> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Where everyone knows more than your name - URL: https://www.smdp.com/where-everyone-knows-more-than-your-name/ - Published: 2007-01-23T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T23:53:14.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: Community, Pico, #archive-import *Sharing friendships until they can share their homes HOMEWARD BOUND* PICO BOULEVARD Imagine a community in which neighbors know more about each other than their first name; where its residents are more than casual acquaintances, but friends whom they could trust. Such a utopia has been a dream for Santa Monica resident Robert Moskowitz and his life partner, Rayni Joan, who in the past couple of years have bought into a growing national trend of collaborative living called “cohousing.” The concept of cohousing incorporates the benefits of individual home ownership with the idea that residents should not live in isolation. In cohousing communities, residents are usually involved in the design, development and ongoing operation of the project. The intent is to allow neighbors to form bonds by actively participating in the maintenance and use of common facilities like the garden, kitchen and pool. It’s similar to a college dormitory where the students own their dorm rooms that come equipped with its own kitchen and bathroom. There are more than 90 cohousing communities in the United States, 18 in California. Of the 42 cohousing groups in California, 24 are still in the planning or construction phases. It’s an attractive idea to Moskowitz, who was surprised to learn a few years ago that neither cohousing nor a similar type of development existed in Santa Monica. “I couldn’t believe there wouldn’t be one in Santa Monica,” Moskowitz said on Sunday. Seeing a void, Moskowitz and Joan formed a group to lay the foundation of what would be the first cohousing development in the city’s borders. “We love Santa Monica,” Joan said. “Part of what Robert and I are looking for is a sustainable lifestyle where we can walk everywhere in Santa Monica.” Since its inception almost one year ago, the Santa Monica Cohousing \[SaMoCoHo\] group has grown from a membership consisting solely of Moskowitz and Joan to a list of more than 50 people. “I’ve always been interested in community,” said Joan Temple, who lives in an apartment in West LA. “I like the idea of helping each other.” Temple became interested in community housing a few years ago when she found a cohousing group in Pasadena. Though the cohousing group in Pasadena never realized its full potential, Temple heavily considered the move even though it would’ve drastically changed her lifestyle. About eight members meet every three weeks to discuss the logistics in developing a cohousing community in Santa Monica, something they acknowledge will be a complicated undertaking considering the scarcity of land in the city and the stringent rent control laws. Rent control law prohibits new property owners from taking their units off the rental market. The group is trying to work around the regulations and is considering several alternatives, including tearing down an apartment building and replacing it with a non-rental cohousing complex, and colonizing an existing condominium. But Santa Monica Cohousing members have not given up on city officials, asking them to bend the rules against pulling rental units off the market. Their reasoning is that a cohousing project fits well within the city’s goals of encouraging community participation. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way,” Moskowitz said. Aside from the planning involved in developing a housing complex, the SaMoCoHo group meetings also provide the future would-be neighbors an opportunity to acquaint and become friends. On Sunday, the SaMoCoHo group held its monthly meeting at the UnUrban Coffeehouse on Pico Boulevard. Because of the holidays, the group had not gathered for a few months. Members greeted each other like long lost friends, asking about personal relationships and talking about literature. “I like to be in a place where my neighbors and I don’t feel isolated,” said Donald Cram, who has participated in cohousing groups in San Diego, Santa Monica and Pasadena.“When people say they know their neighbors, what they mean is they know their first name.” The group includes members of all ages and all walks of life. One of the youngest members — Yuliya Sullivan of West LA, joined the group with her husband a few months ago. The Sullivans have been seeking a community for the past four years, a time in which they moved numerous times while they both were finishing up school. Sullivan sees cohousing as the perfect environment in which to raise her children; an environment where all neighbors get along and understand differences and embrace diversity. “I would like to live someplace where neighbors and I are on friendly terms,” she said. “I want to live with people who respect and value differences.” *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 23, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/012307.pdf?ref=smdp.com)