permaculture

[Scott Vlaun <scott@moosepondarts.com>]

We are in a similar situation here. We intend to build  community on 
our land and so far have made arrangements with a few people to help 
out and perhaps settle here. One came and went. We traded "rent" for a 
small cabin we have for gardening and cooking. It was clear that it 
wasn't ultimately a fit and we parted amiably. Her partner at the time, 
is still living here. We barter chores and labor for rent and he is 
slowly constructing a building in which he will live. We supply all the 
materials. At this point he trades his time on the building for future 
"rent". We also hire him from time to time to work on our place for 
cash. At some point the hope is to sell him a piece of the land or to 
make a large part of the land (around 50 acres) a coop with him and (a 
dozen or so others) members. So far things are working well but we'd 
love to hear from others about ways to proceed and any other pitfalls.

Scott Vlaun
Moose Pond Arts & Ecology
35 Moose Pond Rd.
Otisfield, ME 04270
Studio 207 539 9042
Cell 207 890 4099


On Feb 25, 2005, at 8:50 AM, Martha Simmons wrote:

> Given our experience, I would tend to agree with Lawrence.  Shortly 
> after we purchased our land and began house renovations, we met a 
> couple that seemed an answer to our dreams.  The husband was a 
> contractor/carpenter; the wife an accomplished organic gardener.  We 
> needed teachers/co-workers in both of those areas; they were looking 
> for land.  What could not be right about this?  I acted (too) quickly 
> and invited them into a barter arrangement:  their labor for points 
> toward X number of acres.  It quickly became apparent that despite the 
> logical appeal, there were plenty of hidden difficulties that morphed 
> into irreconcilable differences.  The "breakup" was extremely painful 
> for all of us.  It took awhile for us to repair the relationship.  We 
> are now acquaintances/friends, but the scar remains.
>
> Doing something like this is akin to a marriage.  It is probably 
> impossible to know the betrothed too well before taking this kind of 
> step.  And I can tell you, it is very possible to act too quickly.  
> FWIW, Martha Simmons.
> ************************
> "It's a peculiarity of modern technology that people anywhere in the 
> world can sit back and watch in real time, like voyeurs, the 
> life-and-death struggles of their fellow humans. The planet is growing 
> smaller and its residents more interdependent by the day. We're fully 
> aware that our planetary neighbors in southern Asia are desperately 
> drawing upon the deepest reservoirs of fortitude and resilience that 
> our troubled species has at its disposal.
>
> What this means is that we're the supportive community. All of us. 
> This catastrophe would at least have a silver lining if it moved the 
> people of the United States and other nations toward a wiser, more 
> genuinely cooperative international posture." -- Bob Herbert, New York 
> Times, December 31, 2004
> On Feb 25, 2005, at 5:27 AM, Lawrence F. London, Jr. wrote:
>
> > Elijah Smith wrote:
> >
> > > He wants autonomy, and I want him to have it too; I won't and can't 
> > > manage him...
> > > However, I'm a little loathe to just sign his name to the land 
> > > title.  I
> >
> > DO NOT.
> >
> > repeat for your benefit: DO NOT add anyone to your title to your 
> > land, under any circumstances.
> >
> > That's called: GOOD ADVICE
> >
> > >  don't know him *that* well, though we seem to be on the same page 
> > > so far.  I can't really see wanting to kick him off the land unless 
> > > something really egregious occurs and I want him to feel secure 
> > > there... so how do we come up with a mutually agreeable arrangement? 
> > >  What have YOU done in this situation?  Saying "let's try a year and 
> > > see how it goes" won't fly, because to even move onto the land is 
> > > going to require a lot of investment on his part.  And long term, I 
> > > intend to cultivate a community on the land, perhaps even to the 
> > > point of my stepping away from it...
> >
> > Forget it and work your land yourself. Or just sit, look and 
> > appreciate it in its unaltered state.
> >
> > LL
> > --
> > L.F.London
> > lfl@intrex.net
> > http://market-farming.com
> > Market Farming Forum
> > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/marketfarming
> > _______________________________________________
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> > http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/permaculture
>
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