East Bay Cohousing

Today: Meet National Cohousing Association ED Trish Becker over Boichik Bagels at Berkeley Cohousing!

Learn more and RSVP here:

https://www.ebcoho.org/becker_berkeley_boichik

Please join us to get to know our little community, share a potluck lunch and tour the property, and if you have time, stick around to work in the garden.

We every so often have a one bedroom apartment available to rent, ready for new members! Come join us at this real, in-person open house, see our cohousing community and tour the apartments. When we have openings, they usually go to people who have been coming to our gatherings. We like to meet someone at least 3 times before they submit an application.

This is an opportunity to and learn more about this cohousing project, an EBCOHO Supporting Member Group. Please check the group's website for more about the community and the apartment, and more pictures:

http://www.brookdalecommons.org/

The Open House:

Potluck lunch at noon (bring food for yourself if you're not comfortable sharing yet). Bring a mask, but you don't have to wear it when outdoors. Keep in mind that not all of us are vaccinated, so only come if you're comfortable with mixed company. We're fine with you, whatever your vaccine status!

Two apartments will be open for a tour at 1:00 PM. Please stick around in the afternoon to help us work in the garden, and get to know us.

We appreciate EBCOHO RSVP's but drop-ins are welcome too, if you make last-minute plans. If you get a chance, fill out this form on our website : http://www.brookdalecommons.org/finance/ and tell us something about yourself. Call for a private tour if you can't make it on Sunday, or come next month. We almost always host an open house on the 2nd Sunday of each month.

About Our Community:

We are currently a community of five households with the potential to
grow to 9 and to create a common house.

We have thrived in the time of Covid because we could always gather to socialize in our beautiful courtyard. This has been wonderful in this challenging time, keeping us from being isolated, especially those of us who are single and working from home.

Even in this urban space there are lots of places to grow flowers and food. The bees and hummingbirds love our garden, and we're growing tomatoes, figs, cucumbers, squash, string beans and peas.

Please join us to get to know our little community, share a potluck lunch and tour the property, and if you have time, stick around to work in the garden.

We every so often have a one bedroom apartment available to rent, ready for new members! Come join us at this real, in-person open house, see our cohousing community and tour the apartments. When we have openings, they usually go to people who have been coming to our gatherings. We like to meet someone at least 3 times before they submit an application.

This is an opportunity to and learn more about this cohousing project, an EBCOHO Supporting Member Group. Please check the group's website for more about the community and the apartment, and more pictures:

http://www.brookdalecommons.org/

The Open House:

Potluck lunch at noon (bring food for yourself if you're not comfortable sharing yet). Bring a mask, but you don't have to wear it when outdoors. Keep in mind that not all of us are vaccinated, so only come if you're comfortable with mixed company. We're fine with you, whatever your vaccine status!

Two apartments will be open for a tour at 1:00 PM. Please stick around in the afternoon to help us work in the garden, and get to know us.

We appreciate EBCOHO RSVP's but drop-ins are welcome too, if you make last-minute plans. If you get a chance, fill out this form on our website : http://www.brookdalecommons.org/finance/ and tell us something about yourself. Call for a private tour if you can't make it on Sunday, or come next month. We almost always host an open house on the 2nd Sunday of each month.

About Our Community:

We are currently a community of five households with the potential to
grow to 9 and to create a common house.

We have thrived in the time of Covid because we could always gather to socialize in our beautiful courtyard. This has been wonderful in this challenging time, keeping us from being isolated, especially those of us who are single and working from home.

Even in this urban space there are lots of places to grow flowers and food. The bees and hummingbirds love our garden, and we're growing tomatoes, figs, cucumbers, squash, string beans and peas.

• Curious about cohousing but don’t know where to start?
• Want to meet with cohousing newbies and experts alike?

This (free) monthly gathering, organized by the National Cohousing Association (Coho/US) will include a Cohousing 101 presentation and ample time to connect and ask questions.

