Sister Neighborhood: Expansion through Annexation (near Seattle, WA)
Songaia, a long-established cohousing neighborhood in Bothell, WA, was established in the late 1990s in what was then a rural area. Greater Seattle-area development has since pushed the Seattle/Redmond/Bellevue suburbs out to their doorstep. Faced with new development right nextdoor, the group started working with a neighbor to preserve the trees while creating new community-living options. Songaia homeowners also bought a house nextdoor ("Alpaca Place", they call it) and rent it out to people not ready for homeownership, as a kind of "try-before-you-buy" option for potential members to get to know the community, as well as accomodating members when no homes are available for sale.