Kinni Cohousing hosting informational event to find interested community members

By Andrew Harrington
Posted 12/24/24

RIVER FALLS — Cohousing is a foreign concept to many, with Kinni Cohousing looking to change that by gathering interested community members to construct a cohousing project in River Falls. To …

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Kinni Cohousing hosting informational event to find interested community members

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RIVER FALLS — Cohousing is a foreign concept to many, with Kinni Cohousing looking to change that by gathering interested community members to construct a cohousing project in River Falls. To get the project going, they are hosting a Discover Cohousing information session at 6 p.m. on Jan. 14 at Glen Park Pavilion.

Cohousing is a movement that started in Denmark, moving to the United States in the late 1900s and now has about 150 locations in the states.

“Cohousing is community intentionally designed with ample common spaces surrounded by private homes. Collaborative spaces typically include a common house with a large kitchen and dining room, laundry, and recreational areas and outdoor walkways, open space, gardens, and parking. Neighbors use these spaces to play together, cook for one another, share tools, and work collaboratively. Common property is managed and maintained by community members, providing even more opportunities for growing relationships,” according to cohousing.org.

Kinni Cohousing Community Coordinator Christina Marshall said there is a lack of them in the area, looking to change that. Marshall, Cohousing Developer Alastair Townsend and Cohousing Advisor Kathryn McCamant have been working to get a resident-driven community in River Falls.

“Our big priority right now is just building a group of people right now that really would be interested in living in it,” Marshall said.

The Jan. 14 event is their first in-person presentation about the project, showing off the concept, where they are at in the process, how it differs from traditional communities and how people can get involved.

First up in the process is finding potential residents that are willing to help financially support the project.

“Residents are the ones that really start the cash flow of a project, so we need to have people that are not only interested in cohousing but interested in making the financial commitment,” Marshall said. “We’re not asking for a financial commitment by any means at this launching event. We’re really just asking people to engage in this journey with us.”

To get the project constructed, residents will need to be the funding source and Kinni Cohousing takes care of setting up the construction with the money.

Many cohousing projects do not quite get off the ground, which Marshall said is usually because of a lack of professional backing. This one is backed by a staff at Kinni Cohousing which will help alleviate some of the pressures of the long process.

“You live in a community. You live with your neighbors, neighbors support each other, they provide social opportunities, times together for meals,” Marshall said. “This really helps to address our pandemic of social isolation and loneliness in this country.”

Marshall said there are usually a notable number of elderly people in the communities, and traditional senior living can be costly. While this may not be the most cost-effective place to live since it is funded by residents, the community support can help it be more cost-effective than senior living.

Kinni Cohousing would like everyone with slight interest to go to the event, see what it is all about and make an informed decision on if it is somewhere they would want to live.

Kinni Cohousing, cohousing, information session, River Falls, Wisconsin