East Texas Ecovillage - Cohousing startup

I have 40 acres in East Texas that I have owned since 1999.
I retired in 2019 and wish to find "My People" to be the founding members of a small Ecovillage.
The property has an old Wholesale Nursery with potting shed, high tunnel, drip irrigation, a well and a greenhouse.
I own a variety of AG equipment and have my home on 2 adjoining acres.
To be frank, I do not posses the skills to move this mission from the concept to fruition. If there is an entrepreneurial individual out there interested in building a community in East Texas please contact me.

Thank you

Brian

I would certainly be interested! I wrote a post in intentional communities that explains a little about me and who I am! I currently reside in Alabama but have been to Texas quite a few times and wouldn’t mind relocating there.  I’m a 28 year old male, no family - just me and my dog. Lots of experience outdoors - woodworking - electrical work and so much more. After graduating HS at 18 I became a certified tower technician installing/upgrading 3g-4g - erecting tower builds. I’m a very hard working, loyal person and would love to start a community / help you on your journey. If this interests you at all you can contact me at jstrange007@outlook.com or with a reply here. Will provide further contact details upon your request! Have a great day bud.

James,
I sent you an email.
Brian

Hello Brian !  I recently moved to the East Texas area and would be very interested in hearing more details ! We purchased our land here raw and undeveloped, and are currently in the process of preparing to build many eco buildings for our personal use. My email address is 1234randomemailaddress@gmail.com Hope you hear from you soon.

Hi Brian. Could you go into more detail on who “your people” are? What type of folks do you hope to have around?

Jenny,
My People are accepting and tolerant of differences. They work well in small groups and bring different skills, talents and perspectives to the task at hand. They will value Mother Nature and treading lightly on the planet. While they will be well skilled in a specific area (or three) they will be excited to learn new things to help the community where needed.
At this point in the formation of this community we need 2 or 3 more individuals to be the Charter Members. Those with skills in setting up a club or business. Perhaps a former Board Member of a Not for Profit, or a Real Estate Attorney to help guide us in the process of becoming a 501C.
We are gaining momentum. We should be ready to draft bylaws in March or April and Charter in the second half of 2022.
We are open to visitors if you wish to come over and see the land and what is in works.
Brian

My sister lives in Tucson in a Cohousing community. I LOVE to visit her and have appreciated her community for years. My husband and I have been considering our options for downsizing and living within a community of people. Please add us to your list. We would love to hear more and see if we would be a good fit for your vision. Thank you! Carrie Wulfsberg carrie2183@outlook.com

Update 01/08/2022.
I have found my entrepreneurial soul to advance this mission. Ashley arrived this evening after a grueling drive from Oregon.
There have been a few persons that expressed interest in the community. We will require a couple of additional people to be Charter Members and contribute to the drafting of bylaws. A perfect opportunity to create the model you want to participate in.
Purple Moose is great if you desire to not share your thoughts with the entire site.

2022 is going to be a stellar year.

Brian

Brian Briggs wrote:Update 01/08/2022.
I have found my entrepreneurial soul to advance this mission. Ashley arrived this evening after a grueling drive from Oregon.
There have been a few persons that expressed interest in the community. We will require a couple of additional people to be Charter Members and contribute to the drafting of bylaws. A perfect opportunity to create the model you want to participate in.
Purple Moose is great if you desire to not share your thoughts with the entire site.

2022 is going to be a stellar year.

Brian

I'm honestly so shocked you have people jumping at this opportunity so quickly! Best of luck starting the community

Maybe years down the road y'all will be established and I can come just for a visit.

Hello Brian ,
your project sounds interesting.

Are you seeking liberal , conservative , or independent   individuals  for the village .

I know a couple who live in upstate New York who may be interested.
They currently live in an Eco village .

Tom Spinks
tomspinks@hotmail.com

Hey Brian,
  Sounds like an awesome thing you are doing. We are working toward on similar things. If you find yourself back at square one, definitely reach out.

Derek Dendro wrote:Hey Brian,
  Sounds like an awesome thing you are doing. We are working toward on similar things. If you find yourself back at square one, definitely reach out.

Thanks Derek while I hope not to find myself back at square 1, I will keep you in mind.

Brian

I recently moved to East Texas and would be interested in a meet visit.
canfielderic@hotmail.com

Brian Briggs wrote:I have 40 acres in East Texas that I have owned since 1999.
I retired in 2019 and wish to find "My People" to be the founding members of a small Ecovillage.
The property has an old Wholesale Nursery with potting shed, high tunnel, drip irrigation, a well and a greenhouse.
I own a variety of AG equipment and have my home on 2 adjoining acres.
To be frank, I do not posses the skills to move this mission from the concept to fruition. If there is an entrepreneurial individual out there interested in building a community in East Texas please contact me.

Thank you

Brian

Very interested.
Can you please contact me
At

escstudios3@protonmail.com

323 542 0744


What town is it near ?
Let me know in text ! Thank you looking forward !

