First-hand experience in home construction will help when a community starts constructing larger buildings. 

Compressed Earth Block is our choice for these larger buildings as long as they are not more than a few stories high.  Since the local earth is different from one place to the next there is no substitute for local experience. Concrete blocks and rebar can also be used if more stability or larger buildings are desired.

The architectural style can be determined by the members of each community, but the style should be congruous with community villages that are nearby.  Each community should try to have a theme or a consistent underlying style in each village, and especially in the community buildings. All the same principles described for our houses will be used for community buildings, such as rainwater harvesting, self-composting toilets, gray water use, and energy-efficient design.

Unlike houses, more than one story is acceptable for community buildings, but more than two stories is generally not necessary. Since some community buildings will serve a different function in time of catastrophe in the cities, they must also have a high degree of sustainability. (See the Supporters page.)

Some of the funds required can come from contributions by community members, in particular non-resident Supporters who do not own a house in the community. Contributions may also come from various donors including some who may live in the community. Grants or government assistance may also play a role. Lastly, any profits from operations such as the guest house, restaurant, and seminars will be used for construction and maintenance of community buildings, as well as for any purposes agreed upon by the whole community.

The community buildings will be constructed primarily around the lake, together within easy walking distance. A larger community such as shown at the bottom of the Community Layout page may eventually have a number of community buildings and public facilities in different areas around the lake.

Operation and Maintenance

All community members in an established community should contribute one day of service each week for the operation of community projects.  As we become less dependent on outside jobs, our “days off” will be more varied. Each household can decide on a particular day of the week and volunteer to not only assist, but actually run a particular operation. For example, a restaurant is one of the most labor-intensive operations. It may take 8-10 people to operate it nicely, which might be 2-3 households. If it can be done by 2 households, then 14 households would be needed to volunteer for the restaurant; all of them only one day per week. It is also possible to have one household run the restaurant every day, for example, and have others help by maintaining that household's land and gardens. Any variety of methods is possible if everyone agrees.  

The various services should not be frequently rotated.  For example, one family may run the restaurant every Thursday. If they change to another community service, for example maintaining the lake, they should first train the family that is going to take their Thursday in the restaurant. This allows for everyone to become expert in particular areas and therefore operate them nicely, as opposed to everyone volunteering for a different community service each week, which is very difficult to manage.

More than one family may have the same community service on the same day. In our example above, it may take three families to run the restaurant nicely for one day. They would all work together to perform the various services as needed.

There are many varieties of community service, ranging from record-keeping, to grounds maintenance, to security, to disaster preparation, to public operations such as a restaurant, tours or gift shop.  There is something for everyone. In larger communities that have a Community Council (see Government) the council will be involved in organizing, supporting, and personally leading the community services.

All revenue from such community operations can go to a community development fund, or be used in any way the community decides, including paying people.  Since most communities will start out as a democracy, the use of such funds is entirely up to each community’s voting members. They should be used primarily for community development and maintenance needed according to time, place, and circumstance, especially for materials for new buildings, general maintenance, future purchases of additional land, etc. However, they can also be used for any legitimate purpose a community decides, including distribution to all the members, or payment to those doing the services.

Secondary Purposes

Some of the community buildings will be used as residences in the event of a catastrophic emergency in the cities.  Therefore such potential use must be factored in to the design of all community buildings. It is extremely important that we accommodate our Supporters as well as non-members who are on the Friends and Family list. In particular, funds coming from Supporters MUST be used to secure a suitable arrangement for their lodging in community buildings in an emergency, and the finances and financial reporting on such activities must be transparent and reported to all community members. Please see the page on Supporters for more information.

Next - (Development) Governance