About Cohousing – Twin Cities Cohousing Network

Meet the Professionals

Ann Zabaldo, cohousing leader

Don’t miss hearing from national cohousing professional and enthusiast Ann Zabaldo at TCCN’s next Meet the Professionals event on Zoom. Zabaldo’s tireless efforts and successes are sure to inspire those of us envisioning more Minnesota cohousing communities!

“Everyone living next to someone who cares about them” — My role in creating cohousing, working with a developer, and helping cohousing in the mid-Atlantic states

Register in advance to reserve your Zoom link.

Ann Zabaldo
Wed. Oct. 12, 2022
7:00 – 8:30 PM Central

Image of Ann Zabaldo wearing green glasses and smiling brightly. — Ann Zabaldo, Washington DC

Ann Zabaldo is both a pioneer volunteer and a paid professional in the cohousing movement. She specializes in outreach, education, marketing, and fueling the fires of burning souls working to start cohousing.

Ann is past-president of The Cohousing Association of the United States (CohoUS) and is a co-founder and current board member of Mid Atlantic Cohousing, a regional non-profit organization. She is a certified facilitator for McCamant & Durrett’s Senior Cohousing Study Group workshops. She is co-executive producer of “Building Sustainable Communities for Today’s Housing Market” a DVD and companion handbook created specifically for developers who are interested in entering the cohousing market niche.

Ann was on the development team for both Eastern Village Cohousing in Silver Spring, Maryland and Takoma Village Cohousing in Washington, DC where she lives with 65 adults, 15 children, seven dogs and waaaay too many cats. Currently, for Takoma Village she is serving on the Bylaws Working Group to revise the bylaws and the Resale and Rental pod (team or committee). This pod has brought in excellent buyers who are prepared to live in cohousing. Plus, more than $120,000 in donations to the community. Her description of living in cohousing? “It’s a rolling Mardi Gras.”

Twin Cities Cohousing Network is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Please consider making a donation in any amount to help us continue our Meet the Professional speaker series. Donate securely via PayPal or Donate via GiveMN. Donations are tax-deductible to the extent of the law.

Volunteer Paul Wehrwein featured in StarTribune “Inspired” section.

Committee and member of Twin Cities Metro Senior Cohousing, a cohousing group in formation, was recently featured in the StarTribune’s Inspired section.

Paul Wehrwein, a volunteer on Twin Cities Cohousing Network’s Events Committee and member of Twin Cities Metro Senior Cohousing, a cohousing group in formation, was recently featured on June 10, 2022 in the StarTribune’s Inspired section. Reporter Gail Rosenblum interviewed Wehrwein about his dreams for cohousing, where cohousing exists now, and how the cohousing movement started.

Read the full article.

TCCN brings you CohoUS resources and benefits

Twin Cities Cohousing Network (TCCN) has partnered with The Cohousing Association of the United States (CohoUS). This partnership offers TCCN’s partnership supporters access to all CohoUS recordings, events, and resources during 2022 with an annual gift of $60 or more. (The Cohousing US individual partnership fee is $150; joining with TCCN is a savings of $90 per calendar year.)

See all partnership benefits here.

Explore the appeal of cohousing by participating in a story circle.

Register for one or more of the three FREE story circle sessions and engage with others interested in cohousing. Story Circle sessions are offered via Zoom on Thursdays, Mar 24, 31, and Apr 7, 2022 from 7:00-8:30 PM CDT

A story circle is a time-honored tradition of telling stories without interruption until everyone in the circle who wishes to speak has spoken. The uniqueness of our own story settled next to other stories provides insight into similarities and differences in our backgrounds and experiences and opens us to deeper understanding. Discussion and questions follow as time permits.

Register for one or more of the three FREE story circle sessions and engage with others interested in cohousing as we share our stories and discuss cohousing.

Story Circle sessions are offered via Zoom
Thur — Mar 24, Mar 31, Apr 7, 2022 — 7:00-8:30 PM CDT

Please read Steps to Get Ready for the story circle/s that you are interested in attending. Our story circle guidelines are also listed on the Steps to Get Ready page on the course site.

Register on the course site to attend 1, 2, or all 3 (limit of 20 registrations per session)

Each session’s unique story circle prompt is selected to help us understand an aspect of the appeal of living in a cohousing community — as well awareness of the challenges and opportunities that may arise. Cohousing resources on this site complement our learning for those who want to deepen their understanding of cohousing and how it differs from kinds of housing and living arrangements.

These sessions are FREE to help the instructor test the format. Free-will donations to Twin Cities Cohousing Network are greatly appreciated. The course facilitator volunteers her time and is not selling a product or representing any product for sale. The materials in this course are publicly available and have been curated to encourage participants to explore them. Each session is limited to a maximum of 20 participants.

Is affordable cohousing possible?