And if you email
It will go into the spam
Folder , so text me or call
Let me know you emailed me.

Mike, I sent you a Purple Moose.

Regarding our Eco-Village Intentional Community in East Texas.
Please help us to understand a broader view of what people desire or expect from a community.

Purple Moose me your input or repost the questions with your answers to this thread please.

1)If you have joined or intend to join a community,
 would you desire to:
a)Own a tract of land within the community.
b)Lease a tract of land within the community.
c)Live in a home provided by the community.
d)Share a home with other members of the community.
Other (please explain).

2)When joining a community, would you consider:
a)Your purchase of land would entitle you to be a member of the community.
b)Your lease of land would entitle you to be a member of the community.
c)You would buy shares in the community one time.
d)You would buy shares in the community and pay in annually or receive back as the community needs.
Other (please explain).

3)In what manner do you feel a community should generate revenue to grow and thrive?
a)The community should not need additional revenue.
b)The community should expect the members to contribute funds for maintenance and growth.
c)The community should generate income through sales of goods and services outside the community.
Other (please explain).

4)As a member of the community how would you support yourself?
a)I can live off my savings and investments.
b)I have income from E-commerce or Royalties.
c)I have skills I can offer to the surrounding communities to generate income.
d)My spouse/partner works.
Other

5)How do you feel goods and services should be traded between members of the community?
a)A casual barter system with members negotiating between themselves.
b)A community currency with goods and services having set prices.
c)"What is yours is mine and what is mine is yours". No cost or bartering needed.
Other (please explain).

6)Do you own livestock? If yes, which kind:
a)Chickens
b)Goats
c)Cattle
d)Sheep
e)Pigs
f)Horses

7)Do you feel yours or other’s pets:
a)Should be allowed to roam the community freely.
b)Should be restricted to the owner’s place.
c)Should be leashed when away from the owner’s place.
d)Should be allowed to roam unless they become a nuisance.

How often would you want to participate in group meals?
a)A potluck meal once a month is enough.
b)A weekly meal is best for sharing fellowship.
c)A daily communal dinner should be offered.
d)No group meals are needed.

9)If group meals are offered, do you feel:
a)Attendance should be mandatory.
b)Attendance should be voluntary.

10)Working in the community garden, tending the community livestock, maintaining the common areas
  should be:
a)Voluntary with those that do earning local currency for their time.
b)Mandatory for all members of the community.
c)Voluntary with time worked reducing the members dues.

11)If you own tools, would you:
a)Loan them willingly to fellow communitarians.
b)Loan them only to those that demonstrate they can properly use them.
c)Not loan them at all.


12)We will be a family friendly community. If you have children:
a)You will homeschool your kids.
b)You will participate in a homeschool coop.
c)You will enroll your kids in the local public school.
d)Your children will attend a private school.
Other.

Hello I’m Ashley, and have partnered up with Brian, the author of this original post East Texas Eco-village housing startup”.

I moved here to the property in January 2022, just a couple months ago. In this post Im here to share photos of the landscape and community areas. I will post again introducing myself and our name of the Eco-Village we have started. These are photos of parts of the 40 acres we have to offer our community, and as you can see we are in the beta stage.

Please see future post for more information and contact info. Thanks so much!!

Hi there Brian and Ashley,

I also live in East Texas and I'm a farmer who practices permaculture to the best of my ability.  My reply is similar to a couple of others that your received.  I"d like to visit and share ideas if possible.  What part of East TX are you in?  I might be within a couple of hours drive.  I'm always on the lookout for people who are practicing agriculture in a similar way and definitely on the lookout for people who'd like to have a bbq someday!

Best wishes,

Bryan

Good morning Bryan,
We are located near Rusk, TX and would welcome a visit from you any time. There is much Permaculture work to be done to manage water runoff flow and to improve the clay soil that is Briggatefarms.
Where are you located?
Brian

Hi Bryan! I’ll pm you.

-Ashley

Hello! I just wanted to pop in and introduce myself. My husband and our 3 kiddos are in the process of relocating to the Nacogdoches area and would love the opportunity to network with other east Texas permaculture practitioners.

Would possibly be willing to exchange work for knowledge.

Have a lovely evening!

Hi Brian,

I love what you are doing. We have started a community with what sounds like similar values. I would love to connect with you and hear what you are doing. If there is a way for us to collaborate, I would love that!

Kind regards,

Micah

Geneva Upchurch wrote:Hello! I just wanted to pop in and introduce myself. My husband and our 3 kiddos are in the process of relocating to the Nacogdoches area and would love the opportunity to network with other east Texas permaculture practitioners.

Would possibly be willing to exchange work for knowledge.

Have a lovely evening!

Geneva,

Thank you for your post. I sent you a Purple Moosage as a reply.

Brian

Micah Carruth wrote:Hi Brian,

I love what you are doing. We have started a community with what sounds like similar values. I would love to connect with you and hear what you are doing. If there is a way for us to collaborate, I would love that!

