Silver Spring

You can call it green. After all, the renovated residential building in south Silver Spring has a variety of eco-friendly, energy-efficient features. You could also call it silver, as the 56-unit condominium has received Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design Silver certification.

But while the newly opened Eastern Village has several common spaces and residents share some meals, you might not want to call it a "commune" -- that word apparently went out of style with tie-dye T-shirts.

The new term is cohousing, and the concept is one that appeals to the diverse mix of residents of the 7981 Eastern Ave. building.

"Cohousing is not a commune -- not an old hippie commune," said resident Paul Mathew during a Thursday morning tour of the building. Cohousing is simply a lifestyle developed in Denmark more than 25 years ago and imported to America in the late 1980s that balances private homeownership with community living, he said.

"A commune is shared property, this isn't. This is more flexible," Mathew said. "... I like the idea of knowing your neighbors and living in a community. It's the right mix of privacy and community."

While residents have lived there since November, the condominium, a former office building, officially opened Thursday morning where residents showcased the design features of the building and local officials and politicians touted the renovation as a revitalization success story.

"This project has it all," said Derick P. Berlage, chairman of the Montgomery County Planning Board, referring to the building's environmentally friendly features such as energy-efficient appliances and lighting, geo-thermal heating, a green rooftop garden and the proximity to public transportation; the affordability of some units (there are seven moderately priced dwelling units); and the renovation of an abandoned structure in an area that has had its share of derelict buildings.

"We had long felt there was potential in south Silver Spring, but it was difficult to get others interested because all you saw were empty office buildings," said Elizabeth B. Davison, director of the county's Department of Housing and Community Affairs. "This is a real exciting model of what can be done with a vision and people working together."

The building, which once housed the National Association of Social Workers, had been abandoned for decades before a groundbreaking ceremony in July 2003 for the renovation.

What Glenn Kreger, team leader for the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission's Community-Based Planning, recalled as "dreary," now boasts four floors of contemporary loft-style condominiums of various size with common space to encourage social interaction.

Community and privacy

Eastern Village Cohousing residents have their own units complete with modern kitchens, living rooms, bedrooms and bathrooms. But they share a 5,000-square-foot dining hall and kitchen, living room, library, kids' play room, game room, workshop, yoga room and exercise room, as well as a garden, hot tub and play area on the roof of the four-story building. The residents also share responsibilities such as building management and maintenance of the common areas.

But the most important collaboration was the vision for the community, Mathew said. Not only did residents choose the type of building they wanted to live in, they also worked with development partners Eco Housing Corporation of Bethesda and the Poretsky Building Group.

"A for-profit developer, arguably a progressive one, took the financial risk and developed [the building]," Mathew said, noting prices range from mid-$200,000 to mid-$400,000. "The difference is we gave a lot of input -- and headaches -- to the developer on options for the stuff inside."

Philosophically, residents, including founding members Stephan Fineberg Sylvan and his wife, Rachel, had an interest in living in an environmentally friendly building. They were also interested in creating a community of people who were like-minded and wanted to live where they knew their neighbors.

The builder used the existing structure and recycled it, gutting the building and renovating it using design elements such as energy-efficient appliances and lighting, a geo-thermal heat pump, floors made of fast-growing bamboo, a rooftop garden to collect -- instead of deflect -- rainwater, flower boxes on the railings of each floor's balcony walkway and ground-to-roof trellises for climbing vines. A courtyard area, which was once parking for the former office building, contains sculpture, landscaped grounds and a meandering walkway that leads from the street to the lobby -- there is no gate separating the community outside Eastern Village from the community inside.

For Mathew, the cohousing complex met all his criteria for a new home.

"I was looking for a place to buy and I thought, 'What are my options?'" said Mathew. He could have lived in a suburban townhouse, but would have felt the pressure of the daily commute and would have been removed from the city. He wanted an urban setting, but also wanted to have a relationship with his neighbors. The principles of environmental stewardship -- reduce, reuse and recycle -- also factored into the decision. He found all he wanted at Eastern Village.

"I fell in love with the place. The idea of living in an environmentally sound place was very appealing," Mathew said.

"So was the idea of caring for each other."