Latest Developments - November 2011
Trelay is developing as a cohousing ecovillage. We live in private living spaces with shared community buildings and land, and we are trying to move towards greater self-sufficiency and a more sustainable life-style.
We have engaged a planning consultant who is working with us to see to what extent some further cohousing development is possible.
We currently have 10 living spaces. Three of these (a three-bedroom family space, a two-bedroom house and a one-bedroom log cabin) will be available on a leasehold basis from 1st May 2012.
We have four more buildings or parts of buildings that we plan to turn into living spaces and we are seeking permission for up to four new-build. Two of these are already “spoken for”, so there will be 2 – 6 new living spaces available.
We expect to be seeking at least two families with 2 – 4 children for the larger houses, with other smaller spaces available for smaller families, couples or single people.
We currently have a system in which capital is put in as loans, and our non-profit company owns and rents out all the living spaces. In order to create investment that is secured against property, we intend to change this system during 2011. We intend to offer living spaces on a 999 year leasehold basis. Some of the leases will be offered on an affordable basis. All residents will continue to treated on an equal basis, with each resident entitled to be a Member and Director of the Company.
We expect to sell the leases to each other and to new people on a date to be agreed, probably in 2012. People will need to commit on that date and pay a deposit; there will then be an agreed period before completion of the contracts and exchange of lease money.
People who take on living spaces at Trelay will be part of our cohousing community. We shall continue our system of asking people to visit Trelay several times to see how well they fit in before their offer to purchase a lease will be accepted. We currently have a Stage One, Stage Two admission process.
New Members will be accepted into the community at an event at which they will sign our Covenant (see 1.5). They will undertake to share the benefits and responsibilities of Trelay. They will agree to help maintain the community and the farm, either by carrying out community work or by paying an additional community charge
We hold Trelay Interest Weekends once a month (on the third weekend) for people who are interested in becoming residents. If you wish to be offered the opportunity to purchase a lease in May, it is essential that you come to one of the weekends that will be held between November and March 2012. Once you have visited and feel that you would like to take it further, you will be invited to visit us regularly so you can live and work side by side with us, and also to workshop weekends about the development of the leases. Because we live as a community, there are no “bosses”, so we shall be writing our own lease conditions.