We’ll share cohousing lingo, best practices and more information on how to continue your cohousing journey.

Can't make it this time? No worries. Join us once, or every time – we’ll be here every month on the 10th at 10am MT. (9 AM Pacific, 11 CST, 12 Eastern)

• Curious about cohousing but don’t know where to start?
• Want to meet with cohousing newbies and experts alike?

This (free) monthly gathering, organized by the National Cohousing Association (Coho/US) will include a Cohousing 101 presentation and ample time to connect and ask questions.

We’ll share cohousing lingo, best practices and more information on how to continue your cohousing journey.

Can't make it this time? No worries. Join us once, or every time – we’ll be here every month on the 10th at 10am MT. (9 AM Pacific, 11 CST, 12 Eastern)

Don't let the rain get you down. Come on in to a Cohousing Common House in Berkeley and enjoy a bagel brunch Sunday (9/18) with Cynthia Tina, Director of Foundation for Intentional Community (FIC), the international support group for all kinds of community.

Raines says: This regular monthly community tour and open house of the East Bay's biggest and most "suburban" cohousing neighborhood, Pleasant Hill cohousing, the first "new-build" classic cohousing community in the region, the largest in the East Bay, and a lovely community.

Note that this is not an official MeetUp run by East Bay Cohousing, but we will pass along RSVPs that come in here.

Normally every first Sunday of the month. CURRENTLY VIRTUAL - DO NOT COME TO THE SITE WITHOUT PRE-ARRANGEMENT FOR PROPER PROTECTION.

Visit Pleasant Hill Cohousing's page on the EBCOHO MeetUp for more info, links, and current openings.

If you need to cancel your reservation, or decide not to go, please let Pleasant Hill's volunteer tour guide know as soon as possible!

Individual Homes

There are 32 units, grouped in various configurations ranging from 2-6 homes per building. The buildings were constructed with wood framing, stucco outer walls, and corrogated metal roofing. The smallest units are 640 sq ft one-bedrooms; the largest are 1579 sq ft four-bedrooms.

Each home has its own kitchen. The homes are owned individually as condominiums, with some rentals.

Common Areas

Our 3,835 sq ft Common House contains a kitchen, dining room ("great room"), sitting room, laundry, kids room, teens/older kids room, crafts room, guest rooms, and bathrooms.

The Common House is the only building in the project that has air conditioning. However to minimize the use of air conditioning, the building also has a cooling tower with large fans that can be used in the evening to pull cooler air into the building and push hot air out.

Other common facilities include swimming pool, hot tub, play area, workshop, bike shed, organic garden, and granite boulders from original site - both decorative and used by children for climbing.

Location

We're conveniently located near Highway 680 and public transportation, with easy access to Walnut Creek, shopping, and recreation.

Pleasant Hill, population 32,000, is located 30 miles east of San Francisco, 4 miles north of the I-680/Hwy 24 interchange. Mostly a residential community with scattered retail/commercial areas, it is bounded by the cities of Walnut Creek, Lafayette, Concord, and Martinez. Pleasant Hill has recently (2000) redeveloped its downtown to create a contemporary shopping district just blocks from the site. In addition, an abundance of good restaurants and shops are within easy driving distance. The city has good recreation programs for all ages and regional walking/biking trails traverse it.

Iron Horse Trail

A walking and biking trail - the Iron Horse Trail (so named because it's on the old Southern Pacific Railroad right-of-way) - runs alongside the site and connects to the Pleasant Hill BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) station (~1 mile) and downtown Walnut Creek (~4 miles). The 24-mile trail goes north-south from Concord to Dublin and connects to several other trails that traverse the county making for great biking opportunities.

A neighborhood park is located just the other side of Fair Oaks Elementary School adjacent to the site. Briones Regional Park and Mt. Diablo State Park are located nearby providing numerous opportunities for hiking and recreation. There are several health clubs in Pleasant Hill including the YMCA.

