This weekend Isha and I hosted our first dinner party for six here in T42. And it turns out it was actually trickier in our house than it had been in Bayside Bungalow, but we made it work and had a great time, too!Isha and I spent most of the afternoon Saturday prepping things up, using mostly ingredients from our winter CSA from Full Plate Farm and we had fun working in kitchen together.
Tiny House & ADU Design Workshops in Feb at PCC
Winter is a great time for your design process if you'd like to get your project launched this coming spring or summer.
This Winter Term I'm teaching two fun weekend design classes through Portland Community College:
- February 10-11: Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Design Course
- February 17-18: Tiny House Design Course
In these intensive two day workshops we cover many of the considerations for designing a small space, visit with special guests who have created ADUs or tiny homes (respectively), and go through a set of design exercises to help you develop a design of your own.
A New Job in the New Year
The weeks between Winter Solstice and New Years Day are often reflective time for me anyhow, but that's been especially true for me this year. For one thing, I have my new spouse to dream and scheme with. Isha and I have been making our lists and checking them twice as we identify our goals, what we're going to commit to, and what we're going to let go.The other big life change this year is that I am delighted to be starting a new job as the Operations Coordinator for Green Hammer tomorrow!
Testifying in Support of Small Homes in Oregon
The week before last I caught a ride to our state capitol Salem, OR with Kol Peterson... We went to the Oregon Residential & Manufactured Structures Board to testify regarding the provisions drafted by BCD regarding HB 2737 - the small housing bill in Oregon. I can't make it tomorrow so instead I sent the following letter today.
ADU & Tiny House Design Classes at PCC
Have you been dreaming about an ADU or tiny house for years now? If these long rainy days have you noodling and doodling, come join us for a design class to start making it more real! Fall is a great time to begin your design process if you'd like to get your project launched this coming spring or summer. This Fall Term I'm teaching two fun weekend design classes through Portland Community College!
Tiny House Jamboree 2017
I had a great time getting inspired by people in the Pro Session I facilitated on Friday and the Design Tips & Tricks session I presented twice on Saturday. On Sunday I really enjoyed picking the brains of people living in vans and skoolies and attending sessions like the Diversity Panel at the Village Stage and Courtney Carver's Project 333 presentation. I spent most of Sunday morning exploring tiny houses in DIY Village with new pals Kim and Stephanie, whom I'd met in my sessions.
Skeletons in the Code Closet: Obsolescence & Opportunity in Trailer Home Regulation
This paper was originally written by Lina Menard of Niche Consulting LLC in June of 2012 as a term paper for a course she took as part of her Masters of Urban and Regional Planning Masters program at Portland State University. The course, USP 510: Planning & The Housing Market, taught by Dr. Lisa Bates, focused on the intersection between planning, regulation, and affordable housing. This version of the paper was updated in January 2015.
Tiny House Eviction Stay Guidelines
Well, that was a nice 48 hours of elation before the details came out about Portland's Declared Stay on Tiny House Evictions! Turns out there's a limit of one tiny house or RV per residence, which means no tiny house communities. Oh, sadness! In a nutshell, while the city is figuring out permanent regulations regarding tiny houses, they won't enforce Title 29.50.050 (which prohibits occupation of recreational vehicles) as long as:
Portland Declares Stay on Tiny House Evictions
Yesterday Portland City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly declared a stay on evicting people from tiny houses, RVs, and tents on private property! It has been illegal for people to occupy tiny homes in Portland, OR according to 29.50.050 Illegal Residential Occupancy, a snippet of code in the Portland Maintenance Code. Portland declared a state of emergency for housing two years ago and there was a recognition that it was backwards to be kicking people out of the affordable housing options they'd created for themselves. So yesterday Commissioner Eudaly agreed to Leaven Community's request that we be supported as we step out of the shadows. She announced they'll work with us to figure out a long-term regulatory solution and meanwhile they're going to stop enforcing Title 29.
Good Magazine Looks at Tiny House Costs
Several weeks ago I was interviewed by Lauren Modery of Good Magazine for a piece on the true costs of building or buying and dwelling in a tiny house... She did a great job identifying the material costs, time costs, labor costs, and parking costs, many of which are glossed over when the media gets captivated by tiny homes.