Document Type

Report

Publication Date

6-2001

Keywords

Shared housing -- Oregon -- Portland -- Planning, Community life, Sustainable development -- Oregon -- Portland

Abstract

In February of2001, Sustainable Communities Northwest (SCNW), a local nonprofit housing developer specializing in sustainable development, contacted Portland State University's Planning Workshop with a request for assistance. Sustainable Communities Northwest was interested in the possibility of converting an apartment building into condominiums to create affordable homeownership opportunities for low-and moderate-income families. ]nspired by recent market rate cohousing projects in Portland and elsewhere, SCNW was also seeking to incorporate aspects of community-oriented housing into this development. Sustainable Communities Northwest was interested in evaluating if a sustainable, affordable, community-oriented condominium conversion concept would be feasible in the Portland area housing market.

Sustainable Communities Northwest's proposed housing concept brings together several distinct elements to establish a new form of housing, coined by the workshop team as "Shared-Resource Housing" (SRH). This study is intended to assist SCNW in their decision-making process concerning the feasibility of a SRH development. This study responds to SCNW's request for assistance by:

• Defining the overall SRH concept. The three basic elements of the SRH concept are community-oriented housing based on cohousing, affordable homeownership through condominium conversion, and sustainable development through green building practices. Each element is defined, related to broader social issues, and examined in terms of the SRH concept.

• Identifying site selection and design criteria. These criteria are based on SCNW's specific development requirements and provide guidance for finding and developing a SRH site.

• Assessing market trends and concept feasibility. This section describes the condominium market, the market for shared resources, and financial feasibility of the SRH concept for low-to moderate-income families.

• Providing suggestions and options for further exploration ofthe concept. This section defines large-scale issues related to the SRH concept and offers suggestions for addressing these issues.

While specifically designed for SCNW, information provided in this study may also aid other nonprofit organizations in developing SHR or similar housing alternatives. This study was completed and presented to SCNW in June of 2001.

Description

Client: Sustainanble Communities Northwest (SCNW)

Rights

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/12549

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