Some future residents of the CoHo Ecovillage have been waiting more than five years to move into their new home. On Sunday afternoon excitement was evident in the sounds of delight from future roommates Lea Pullen and Cindy Ford. With construction nearly completed, the two got their first looks into the common areas and townhouses on the property off Crystal Lake Drive in south Corvallis. A move-in date is tentatively set for mid-October.

The CoHo community members were joined by others who were considering buying one of the remaining units, were on the waiting list for various reasons or were simply interested in seeing the sustainable design and community centric approach up-close.

Bruce Hecht, a retired Hewlett-Packard employee and coordinator for the Corvallis Chapter of Oregon Natural Step, is the project manager for Willamette Neighborhood Housing Services. He led the tour Sunday and fielded questions about the construction and design.

According to Hecht, the basic idea of the design is to encourage interactions between community members while minimizing the use of resources and the impact on the land.

The layout of the project is pedestrian-focused with parking away from the living area. All of the ground floor front doors are easily accessible by wheelchair. A point of pride for Hecht: The bike parking barn is larger than the garage building.

The structures in the community are all multiple-unit dwellings that range in size from 790 to 1390 square feet. They are clustered to maintain green space on the property and a sense of openness. The main pathway and the windows of the common area are in-line with a beautiful 300-year-old oak tree.

The buildings are built with sustainable materials and 75 percent of the subcontractors are local. They include Jensen’s Plumbing and Benson’s Interiors Inc. Each structure has hookups for solar energy panels and all of the buildings are certified Energy Star Plus and Earth Advantage. The entire project cost about $8.4 million.

The house that Pullen and Ford will share is owned by Home Life, a local nonprofit organization that provides services for adults with developmental disabilities.

When everyone is moved in, the community expects to have approximately 65 people, including about 16 kids. The ages of the community members range from newborn to senior citizens.

“We have as many personalities as different types of buildings,” said community member Sue Crawford.

Space available

Two units at the CoHo Ecovillage are still available to income-eligible applicants. For information call 974-1739 or see www.cohousing-corvallis.com/

Nancy Raskauskas can be reached at nancy.raskauskas@lee.net.