Hello! We want to thank all of you again for your interest in and excitement about The Raw Vegan Village. The response has been overwhelming! It seems that what raw vegans need more than anything is a social network, - a supportive environment in a like-minded community! We hope this small village will be a model for many more to come!

We have recently (Sept 5-7 2008) had our first gathering of our core group at our home in Ojai, California! It was amazing, and inspiring, and unbelievable, in respect to the energy and skills of each member of this project!

The Property

We have a really beautiful piece of property located in Ojai, California on over 100 acres surrounded by the National Forest on three sides. We currently (September 2008) have this property in escrow. We have a core group of 12 parties (singles, couples, and families) who have bought into this property together. We envision creating a retreat center on a section of the property that will cater to 20 to 40 retreat guests at a time. The retreat center will not be in sight of the other houses. The map above is not to scale and does not reflect the size or shape of the structures. This property is large enough so that no house has to be in sight of another house. The land and the climate is perfect for planting hundreds of trees. These trees can range from sub-tropical fruit trees like oranges, and lemons, to exotic fruits like cherimoyas, zapotes, loquats, and guavas. There is a stream that runs right through the center of the property and our main source of water will be spring-sourced well water that is under the property in abundance. The average temperature is 70 degrees all year round with the lows being in the forties in the evening in the winter and the highs being around 110 in the summer.

The Retreat, The LLC, Bringing Down The Costs!

One of the main problems that we were confronted with was how to bring the cost of the housing down so that more people could share in this project. What we came up with was a retreat center that would have space for 20-40 guests and 4 live-in staff. The retreat center will also have a summer program for overweight kids as well as a series of different types of workshops to help people go raw and stay raw. Thirty percent of the profits from the retreat center would go to the people who have bought into the Raw Vegan Village. Another twenty percent of the profits would go to the residents of the Raw Vegan Village who want to work in some aspect of running the retreat center. This retreat center could realistically support everyone living in the village. With all the different skills of the owners, and with the press-worthiness of the village, this would be the best raw retreat in the world, and would be booked solid.

This return on investment would take the form of dividends being paid on shares of the LLC which would own both the retreat center and the raw vegan village.

We have been able to get the cost of building the houses down from $600 a square foot to $200 dollars a square foot. The core group members have bought shares in the LLC that will allow them to own either a house or a unit in the common house. They will receive a return on their investment as the retreat center starts to generate an income. This will allow us to purchase the land through a mortgage which is how we have been able to significantly bring down the cost of the houses. If at any time someone chooses to sell his or her shares then they could in fact sell their house by selling their shares in the LLC. We have a waiting list of over 300 people who want to be a part of this village.

This business-design is a new paradigm blending real estate and business, in which a person can own land through the value of their skills rather than through their money alone. In a world which is shifting from valuing materials to valuing ideas and creativity, this is a model that we believe can be a solution to the foremost issues facing everyone at this time - down-sizing, financial uncertainty, oil dependence, climate change, and food supply.

We are valuating the total shares of the LLC at around 20 million dollars. This is because we feel at the very least this is what the property will be worth when all of the building is completed.

Since we have had over three hundred responses from people wanting to live in the village we have had to take people on a first come first served basis. There will be rentals and work trade spaces available as well as a section of the common house set aside for young people who want to work on farming this land. We think that by using this format we will be able to have a nice diversity of people making this co-housing community the best it can be.

The Common House

The Common House will always be open to all of the residents of the community. Each individual's or family's house will be their totally private dwelling and will be respected as such. The place to interact will primarily be the common house. This Common House will have a kitchen and large dining room, a large living room with a library, a children's activity area, and three or four apartments or rental units that will basically pay the mortgage on this facility. The village residents are in the process of collectively deciding what other areas should be included in the common house; perhaps some office spaces, a food co-op, or a school-room for the children in the community.

Film Production Studio Business

There are a number of core group members who are interested in working in film production. We will also set up a production studio in the common house. This will be another source of income for the community. It also helps to bring the cost of living in Southern California down to a more affordable level. We feel that by having a retreat center and a media production studio we will also be able to share this raw food lifestyle with a much larger number of people than the actual land will be able to accommodate.

Explaining the LLC Concept (we are now sold out, except for one home which is not totally spoken for as of this writing)

There will be 20 million shares in the LLC (Limited Liability Corporation), representing the 20 million dollars that the LLC is valuated at. If you want a 2000 square foot home, you would pay $200 a square foot, which comes to $400,000. You would make a 10% down-payment on this, and begin mortgage payments when you move in (in apx. 2 years). This gives you your house plus 400,000 shares of the LLC. After a year of living in the village, if the retreat center and production studio are for instance earning two million a year, the valuation of the LLC increases by 10 times the annual revenues, which would come out to $20,000,000. In addition if the land and home value of the whole 117 acres doubles, and was worth $40,000,000, you would add that on which comes to $60,000,000 as the total valuation on the LLC. At that point your 400,000 shares would be worth $60,000,000 divided by the original 20,000,000 shares which comes to $3.00 per share, multiplied by your 400,000 shares which comes out to $1,200,000. That is what you could sell your house for at that point. This more closely represents the price of an upscale green home in nature here in the Ojai Valley, than the current price we are offering the houses at, which is extremely low for this market.

Custom Green Eco Spa Houses!

Near this land are a number of land parcels for single-family dwellings that we propose to build unique custom designed eco/green/spa houses on. These houses will sell to the upscale market. They will have all of the latest green innovations and be architectural jewels, with indoor green houses, lap pools, saunas & gyms. These houses will also have total privacy and amazing 360 degree views (see photo below).

If you are interested in applying to be a member of this raw vegan village, or would like more information about our custom green spa homes, please call Jinjee at 805-798-7893 or email Storm!

In Joy!

Jinjee and Storm

http://www.TheGardenDiet.com

Delicious Loquats, one of hundreds of exotic fruits that grow in Ojai - my kids' favorite!