Meeting Notes

First Meetup - Sunday, November 13, 2011 at 12pm - "Informal Idea Sharing"

Attendees:Lauren, Grace, Christy, Christine, Judy, Morten, Darcy, Bob, Allen

Allen and Darcy mentioned that they are familiar with supervisors/mayor? in Vallejo and Point Richmond.

Some people and communities that were mentioned:
Artworks in San Rafael
AcroYoga - Richmond
Writers' Grotto
Arcosanti in Arizona - simplified architecture
Kevin Danaher - Global Exchange
Lois Arkin - Ecovillage in LA
Root Division - Art Gallery
Canticle Farm in Oakland

Some ideas that were mentioned:
AGA Stove in the communal space.
Modular walls or structures.
Ideo
Clustering or Hubs: Instead of attaching to one site, starting small and building on nearby sites over time.

We went around the circle telling about ourselves and what we want from a community:

Morten: Would be OK Living in just a room, with a shared bathroom and kitchen.
Important to have plenty of gardening space
Especially likes yurts.

Allen: Urban Village. A live/work combination. Shared production of goods, a "fab lab", 300 sq ft of personal space. Entrepreneurship. Communication and cooperation with government agencies.

Christine: Has lived in spiritual communities. 300 sq ft of private space. Shared kitchen OK. Would like a committed communal meal at least once a week. Lot of garden space.

Christy: Has worked in real estate. An emphasis on giving back to the community. Private quiet space. Prefers own bathroom and own kitchenette. 300-500 sq ft. Would like a common art space. Pet friendly.

Grace: "Lean Street" - local economy, not buying into the Wall Street model of economics. Living in community, but also working with and including the surrounding community. Has lived in communities in Italy and Auroville in south India. A diversity of living styles, and sub-groups based on common activities and interests.

Bob: Very interested in being off the grid. Would like to garden and grow food. Loves to cook and bake so would like own full kitchen. 300-600 sq ft of personal space. Separate area in living space as a den/computer area. Being open and fostering the arts in the surrounding neighborhood.

Darcy: Teaches art to children. Would need a bedroom and office. Likes the retail storefronts aspect. Possibly a bed and breakfast operation consisting of yurts.

Judy: Would like to use an already existing building. Would need a sleeping place and private place. Would like all meals to be communal, with either a hired chef or member(s) dedicated to cooking meals. Communal hangout area. Large event space. Insulating houses from loud noise at events. Community gatherings and group projects. Safety.

We came up with a few basic categories of options for this project:
Urban:
A ready built site, such as a warehouse or large house, take down fneces and modify accordingly
An industrial vacant space - build on it, and possibly get it rezoned for an ecovillage / redidential / redevelopment
Join up with Burning Man communities who are buying up property in San Francisco
Rural: buy large plot of land somewhere near the bay area

Questions and issues to be figured out are:

Figuring out how much space is needed. How many people need to be involved for this to accomplish the common goals? How much space can we secure in San Francisco?
Should we form a Nonprofit 501(c)3?

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