Community Sharing

There are many people here with wonderful gifts. Some share their gift of celebration with us, others their gift of growing food. Some share their gift of relaxation with us. Others their gift of music and song. Some share their tools and time. Others their love and affection.

It’s wonderful to walk down the atrium and hear Mia’s music playing in the dining hall.

Or Mykl playing his guitar.

Or to pick herbs and kale from the community gardens.

And when I needed to boost my car, to borrow a neighbour’s car to boost mine.

Earlier this month we talked about giving up our car and adopting a car-free lifestyle. Aside from being good for the environment, it would have also been good for the budget and waistline.

I put out an email to select members of the community and asked them for support in this idea. And we were overwhelmed by the response. Three people offered us their vehicles to use. Even frequently.

As a family we do sort of need a car though. There are appointments at the hospital for Trey and there are unexpected trips to the school to drop off a blood glucose monitor. And there are dentist appointments and big grocery shops and then road trips or drive to go hiking or swimming.

When we added up the many things that we wouldn’t actually bother doing if we had to cycle or borrow vehicles we realized how naive we had been. So, at the end of it all we decided that we would keep our car. But we were so grateful for those people who offered to lend us their vehicles so generously.

Cohousing.



-Myriam

Divorcing my car

When you hang around with a lot of carless people, as I am doing, you start to feel a bit ridiculous if you own a car. At least that's how I'm feeling.

Several members of Pacific Gardens Cohousing Community don't own cars. This also is true of some people in our wider circle of friends.

None of them has said a word about my vehicle. But, without anyone saying anything, I have come to feel -- as I said above -- a bit ridiculous.

At the moment I am renting an oceanfront condo that has a delightful view but that is far from town. So, until my lease expires in the middle of January, I won't be able to cut the umbilical chord.

However, I currently am looking at a couple of rental properties close to downtown. I plan to move to one of them when my current rental arrangement expires.

I have applied to join Vancouver's Co-operative Auto Network, which has a satellite office here in Nanaimo. This car sharing club would give me access to a car on the odd occasion that I felt the need for it.

The nice thing is that there is reciprocity amongst several car sharing clubs. I haven't investigated the list of cities and towns that's involved. But I know that, at a minimum, the car sharing club will give me access to cars in Vancouver, Victoria and Comox and of course here in Nanaimo too.

Many of my friends manage very nicely by using a combination of walking, bicycling, transit and membership of the car sharing club. They look fit too, without having to go to a gym.

The biggest single factor that will enable me to divorce my car will be Pacific Gardens Cohousing Community's location. During the early discussions, friends of the founders tried to persuade them to buy a cheaper parcel of land further out. But, from the beginning, proximity to urban amenities was on their non-negotiable wish list. I will be forever grateful that they stuck to their resolve to be within easy walking distance of schools, grocery stores, etc.

The downtown/harbour area and Vancouver Island University are a little further away, but still within walking distance, and certainly within easy cycling distance. It's 2 km (or 1.2 miles) to the downtown/harbour area and 2.5 km (1.5 miles) to Vancouver Island University in the other direction.