Kind regards,

Micah

Micah,
I am always open to sharing. Where is your community located?

Brian

Hi Brian,

Sounds great. We are near Y City Arkansas. How we would be the best way to connect?

Kind regards,

Micah

Justin,

What do you mean by: "property issues"?

Brian

Brian Briggs wrote:Justin,

What do you mean by: "property issues"?

Brian

Well I don't own my property by myself and am primarily the main person interested in off grid living

Hi there,

Just checking in.  Are we any closer to having a gathering/picnic/bbq/etc. for like minded people in the area?

Thanks

Hi Brian
Sorry to bother you but I can't figure out how to post my introduction. I tried to follow the instructions but they did not work for me
Thanks
Chris

Hey Chris,

Not to worry. The community was a piece of fruit that died on the vine. It just never got the momentum to draft bylaws and Charter.
I am exploring a Shared Homestead approach now. I envision up to 6 individuals or families would buy 1.5-2 acres tracts subdivided out of the 40 acres. The remaining acreage would be shared common space for food crops and/or rotational grazing. I need to consult a Real-estate Attorney for the legalities
Are you interested more in a community or a homestead?
Feel free to Purple Moose me if you want to share more details in a less public way.

Brian

Hi Brian
Thanks for getting back to me. I was actually asking how I could post on the "introduction" platform, and I asked you as you were a recent poster there.
On the topic of intentional community, I did live in one in NZ for seven years, the last 2  as the leader of the group that took over after the "guru' was sent to jail for miss behaving with kids. I have also studied the subject extensively , with one 3 week visit to Twin oaks in Central Virginia 25v years ago. The best way to describe life in an intentional community is the opening line of "A tail of two Cities", which was "It was the best of times and the worst of times"
The situation in the world today makes me convinced even more that with the coming demise of the financial order that was created at "Breton Woods" in 1944 to control the worlds financial system (after WW2)is now terminal and any one relying on it when it goes who is not in a self sufficient bunker will be in real trouble. I am 75 and have traveled much around the world over the last 50 Years, and the signs are every where.

My advice to you is, although what you are attempting to do is admirable is really difficult to achieve, as you are already finding out.
One of the things I have done was run a cheap backpacker G/H in Vang Vieng Laos , for 4 years 2010-14. Many young travelers would ask me if there was one piece of advice, what would it be. My advice was and still is "find your tribe" which is what you need to do. There are many who are trying to set up similar situation to you, and If I have learnt anything from the half dozen or so communities I visited in different parts of the world was that the thing that holds them together is not the scenery, but the cohesion created out of a desire to work together.

I am happy to keep in communication with you in the future on any subject. For the record I am still in Lao living on some land with my extended Lao family(best structure for harmony) running a mixed operation (plant/animal) which work well together. I finally settled for Lao as it has many attributes not found in many places in the world today. Low population density, community cohesion, low violence. few rules on what you can build out of what material, minimal storm weather issues, simple visa rules (although not cheap) and most important of all zero water shortages.
Chris

Hi Brian,

Interested to hear how things are going now,?
I am in Europe so you are too far away for me. I love what you were trying to create but understand the difficulties.
My aim is self sufficiency as much as possible.

Howdy everyone,
The plan for a community lost traction and for a multitude of reasons will not proceed as an Eco Village. One of the main sticking points was that most people desired to own the piece of land that they would build their home on. I was and am still intent on the land being owned by the Community.
Recently it has come to my attention that a Community Land Trust could be the possible solution to this conundrum.
I will be exploring this possible solution further over the next few months.
I will welcome any and all input regarding Community Land Trusts.
BTW, the new iteration of community will be homesteading focused and limited to 4 homesteads plus myself.
Brian

Thank you for the update!

Hi! Are you in need of any individuals to come live/work there as your community/homestead project changes course? I'm new to the lifestyle but passionate and eager to learn. I'd work hard and contribute fully. I've read the thread and I believe I'm your kind of people. I'd love to talk more, looking to move by the end of January. Contact me anytime, I really like what I see here.
Peterbdavid@proton.me

Brian Briggs wrote:I have 40 acres in East Texas that I have owned since 1999.
I retired in 2019 and wish to find "My People" to be the founding members of a small Ecovillage.
The property has an old Wholesale Nursery with potting shed, high tunnel, drip irrigation, a well and a greenhouse.
I own a variety of AG equipment and have my home on 2 adjoining acres.
To be frank, I do not posses the skills to move this mission from the concept to fruition. If there is an entrepreneurial individual out there interested in building a community in East Texas please contact me.

Thank you

Brian

Hello Brian!
I have 5+ years of gardening and livestock experience as well as having a library of information on many different trades that I have experience in. I currently own my own landscaping, garden, and tree service business. My wife and I desperately want to move out of the desert here in Arizona. We are pursuing a live on-site work/trade position. I specialize in low-budget survival gardening. If interested, please call/text Mark at Mowers&Growers 928-641-8565. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Regards,
Mark Steagall