Ground Breaking March 15, 2013
The old farm house was rotated 90°, moved nearer the street, and there restored to its former grace
David and Susan Burwen thank architect Chuck Durrett, planners and administrators of Mountain View, and archiects and engineers of Barry Swenson Builder for great work during the long process that led to ground breaking
Mayor John Inks brings greetings
from the City of Mountain View
Barry Swenson Builder provided golden shovels for the ceremonial first dig, along with copious refreshments for the attending crowd
Project Approved
Mountain View City Council, at its meeting of September 27, 2011, voted 7 to 0 to accept our construction application.
For more details, click Silicon Valley’s First Cohousing Project Wins Approval .
Our Scrap Book of Notes and Milestones
Construction Drawings
Delivered to City
On October 3, 2012 Calderon LLC and Barry Swenson Builder delivered to the city of Mountain View the complete construction plans, including all the revisions and corrections the City had requested.
Rolling the scrolls: Bob Hightower AIA (Managing Architect for BSB) and Susan Burwen (for 445 Calderon Manager, Inc.) needed a handcart to transport the rolls of construction drawings to the City of Mountain View offices.
Final Map Accepted
At its regular meeting of December 10, 2012 the Mountain View City Council accepted the final map for our project.
Contract with Builder
Our development arm, 445 Calderon LLC, signed a Design-Build Contract with Barry Swenson Builder (BSB) of San Jose. BSB built the complex based on the conceptual design by McCamant & Durrett.
Signing: David Gibson, VP of BSB, and David Burwen, President of 445 Calderon Manager, Inc. Behind them: Bob Hightower, Architect.
Construction loan approved
In December 2012, arrangements for financing were completed with Mechanics Banks of Walnut Creek. They lent $13.5 million towards construction costs.
Outdoor reception
Neighbors and friends met at the site July 24, 2012, to look at our plans for the project
New life for an old house
The Mountain View Historical Association’s Spring 2011 Newsletter had an article about the way the old Bakotich farm house has been incorporated into plans for the Mountain View Cohousing Community.
MVCC at “Rock-It to the Future” Parade
MVCC members joined the floats parading along Castro Street through downtown Mountain View to celebrate innovations for the future, sustainability, robotics, music, and community.
DO tread on me!
MVCC members check out some of the alternatives for flooring in their dwellings.
Greenbelt Alliance
The San Francisco Bay Greenbelt Alliance described MVCC's project at Grow Smart: “Building cohousing at 445 Calderon” and added MVCC to its list of endorsed projects.
Stevens Creek “Trailblazer”
MVCC has twice been represented at the annual Trailblazer race along Stevens Creek Trail, which passes east of the MVCC property.
AARP story on cohousing
includes discussion of
Mountain View
Cohousing Community
A five-part article in the January 31, 2011 issue of the AARP Online Bulletin discusses several different cohousing projects, including Mountain View Cohousing Community.
Although AARP gave their article the title “Elder Cohousing,” the article itself says:
Don’t be fooled by the word “senior.”
Many opting for this arrangement are in their 50s, 60s and early 70s and often still work.
(MVCC is not designated “senior” housing.)
The third section of the article describes the involvement of Suzy and David Burwen and the huge effort they’ve put into our project.