​Anne and other members reflect upon Breaking Ground, the long-awaited milestone we celebrated with ceremony on November 19, 2021. All but 4 member households were represented with at least one family member at the ceremony. 
 
Not surprising at a ground-breaking ceremony, many members’ most vivid recollection of the day was the presence of the backhoe.  Apparently, the fascination with earth-moving equipment never grows old and is NOT limited to little boys!

​Members gather before the event, is that fog or rain threatening? Shovels are ready, excitement is palpable. The fog lifts and blue skies emerge.  Racheli and Zvi were in Tel Aviv on the big day, but Rachel’s son showed up and shared the ceremony with them via WhatsApp. ​

Member Scott Walker, always nimble on his feet, MC’d the ceremony with aplomb. For those present the Land Acknowledgment was a significant event. Sandra Lee who helped plan the groundbreaking explains:
 
“The Land Acknowledgment was given to us by Charlie Toledo, a Native American woman, who stipulated: 1). That it be read by a Native American 2). That the Native American who presented it give her/his background/credentials as a Native American. Charlie communicated with Lisa before the ceremony, instructing her to put the feather 🪶 on the ground and have a ‘lit candle’ present. These may seem like minor points but profoundly significant to Lisa and Charlie.”

​The backhoe is a very fitting backdrop for these 2 women, each a force of nature in her own right. Anne Geraghty, the prime mover for the creation of Washington Commons on the left, introduced by Katie McCamant, the prime mover for CoHousing in the US.  After acknowledging a long list of visionaries and supporters, Anne and the rest of the membership grabbed their shovels and received a hard-hat courtesy of Danny Milman of UD+P. So equipped, we assembled for the actual breaking of ground!

Our celebration began with a Welcome - Daa-nu’-yash -- from Lisa Walker, Washington Commons member and descendent of the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians of Oregon.  She directed our attention to our feet, had us become in touch with the land, and imagine all the indigenous peoples that have stood here before us.  She acknowledged that we gathered on the ancestral and unceded land of the Patwin, Maidu and Wintu Peoples past and present.  She read a Land Acknowledgement created by Charlie Toledo, Founder and Director of the Suscol Intertribal Council of the Napa Valley.  This acknowledgement sets the foundation for our community in the larger context of this place reflecting on how we came to be here and inspires us to live in solidarity, equity and justice with the Patwin, Maidu and Wintu Peoples. 

“With open hearts, respect and gratitude to the all the ancestors, indigenous land stewards, and all those who are helping us to build our new village upon this land, shu’ nuu-xwanin-la, in the language of the Siletz Tribe – We Thank You.”
 
Chris Ledesma, Mayor Pro Tem, spoke about what we are creating and how it embodies the City's vision for housing variety that meets the diverse needs of the community.  He pledged the City's commitment to continue its work to create a vital urban center in what he called the "soul of West Sacramento"... the Washington District.  We are thrilled to be a part of the dynamic community that is West Sacramento.

​
OUR DEVELOPMENT TEAM
KatieMcCamant, CoHousing Solutions, https://www.cohousing-solutions.com/
Danny Milman & Joren Bass, UD+P  https://www.udplp.com/
Steve & Pam Harrison, Harrison Construction, https://www.harrisoncon.com/
Shelly Parks, CoVision Consulting, https://www.covisionconsulting.com/
Mahlum Architects, https://www.mahlum.com/
MFA Architecture, http://www.mf-arc.net/
McProud & Associates, https://mcproudassociates.com
Harris & Sloan, https://harrisandsloan.com/
Turley & Associates, http://turleymech.com/
Peabody Engineering, https://www.peabodyeng.com/
Bollard Acoustical, https://bacnoise.com/
Miller Starr Regalia, https://www.msrlegal.com/
Placer Title, https://www.placertitle.com/
And soon….. Five Star Bank, https://www.fivestarbank.com/

​The Ambrose-Winters family hails from Davis, CA. We have lived in Village Homes for the past 18 years where we have fostered many dogs, fixed many bikes and grown many tomatoes. Our daughter (in the photo with us) graduated from Earlham college in 2020 and is in a teacher training program in the Kansas City school district where she is preparing to be a middle school science teacher. Alec used to practice geology by remediating “dirty ground water” sites. Becki is a professor of education at UC-Davis focused on working with teachers to develop anti-racist approaches to math teaching. We joined Washington Commons so we could have a one-story domicile with friendly neighbors. Our experience in the Davis Friends Meeting has given us first-hand knowledge of the joys and challenges of corporate decision making. We look forward to putting what we’ve learned into practice with our new community at Washington Commons.

I am a librarian with the San Mateo County Libraries.
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My interests are science (biology, astronomy), history, aviation, and tinkering with computers and automobiles. I graduated from UC Davis with a BS in biology, continuing at California State University East Bay, dropping out for library school at San Jose State University.
 
