Living at Valley Village

What is a Housing Co-operative?

A housing co-operative is a non-speculative project started by people joining together to provide housing for themselves. This is done by incorporating a legal company known as a co-operative, arranging the collecting of funds for a share purchase, arranging the mortgage and producing the type of housing desired.

The members who live in Valley Village own shares in the co-op. They do not own their individual units but rather a share of the entire development. This means that when it comes time for members to leave, their units cannot be sold for market value. Instead, their portion of the original share purchase is paid back to them by the co-op minus any charges that may be owing. It is part of the original philosophy of co-operatives that they exist to meet specific needs (such as affordable housing) and not financial and speculative ends which only serve to drive the price up and out of the each of the many people.

HOW DOES A CO-OPERATIVE OPERATE?

Co-operatives are run democratically. The principle of democratic control is a very important one to each co-op member, who has the opportunity to attend meetings, participate on committees, and run for the Board of Directors.

By participating at meetings, and on committees, each member has a say in the way the co-op is run. It is membership at large which establishes the by-laws, which govern the association's activities. A 9 member Board of Directors oversees Valley Village’s internal affairs. The Directors are elected by the Co-op membership annually. The Board of Directors is responsible for the overall operation of the co-op. Many co-ops, such as Valley Village, hire a property management company to handle some of the day-to-day details. However, the heart of the co-op is in its committees.

The committees look after all the individual aspects necessary for a smooth operation. Valley Village has several committees and sub-committees. Some are: Finance, Membership, Community Development, Newsletter, Member Relations, Fire and Security, Grounds', Building Maintenance, Social and Computer.

Although there are many committees and it appears the workload is awesome, in practice when everyone pulls his/her weight, a person's commitment to a committee usually takes only a few hours a month and this contribution is invaluable to the quality of life in the co-op. All members are encouraged to participate in every level of the decision making process, and day-to-day running of the co-op. Committee and Board meetings are held monthly with all interested members invited to attend. General Membership meetings are held two times a year.