Hart's Mill Village and Farm is a proposed development by local residents seeking to create an intergenerational community with environmentally friendly design. The development will include approximately 80 single-family homes organized around a village center on 175 acres, with most homes owner-occupied and some set aside for transitional housing. In addition to the homes, the development will include a working farm and forests managed by the community association to provide food and fiber for residents while practicing sustainable agriculture.

1. Hart’s Mill Village and Farm
Presentation to the
Orange County Board of Commissioners
May 26, 2015

2. Who We Are
• Local Triangle residents
• Singles, couples and families of all ages
• Professionals in education, business, health,
technology, farming, city planning, and the arts
living independent and modern lives
• Our desire is to create an old-fashioned
neighborhood where people actually know each
other and do things together

3. This is Our Future Home
• We are creating Hart’s Mill for ourselves;
we are not commercial developers
• Currently we have about 45 members
• We have a very personal long-term interest in
creating a livable community
• We want to be good neighbors

4. Our Model
Hart’s Mill is being designed and organized in a
way that is different from a conventional
residential development, as distinguished by our:
• Guiding principles
• Legal structures
• Governance method
• Site plan design

5. Guiding Principles
Social: create a diverse and collaborative
community
Environmental: restore and protect ecosystems
Economic: adopt simpler, less expensive
lifestyles and enable income-generating activities
Service: become a model for others through
example, education, and outreach

6. Legal Structures
• Undivided ownership of all land & common facilities
• Active management by the community association
• At least 80% of homes will be owner occupied
• Common ownership of up to 20% of homes for
transition housing
• Farm/forest operating agreements closely managed
by the association
• Conservation &/or farm preservation easements

7. Dynamic Self Governance
• Developed in a business context to promote
transparency, equivalence and efficiency
• Increasingly being applied in cohousing
communities
• We have invested in community-wide training
and ongoing consulting
• Has proven to be a very effective method for
organizing and achieving our goals

8. Village Plan

9. Village Site Plan Detail

10. Village Street

11. Energy:
An Integrated Approach
Reduce demand
• Superinsulated building envelopes
• Climate responsive design (solar, wind, humidity)
• High efficiency equipment
• Operational and lifestyle choices
Produce energy onsite
• Stand-alone and building-integrated photovoltaics
• Solar hot water

12. Water Supply
Reduce domestic & irrigation demand
• Low-flow plumbing fixtures
• Rainwater catchment & design for infiltration
• Climate-sensitive landscape design
• Lifestyle choices
Provide for fire protection
• Distributed small ponds to supplement hydrants
• Access to large pond with standpipe
• Keep option open for community well, if needed

13. Farm and Woodland
Purposes
• Provide food & fiber for the community
• Practice & demonstrate restorative, sustainable
approaches to agriculture and silvaculture
• Provide employment opportunities on the land
Characteristics
• Small-scale, integrated plant & animal systems
• Farmstead structures: barn, workshop, sheds,
greenhouse, farmhouses
• No onsite retail sales

14. Hart’s Mill Village & Farm provides many benefits
to Orange County:
• Open space and farmland preservation
• Low-impact development that protects natural
resources & reduces demand on infrastructure
• Variety of efficient housing choices for all ages
• Live/work opportunities
• Innovative model for future development