posted 4 years ago
Well......
If you want a sunny prognosis you should skip this post.
My people were survivalists from the fifties forward, and while we called our "intentional communities" "camps" there has been a few ongoing lessons I have learned.
A; Everyone wants to "start" a community because, like Mr. Wheaton says "if it all falls apart, I'll be the one staying"!
In my area I know of at least 30 different individuals that have told the community at large that they were "building a place of refuge for hard times" some with decided religious fervor, some with ethnic co-ops (Ukrainians and Romanians), some ex military, and the ex intelligence people set up a redoubt and they want no one in the area at all!
Bizarrely even with so many like minded people, no one considers combining resources into a corporate entity.
B; A very few manage to attract the second generation (non owners) and none of them keep them for long because anyone who puts the labor in begins to feel they have "rights" which is a view terminated early, and often, by those whom really DO have rights!
Very rarely someone keeps someone around by providing room and possibly feed for services rendered, but at the end of the day that's usually a very large place, and the non owner becomes "the help",
And even that's inadequate, because there is no health insurance, no rights whatsoever and no potential to sell or monetize the years of labor invested, nor to pass it to a next generation.
Exceedingly rare is the owner that has the resources to pay for medical needs, (Birth through death!), and is willing to spend those resources on the "help".
C; Many State and County governments require "someone" to be responsible, whomever is in that position has potential liability, and criminal negligence if bills aren't payed, insurances aren't maintained, and living conditions sub standard, (as in toxic or overtly dangerous).
Many have specific rules limiting more than three unrelated persons in the same domicile, (after three its a boarding house! and subject to regulation and taxation.)
Yes you can slip under the radar for a while,
Yes that just means there will be a greater collection of people put out when it finally does come to light.
Depending on where you are, breaking a few acres down into lots requires zoning exceptions......usually denied cause that's why zone regs were instituted in the first place!
D; Finally you will be surprised on how much space is really needed even if you have NO stock,
Articles like "Five acres and Independence!" or "Self Sufficiency ON 1 Acre!" are a wonderful exercise in cerebral masturbation but communal living is a continual practice of patience, and endurance.
And every space you have so carefully planned out may not be appropriate for the plans you have......and in a commune, may conflict with someone else's careful plans.
Soo....
I would look for like minded individuals.....that can all afford their own 5 acres!
If they are invested that much the won't walk away easily....and still really could use the help of a community.
Obviously the downside of this is if you piss each other off, the offended soul can make a hog farm out of their five........
Ensure there are no covenants on the land.
As much as possible....Be as conventional as possible!
If you can't sell it when if you break up the band then everyone loses.
There are still many savings to be made in this scene, a water well can cost more than the acreage proper!
1 well could potentially serve multiple families, If you think it will be long lasting, the barns can be placed at a remove from the living quarters, mechanical facility's can be allowed their own scrap area
(I've never seen a successful homestead without a ferocious pile of scrap / raw materiel for the next innovation!)
In fact that would be a reasonable recipe for an "Intentional Community"
Make one lot a capable mechanic,
one or two lots capable farmers,
one a machinist / fabricator,
and throw in a couple of business majors to market it all and everyone shares the profit equally!
That gives you 30 acres to start.
Build a communal Kitchen and add another five acres and a cook.....that can, bottle and sell the farmers surplus,
hell add another five and make a nursery / daycare that offers service for free to the commune and for profit to the community at large.
Add another five and get a competent lawyer because the Devil has his due.
By now your up to 45 acres, and so far everybody is invested, and has incentive to solve everyone elses problems,
Find yourself a plumber and an electrician, and gain ten more acres!
Hell if your successful enough you'll need five acres and a hog farm at the border to clear off additional adjacent acreage.....
2
I was just mapping out an idea to save the minks in Denmark, and I started researching realistic ways I could insure they’d “have a use” so they aren’t brutally slaughtered by the government. That’s all basically a side note, and I’m actually really attracted to this idea...! I’m attempting to become an apprentice electrician soon, and I’m really interested in making the best of my life / using all my potential. 