Diablo Valley Community College and JFK University are located in Pleasant Hill, and there are several city and county adult education programs in the area.

There are multiple venues nearby for movies, theater, music and other performing arts including the Dean Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, the Willows Theater Company in Concord, and the Concord Pavillion.

There are farmers markets in Pleasant Hill (May-Nov) and Walnut Creek (year-round). Several community members participate in a CSA farm, Terra Firma Farms, with a weekly delivery of locally grown organic fruits and vegies made even more convenient because we are the drop site. 

Raines says: This regular monthly community tour and open house of the East Bay's biggest and most "suburban" cohousing neighborhood, Pleasant Hill cohousing, the first "new-build" classic cohousing community in the region, the largest in the East Bay, and a lovely community.

Note that this is not an official MeetUp run by East Bay Cohousing, but we will pass along RSVPs that come in here.

Normally every first Sunday of the month. CURRENTLY VIRTUAL - DO NOT COME TO THE SITE WITHOUT PRE-ARRANGEMENT FOR PROPER PROTECTION.

Visit Pleasant Hill Cohousing's page on the EBCOHO MeetUp for more info, links, and current openings.

If you need to cancel your reservation, or decide not to go, please let Pleasant Hill's volunteer tour guide know as soon as possible!

Individual Homes

There are 32 units, grouped in various configurations ranging from 2-6 homes per building. The buildings were constructed with wood framing, stucco outer walls, and corrogated metal roofing. The smallest units are 640 sq ft one-bedrooms; the largest are 1579 sq ft four-bedrooms.

Each home has its own kitchen. The homes are owned individually as condominiums, with some rentals.

Common Areas

Our 3,835 sq ft Common House contains a kitchen, dining room ("great room"), sitting room, laundry, kids room, teens/older kids room, crafts room, guest rooms, and bathrooms.

The Common House is the only building in the project that has air conditioning. However to minimize the use of air conditioning, the building also has a cooling tower with large fans that can be used in the evening to pull cooler air into the building and push hot air out.

Other common facilities include swimming pool, hot tub, play area, workshop, bike shed, organic garden, and granite boulders from original site - both decorative and used by children for climbing.

Location

We're conveniently located near Highway 680 and public transportation, with easy access to Walnut Creek, shopping, and recreation.

Pleasant Hill, population 32,000, is located 30 miles east of San Francisco, 4 miles north of the I-680/Hwy 24 interchange. Mostly a residential community with scattered retail/commercial areas, it is bounded by the cities of Walnut Creek, Lafayette, Concord, and Martinez. Pleasant Hill has recently (2000) redeveloped its downtown to create a contemporary shopping district just blocks from the site. In addition, an abundance of good restaurants and shops are within easy driving distance. The city has good recreation programs for all ages and regional walking/biking trails traverse it.

Iron Horse Trail

A walking and biking trail - the Iron Horse Trail (so named because it's on the old Southern Pacific Railroad right-of-way) - runs alongside the site and connects to the Pleasant Hill BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) station (~1 mile) and downtown Walnut Creek (~4 miles). The 24-mile trail goes north-south from Concord to Dublin and connects to several other trails that traverse the county making for great biking opportunities.

A neighborhood park is located just the other side of Fair Oaks Elementary School adjacent to the site. Briones Regional Park and Mt. Diablo State Park are located nearby providing numerous opportunities for hiking and recreation. There are several health clubs in Pleasant Hill including the YMCA.

Diablo Valley Community College and JFK University are located in Pleasant Hill, and there are several city and county adult education programs in the area.

There are multiple venues nearby for movies, theater, music and other performing arts including the Dean Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, the Willows Theater Company in Concord, and the Concord Pavillion.

There are farmers markets in Pleasant Hill (May-Nov) and Walnut Creek (year-round). Several community members participate in a CSA farm, Terra Firma Farms, with a weekly delivery of locally grown organic fruits and vegies made even more convenient because we are the drop site.