Why one founding member loves the Esquimalt site

Barb and Fiadh - her Irish Canadian girl, youngest of 9 grandkids.

My Cohousing Journey

Here’s the story of how I became a founding member of Esquimalt Village Cohousing.

When efforts began in January to find the perfect place for the next cohousing project in Greater Victoria, I was happily living in Ravens Crossing Cohousing in Sidney BC. As one of the founding members there, I was part of a small group who worked from 2017 to 2021 to build our intentional community dream for 35 households. You might be surprised that I decided to move from that completed development to start again in Esquimalt. I was!

There were two primary ‘pushers’ that made me consider the jump. Firstly, I loved the process of building a community the first time and saw another opportunity to work from the ground up. The design process, the construction and building the community itself (estimated move in 2028) all captivate me. I thought that with the first experience of Ravens I could contribute to another.

Barb and other members working together during our first design workshop.

The deciding factor for me was the Esquimalt building location. Esquimalt has a Township character all its own. It’s surrounded on all sides by ocean and joined to Victoria by several bridges. Its history, its size, its diverse citizenry and primarily its topography are for me! Garry Oak meadows, rock bluffs, its walking trails and the smell of the salt air are special.

Sidney was close to the airport yet triple-pane windows were a complete buffer. Esquimalt Village is on a main thoroughfare and triple-pane windows will do the same here.

Cohousing encourages us to live on a smaller footprint, and work and laugh together to make a difference in our world! If you share that vision, please join me!

— Barb

Ravens Crossing Cohousing Alumni
Esquimalt Village Cohousing Equity Member