where people will walk to shopping, bike to the farmers market and into downtown, that we are moving toward a more sustainable lifestyle where we will use less of the earth's precious resources."
She also was pleased to introduce her partner and husband, Charles Durrett. McCamant & Durrett just won the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Silver 2008 Energy Value Housing Award for their completed Nevada City Cohousing project. McCamant concluded by saying, "I think Wolf Creek Village Cohousing may surpass the number of awards that Nevada City Cohousing will receive." The crowd erupted with applause.
Photo courtesy of Tony Finnerty at www.flipperty.smugmug.com
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Mayor Mark Johnson addressed the group explaining, "The benefits of Wolf Creek Village was apparent from the beginning. He carefully researched all details of the proposed plan and was pleased to help bring the project through the approval process with the City." He enjoys the ability to walk to work and City Hall each day, and supports green built and walkable communities. "It is one of the best projects in Grass Valley."
Wolf Creek Commons Members Gerry and Sheri Dion and their year and a half son, Oren were happy to brave the weather on Saturday. They currently live in South Lake Tahoe and are selling their home to move to Grass Valley. Jerry explains, "We want to raise our child in a community where neighbors know and care about Oren. Lake Tahoe is certainly beautiful, but most of our neighbors are only there on weekends or holidays. Grass Valley is a perfect place for us."
Anne Paget, is a long time resident of Nevada City and works for a local school district. Anne said, "What Wolf Creek Commons means to me is having close friends as neighbors." She added, "I am so excited because this is an opportunity for me to buy my first home."
Wolf Creek Lodge is for active adults, aged mostly 50 and older. Wina Simpson is now retired and trading in her Nevada City custom home, with acreage and a wonderful view, for her 2-bedroom home in the Lodge. "From the first meeting I attended in June of 2006, Bob and I just knew this was the right thing for us. And we have never given it a second thought."
Kirk Davis and his partner, Barbara Kronmal live in an 1898 home in Grass Valley. They are avid outdoors-people and have a passion about living lighter on the planet. They were first attracted to the green-built and energy efficient features in the Lodge. Kirk says," I can't believe the natural beauty of this site and wonderful Wolf Creek that runs along the property. We can walk to everything within one block, and yet live among the tall pines, cedars and feel your are 20 miles out of town."
Wolf Creek Village is an environmentally conscious, clustered housing community on an 8.26-acres.
Photo courtesy of Tony Finnerty at www.flipperty.smugmug.com
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The site is covered with mature ponderosa, oak, and fir trees, and yet is walk-able to shopping centers, restaurants, the farmers market, and historic downtown Grass Valley. Three and a half acres will be permanently designated as open space natural habitat. Over 1,000 feet of the site runs along Wolf Creek. The project design is inspired by the rich Mother Lode architecture that makes Grass Valley such a point of interest and pride.
Wolf Creek Village also represents a first for California with two cohousing communities located nextdoor to one another. Wolf Creek Commons (32-units) is an intergenerational community, a mix of young families, singles, and people middle-aged on up. The second, Wolf Creek Lodge (30-units) has been designed for active adults, aged fifty and older. The focus of this community is for active adults living life to the fullest. The development also includes (8) single-family lots.
Wolf Creek Commons will have 2-4 bedroom townhouses and flats, with projected prices starting in the mid $200,000s to the high $500,000s. The fully accessible building, Wolf Creek Lodge will have 30 units, 1-2 bedrooms, with prices from the mid $200,000s to high $400,000s. Completion date is expected midyear 2009.
Photo courtesy of Tony Finnerty at www.flipperty.smugmug.com
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Cohousing neighborhoods are composed of privately owned homes clustered around shared open space with pedestrian paths and extensive common facilities. It recreates a village feel. Environmental sustainability is a core value in cohousing projects, according to McCamant. "We look at everything from solar orientation and building materials to heating and water systems to build as green as feasible."
Commenting on the growing interest in cohousing in the United States, McCamant adds, "Americans are feeling great pressures and are also increasingly isolated. While cohousing offers privacy, its design also encourages a vibrant social life and support that folks need to enjoy healthy and meaningful lives."
Kathryn and her husband Charles raised their 16 year-old daughter in cohousing. Kathryn explains her passion for building cohousing communities by stating, "Cohousing is a form of collaborative housing that offers residents an old-fashioned sense of neighborhood. Residents know their neighbors well and there is a strong sense of community that is absent in contemporary cities and suburbs. As a twocareer family, my life was so much easier raising my daughter this way. And my daughter, in turn, has benefited from growing up in such a supportive community."
For more information, please visit: www.cohousingpartners.com
About CoHousing Partners:
CoHousing Partners is a full service, real estate development firm specializing in cohousing in California. We partner with future residents to create neighborhoods that are socially vibrant and environmentally sustainable.
Our development team is the most experienced group of cohousing professionals outside of Denmark, having created dozens of successful communities. Our firm's principals have created and refined systems that allow us to partner with future residents to produce award-winning neighborhoods.
CoHousing Partners was born out of a decade long collaboration between Wonderland Hill Development Company and McCamant & Durrett Architects, which has produced a string of diverse, award winning projects.
Our approach integrates the disciplines of land development, community organizing, and professional consulting, to enable our clients to build neighborhoods, from the inside out.
Our communities are strong because we involve the members in every facet of the process: visioning, community organizing, planning, investment and budget. Members of our completed communities tell us it's worth being involved. In fact, they tell us that it is one of the most valuable things they've ever done.
CoHousing Partners has offices in Nevada City and Davis, CA.
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Comments
Suzanne Marriott
20 May 2008, 15:33
Hi Lorette,
To get more information, please visit the Wolf Creek Lodge website at
http://www.wolfcreeklodge.org.
Here you'll find contact phone numbers and email addresses.
Thanks for your interest. Don't know how to get directly in touch with you
as your email address doesn't show on the post.
Suzanne
lorette smith
17 May 2008, 00:05
I am interested in learning about other costs when living in the lodge....
Monthly dues, etc...
thanks
L.C. Smith
Suzanne Marriott
19 Mar 2008, 16:05
Dear Editor,
Thank you so much for the exciting and highly accurate article on Wolf
Creek Village and our recent ground blessing. I am a member of Wolf Creek
Lodge, cohousing for active adults, and am so excited about moving from the
Bay Area to this beautiful site in Grass Valley. The wonderful community
that we are creating and the sustainable life style that cohousing offers
are powerful draws for so many of us. I hope you will visit us at our
website: http://www.wolfcreeklodge.org.
Sincerely,
Suzanne Marriott
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