A month ago, Mary and I visited the "Abundance Ecovillage" in Fairfield, Iowa. We spent a night in one of the homes that is used as a Hostel. We had a wonderful time and it gave us a chance to experience Ecovillage living. I'll add a link to their website at the bottom, there is a lot of good information on their site.
The Ecovillage sits on 15 about acres and they currently have 13 homes built. They have 3 wind turbines and a large roof-full of solar PV, with battery storage and generator backup. Each home has solar thermal for their hot water, rainwater collection for their water needs, a constructed wetlands for wastewater and Earthtubes for their ventillation. They utilize propane for their stove, dryer, and heating. The homes are very well constructed with R-30 walls and R-50 ceiling.
We weren't sure what to expect in the home that is off the grid and existing on meager resources, but we found it incredibly normal. The home was beautiful, modern, and sylish. The energy efficient lights were plentiful, the water hot, room temp comfortable, and we enjoyed watching a movie on a big screen tv. We definately didn't give up anything in comfort.
The weather was cold, rainy, and windy while we were there, so there wasn't a lot of residents out and about. We did spend some time talking to out host, Stacey, who owns the hostel and lives next door. Stacey and her husband Bill (who was out of town), moved from a 4,000 sq ft house after their children grew up into an 850 sq ft home at the Ecovillage. They are very happy with life at the Ecovillage and when their children come home for a visit they stay at the hostel. While Stacey and Bill are empty-nesters, we also saw other residents who were young and old, singles and families.
Mary and I came away from this experience determined that this was how we wanted to live our lives in the Rochester area. We acknowledged that being 300 miles north of Fairfield Iowa introduces some additional challenges, it's all doable. Being in a colder climate, we would probably want attached garages which are not available at the Abundance Ecovillage. The other improtant aspect that we want to incorporate is the central heating system. Other than that, they have accomplished what we would like to do and are very happy with the outcome. We can do this, it just takes the right people and the determination to get it done.
http://www.abundance-ecovillage.com/home.html
Enjoy
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