Affordable Cohousing: Challenges and Opportunities
Wednesday, February 9, 2022
7:00 to 8:30 PM

View event recording

Followup Resources (PDF)

We know there is a huge need for affordable housing in the Twin Cities. And many of us are interested in affordable cohousing units. What strategies should cohousing groups implement to bring down costs?

A national cohousing conference last October centered on this pivotal concern about affordability, drawing on examples from communities recently built. In February, three local cohousing advocates who attended that conference will report on some of the highlights, and then attendees will have a chance to join the discussion.

If housing affordability is important to you, and cohousing is appealing as a way to live, please join us as we attempt to co-create and spread approaches that can work here.

Image of Becca Brackett — Becca Brackett

A summer photo of a third floor balcony with clusters of chairs and potted plants thatt overlooks a common garden area of a cohousing community in Denmark. — BO cohousing. Photo by Fred Olson

Join the Nat’l Conf. Ad Hoc Planning Circle

Madison to host the 2022 National Cohousing Conference

TCCN’s ad hoc planning circle seeks people interested in maximizing cohousing networking and fun for Minnesotans who attend the National Cohousing Conference in Madison, WI, August 25-28, 2022.

The group will help Catalyze Cohousing in Minnesota by encouraging Minnesotans to register for the conference and making it fun and accessible for Minnesotans to participate in a variety of ways.

What inspires you to participate?

Getting the word out about the conference?
Organizing a hospitality suite in Madison?
Organizing car-pools and busses to transport people to Madison?
Researching Madison restaurants for dinner gatherings for Minnesotans?
Visiting a few of Madison’s four cohousing communities?
Gatherings for remote conference viewing via Zoom?
Gatherings to review recorded sessions after the conference?
Camping in local parks rather than staying in a hotel?

Ready to get involved? Email Becca Brackett of Cedar Cohousing, LLC to let her know of your interest.

Becca visiting PDX Cohousing during the 2019 National Conference.

Check Cohousing US for national conference updates.

August fields of hay. Photo by **Nikolett Emmert** from **Pexel**

New cohousing groups are forming!

East Metro Area

Photo showing a view of the Como Park fire circle with seating in a grassy area with picnic tables nearby, St. Paul, MN. — Como Park fire ring area, St. Paul, MN.

Paul Wehrwein, an cohousing enthusiast who has volunteered with Twin Cities Cohousing Network for a number of years on the Events Circle, is starting the process of creating a senior cohousing community (50+) in the west metro area. Paul and his partner have begun by inviting those people who might be interested in learning about each other to gather once a month with the goal of having fun socializing while getting to know each other and and sharing their ideals for what a senior cohousing community could be. Informal gatherings will be held rain or shine at the Como Park fire rings on the third Wednesday of the month at 6:00 P.M. Download the flyer for details and contact information for Paul.

Duluth area

A wintry view of the Duluth, MN high bridge lighted during evening and viewed from the top of a near hill, with fog on Lake Superior, lights and traffic in the foreground. — Photo by Nemuel Sereti on Unsplash

Although Duluth is beyond the Twin Cities metropolitan borders, The Duluth area has a number of people interested in cohousing and Twin Cities Cohousing Network is happy to help inform our viewers about them.

Lee Pedersen, an active cohousing organizer has held MeetUp meetings in Duluth for a couple of years and has generated a number of regulars. According to Lee, a group seeking to create an intergenerational cohousing community has recently split off and is now hoping to purchase land.

Lee, who is specifically interested in senior cohousing, is now recruiting individuals who would prefer a senior-focused cohousing community that will help seniors thrive as they age in community with each other. Her new initiative is called Active Adult Cohousing for the Northland. Click the link to Lee’s information on Cohousing USA to see what she envisions and to find her contact information.

To the future and beyond with CoHousing!

Wednesday, April 28, 2021. Zoom, 7:00-8:15 P.M. CDT. FREE registration.

Have you heard about the amazing inventions they’re trying out on Mars!?

There’s an amazing innovation here on earth, and Trish Becker-Hafnor is going to tell us about it.

TEDx Talk presenter Trich Becker Hafnor speaking on stage. — Trish Becker-Hafnor, *TEDx Talk* (January 2020).
Photo and video used by permission of Michael Jenet of TEDx Cherry Creek Women.

Join us as we watch, then discuss, Trish’s short, lively TEDx Talk, Cohousing and the Future of Community and Human Connection.

Trish shares what is groundbreaking about CoHousing, an newer form of intentional community. She also shares how her cohousing community has affected her family and neighbors. Trish is an educator, activist, parent and community co-founder.

Cohousing is just one point on a wide spectrum of communal living models, and it’s basically built around three principles: shared space, shared time, and shared values. — Trish Becker-Hafnor

Whether you are taking a small next step towards your future in community, or simply an interesting evening in the company of others, you’re welcome to register for this special Zoom event by using the link below.

Zoom registration link. Completing this form allows us to send you a confirmation email with the link to the event.