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Formed: 1997 Established: 1997
Community of Urbana-Champaign Cooperative Housing (COUCH)
Champaign-Urbana, Illinois,
United States
Brooks Co-op in Urbana
 COUCH is the Community of Urbana Champaign Cooperative Housing and is an umbrella organization linking co-op houses in the Champaign-Urbana area, home of the University of Illinois. COUCH co-ops offer both students and non-students affordable, highly social, and democratically run housing options. Our co-ops operate on the Rochdale Principles of Cooperation (ICA Revision 1995) and emphasize consensus voting. Vegetarian and non-vegetarian houses are available, and regular house dinners are central to the social functioning of every co-op. Each of our houses has developed its own set of house rules and a unique house culture, but all are united under COUCH and NASCO, the North American Students of Cooperation.
 
Website: http://www.couch.coop/
Contact:
505 W Green St
Urbana, Illinois 61801 United States
Phone: 217-355-4628, 217-531-0553
Send an Email
Links:
COUCH: House Overview: An overview of our co-op houses with links to each co-ops web page
Nasco Properties: The North American Students of Cooperation, to which COUCH belongs
Last Updated:4/20/2007
 
Visitors Accepted
Visitor Process: Contact Liesel Hess, COUCH's Vice President of Outreach, to set up a time to visit some of our co-op houses. Email lieselkh7 [at) hotmail (dot] com
Affiliations: Inter-Cooperative Council (ICC-Michigan)
:: Inter-Cooperative Council (ICC-Texas)
:: Nickel City Housing Cooperative
:: North American Students of Cooperation
:: Qumbya Co-op
:: Santa Cruz Student Housing Cooperative
:: Student Cooperative Organization (SCO)

Population
Adult Members:
42
Child Members:
0
Non-member Residents:
0
Open to new adults:
Yes
Open to new children:
No
(Infants may be ok pending house approval)
Gender Balance:
52% M 48% F
Open to which gender(s):
All genders welcome
Ethnic Diversity:
29% identify as 'people of color'
(Many internationals)
Age Focus:
No Focus
(Most members do happen to be college students, but not all)
Age Restrictions:
No
Government
Decision Making:
By a group of elders or other leaders
Identified Leader:
Yes
(COUCH Board President, Chris Maffeo)
Leadership Core Group:
Yes
(COUCH Executive Board and House Representatives)
Labor and Money
Financial Style:
Members have independent finances
(Varies by house)
Open to Members with Pre-existing Debt:
Yes
Labor Contribution:
Expected
(Cooking and chores are shared equally; house maintenance projects shared equally)
Join Fee:
No
(All fees are included in the rent)
Regular Fees:
No
(COUCH is non-profit; just rent and improvement funds set at house level)
Land and Buildings
Urban
Land Owned By:
Another form of Non-profit
(Two houses are owned by NASCO Properties, but COUCH leases two houses from private landlords)
Number of Residences:
4
Cohousing:
No
Food, etc.
Share Community Meals:
Nearly all dinners
(Each house has its own house dinners. COUCH has monthly inter-house potlucks as well.)
Dietary Choice or Restrictions:
There are some dietary restrictions
(Some houses are strictly vegetarian, some are less strict, one is not vegetarian at all)
Dietary Practice:
Primarily vegetarian
(We only have one non-vegetarian house)
Alcohol Use:
Seldom used
Tobacco Use:
Seldom used
(Prohibited inside the houses)
Social Factors
Open to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and/or Transgender members:
Yes
Restrictions on Romantic Relationships (between consenting adults):
No
Shared Spiritual Path:
No
 
 
Brooks Co-op in Urbana
Brooks members in the yard
Harvest House in Urbana
Harvest members socializing
Phoenix House in Champaign
Phoenicians carving jack-o-lanterns together
La Casa in Urbana
All the La Casa folks together
Click an image to see it full size.


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