I'm an inactive private pilot, became licensed in 1968 while a student at UC Davis, and received an instrument rating in 1975. Flying clubs gave me the opportunity to fly single-engine Cessnas, Pipers, Grumman-Americans, and a retractable-gear Mooney and Beechcraft Bonanza.
 
I am captivated by (and am good at) editing. For several years I edited a flying club newsletter, and now enjoy editing and sometimes writing blogs for the San Mateo County Libraries. Each email I send is edited.
 
Appreciating our connections as living beings with all of earthly life comforts me. Evening walks see me gazing at stars and planets, knowing I am a part of the world, and made of elementary particles nearly 14 billion years old.
 

​What has drawn me to cohousing is the sense of intentional community; A community of people who want to live together, help one another and learn together, celebrate and work with one another and reach out to the community at large. Also, the idea of living in a small space, sustainably and lightly on the land ranks high on my priority list. Cooking together and sharing meals as a community is a big draw for me. Sharing and caring – that’s what it’s all about.
 
I am intrigued by the location of Washington Commons, a lively urban neighborhood with access to public transportation and walking/biking trails and cafes.
 
I love to hike, cook, read, go birding and participate in Spanish conversation.  I volunteer with family support for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).   I have two ornery elderly cats who are not going to adjust well condominium life, but so be it.  I am of late involved in a group studying spiritual eldering which emphasizes lifelong learning, brain-mind development and consecrated service to humanity.  I feel that life in Washington Commons would foster this new paradigm of aging—and I hope that some younger folks with youth and spirit will join us to spur us on as we move forward in these challenging times .

​It was Nancy’s big sister Carol who introduced us to cohousing a couple of years ago. We made some casual visits to other projects, but it was Carol once more who spurred us to take a closer look at Washington Commons when she decided to become an explorer earlier this year. We were impressed with the progress and professionalism, and the location that meets all our needs in terms of access to services, transit, and walkability. The added bonus we’ve discovered since joining this community is the community itself – people we’ve started to see socially and look forward to hanging with once we move into Washington Commons.
 
We were born and raised in California and earned our undergraduate degrees at the University of California, Nancy at Davis and John at Berkeley. As young adults we also lived on the east coast and in Nancy’s case, Italy and France. We both eventually ended up in Humboldt County, California, which is where we met and married and raised our son. We pursued our careers there, Nancy at College of the Redwoods, John as an employment lawyer, and both as community, political, and church activists. There we also developed a passionate interest in soccer (as players and spectators) and in soccer-related travel, using FIFA World Cups (men’s and women’s) as a reason for extended visits to France, Germany, South Africa, and Brazil.
 
We relocated to San Francisco 20 years ago, where John took a job with the state
Department of Industrial Relations and Nancy worked as a foreign languages instructor at City College of San Francisco. She also attended seminary and became an ordained Deacon in the Episcopal Church. We are now both retired, save for Nancy’s continuing part-time chaplaincy with a multi-faith street ministry.
 
As we contemplated relocating after retirement, Nancy rediscovered her fondness for the Sacramento Valley, where we’ve maintained a small vacation home the past few years. Nancy likes the outdoors, walking and hiking, and being in and around water, while John likes all these things with slightly less enthusiasm as well as the warmer weather. We have recently signed up to become volunteer docents with the Sacramento Valley Conservancy and are learning about the flora and fauna (especially the birds!) at Deer Creek Hills near our vacation home.
 
Our other passions now include spending time with our grandchildren, gardening and cooking (for Nancy), reading, sports, almost anything artistic, and travel.

Bea grew up in a close-knit community in El Paso, field tested cohousing in Davis, worked at establishing a cohousing community in Flagstaff, and joined Washington Commons in April.

​“The Sacramento area was my home in the 80’s and 90’s. I arrived chasing what had become one of my passions, whitewater rafting.  The South Fork of the American River boasts Class III boating in an invigorating and beautiful canyon and I spent hundreds of days on that water over the next 15 years.  ​

​​Cathy was involved with Southside Park Cohousing during its formation, explored Washington Commons last year, attended our March SABA Bike event, and became our most recent member in April. 
 
"My introduction to cohousing was in the early 90s.  I loved the concept of living in a people and environmentally friendly community and hoped someday I would have the opportunity to join one.  I have enjoyed living in an urban, walkable community in Midtown Sacramento for almost 30 years.  ​Washington Commons offers a similar environment on the other side of the river with the added benefit of having neighbors close by for mutual support and fun. ​

Erik Granum of UD+P, our development partner, shared insights into the ways that design elements foster and reinforce the social connection an essential characteristic of cohousing communities. 
 
A large group gathered over ZOOM to hear Erik talk about the subject. ​Erik introduced cohousing as ‘Intentionally designed living within a community comprised of private dwellings around shared spaces’.