Doomplex - Open Enrollment

[mos6507]

I thought twice about posting here again, but I have a very dedicated purpose for doing so.

In the past I have flirted with the idea of a "doomplex". This is a cohousing-like arrangement in which more than one family unit shares a doomstead. In my case, it would require the other party to establish a presence on site in advance of me being able to go there. I would be spending most of the money in exchange for them putting in most of the sweat equity and suffering the isolation of withdrawing into the boonies. Together I figure the total would be greater than the sum of its parts. I've now decided to see what kind of people (if any) may be attracted to this arrangement. More details are in my blog post on the subject.

http://doomsteaddiary.blogspot.com/2010/07/doomplex-open-enrollment.html

I'm sure that posting here will unleash a flood of ad hominems, but I know that there are many lurkers here who have a more level-headed personality. It's people like that I'm trying to reach.

I may respond in this thread to reasonable questions that are not too personally identifiable in nature, however, I'd prefer to open up private dialogues with individual parties where we can build trust and let go of the pseudonyms and the avatars.

[efarmer]

Working on a habitat "guild" of sorts makes sense to me as a way of getting things accomplished if you can find the sort of person who is self managed and motivated and sees it as a guild and not a job with housing provided. You might also think of a way of insuring that the isolation has interruptions for keeping it a sustainable gig for you guild partner. Visiting from time to time perhaps to spell them for a break allows praise for progress and reinforces the fact that it is a collaboration, while keeping your motivation of funding in line with results as well as driving agreement that you are both making something where the form meets negotiated functional criteria.

Oh and by the way, welcome back.

Your opines are always good, and the inmates have been taking their meds which has lessened the ad homs considerably and allowed us to take little scraps of disaster and concern, and use them to collaborate on our group therapy project, which is an extinction themed quilt. (We could use as much batting as we can get.)

[Quinny]

Early 90's I bought a small house in France with 4 other partners. We paid £5000 each for a small 'manoir' which had 14 bed spaces with a large garden. It was the best 'investment' I ever made, not in terms of ROI or anything like that, but we had years of virtually free holidays and loved every minute of it. 2 of the partners sold out because they bought their own places nearby, so we had to sell. I intended to buy them out, but there was a mix up with the mortgage which means I missed a deadline. Not buying it is my biggest ever regret.

Co-operation is key to success imho.

[sparky]

.

This sound interesting , survival is valid only in a communal framework .

The European experience suggest the best outcomes are of the village size ,
it is large enough to have some specialization but small enough to live in autarcy
everybody know everyone else , their qualities and foibles
the number are sufficient to have some resilience to outsides pressure
and they can confederate easily enough with like minded neighbors for defense and exchange
if they grow too much , part of the people can hive off to another location
creating a daughter community which keep contact with the original place

This can survive a wide range of pressure , from an all out catastrophic collapse
( in my mind the minority scenario , )
or an increasing deterioration of the super state over the course of a couple of generation ,
that's what I believe to be the most likely future

Should this come to pass , it will give the community time and incentive to work out the practical organization , iron out the bugs and scavenge from the ailing world what is needed while the communication network are still functioning .

It is likely that the super state in its crisis will resort to authoritarianism and coercion , that would be a good time to lay low , so a conventional structure help to stay under the radar

.

[Sixstrings]

Welcome back, Mos.

I think what you're doing is pretty neat. However.. with all due respect, it sounds like a romanticized ad for a caretaker. That's what you seem to be asking for, someone who wants to live on your land and be a caretaker in your absence in exchange for free rent.

Now here's where the problem comes in.. just because somebody is a doomer doesn't mean you want to get "involved" with them on this level. There is risk here, Mos. They could grow pot on the land in your absence, etc. Or they could just turn out to be a much bigger headache than they're worth -- you could in fact end up with all the problems of being a landlord without even getting rent.

Thing is, the very kind of person that you require -- someone without societal obligations who can just pack up and move to the boonies -- is also possibly the last person you'd ever want to share your property with.

Or maybe I'm just Mr. Negative who doesn't trust anyone, so who knows.

On the subject of doomsteads in general.. I read something the other day about a hedge fund billionaire who picked a doomstead right on the Canadian border. He has 18 miles of the border all on his property, so his plan is to be able to easily cross into Canada should the need arise. Now none of us are billionaires of course, but it did get me thinking that's a good idea to have land on the border like that.

Anyway Mos, best of luck. Just be careful about starting this venture with someone on the internet whom you don't really know. Might be better to connect with folks locally, people you can get to know in person for a while before starting something that involves risk and money.

[SeaGypsy]

I think the idea can work, I have seen various versions on the east coast of Australia which do ok.
The keys to the idea in the 1st place are to keep the cost low enough that it doesn't become only open to rich people and to have a very simple transfer process for when people decide to drop out/ sell out.
Very expensive intentional communities tend to become full of commuters, which defeats the purpose. The kind of people you really need (those with some practical skills on the land) are not usually flush with large amounts of cash. Banks probably won't lend to such a concept.
If possible, strike a balance between people with the $ and people with the skills. Cooperation and mutual respect are key elements also.
Writing a constitution which really works can be a big headache.
Finding a local government area which won't become a problem is another issue.
Areas where this can work are usually already known for the 'type'; this can push prices up a lot.
I think the simplest way to do it is to form a company with a small group of core shareholders, then sell shares to others, whilst retaining the right as 1st option to buy back these shares.

[Ayoob]

I agree with Sixstrings and have said as much on LATOC for years. Why would you want a doomer? Wouldn't you rather partner up with a permaculturist, a carpenter, and a food preservation expert/cook?

Anyone who had the skills to do the job on a doomstead would obviously also be a doomer, but would be productive immediately. I wouldn't even want to be associated with a pure doomer who didn't know how to do anything other than complain.

As I move towards my own doomstead, I don't think I'm going to wind up a landlord. I will have a part to play but I don't think I'm going to be top dog.

What part do you want to play? Are you just going to be a landlord?

There was a guy I met once who went to homeless shelters and got guys who had various skills, took them to Alaska, and built a gold prospecting operation with them. He had a good ten year run. Part of the deal was if he found them drunk on the job they were outta there, so he could keep a rein on the worst of the bullshit. At one point he hooked them all up with Japanese mail order brides, but that didn't end up working out so well.

Carry on.

[Plantagenet]

Welcome back, Mos --- good to see you posting again at peakoil.com.

[mos6507]

I wouldn't even want to be associated with a pure doomer who didn't know how to do anything other than complain.

And that's why there is a vetting process.

Are you just going to be a landlord?

Landlord is not the proper term. I'm really kind of auditioning surrogate family members.