by Anthony Weston
December 3rd’s workday began before lunch on a sunny and brisk day. Paul was cutting firewood early on; Anthony arrived before lunch to set up the new loo; Charles and Christina soon arrived with their two-year-old grandson Jaxon; then Vanessa and Lizel, Hope, Julie, Margret, Randy, Rita, and HM old-timer Christian along with his daughter Alison all showed up to general acclaim. Lots of good food!
After lunch we split 
into 
work groups, three people to mark off the western half of the village path on the new site plan, afterwards joining the rest in cutting and removing the overgrown saplings in the Far Field that were blocking or slowing down the mowing Jeffry has been doing. Jeffry soon brought over the tractor and he and Anthony shared mowing until about 4:30, while everyone else cut and pulled out small pine trees — some so nice that they took them home for Xmas trees, or to put out for others to take.
Then, bonfire back at the Fire Circle as the cold grew sharp again, and a few of us remained for dinner and a stay-over. Much accomplished, many thanks to all!
After the October workshop, the community was faced with a host of specific design questions concerning Homes and the Common House. In addition, some members had expressed concerns, anxieties, and misgivings about the direction of the design work, and especially about the aesthetic look and feel of the proposed homes. After considering whether to slow down the design process, members of the General Circle and the Planning, Design, and Development Circle (PDD) made a commitment to explore member concerns while simultaneously addressing as many questions as possible, in order to provide direction to the Architects so they could prepare for the November workshop. 
pitch roof (a shed roof style); the Storage for All scheme featured a 12/12 pitch roof (a gable roof style, which was the steepest of the three); and the PV (PhotoVoltaic) Delight scheme featured a 6/12 pitch roof. They shared street-level drawings and el
evations to help us get a feel for walking and living amidst a cluster of the homes in each scheme. The third scheme, PV Delight, provided the most roofs with good south-facing solar access plus the best roof angle for solar gain at 99%, though the other two roofs also did well at 95% solar gain for this region. Street Smart seemed to provide more variety in the size and connections of the homes, which many members found visually compelling, and was also the most cost-effective design option. Storage for All provided the most attic storage, but many members were concerned 
with the higher cost and lower efficiency of those designs. Members discussed the balance of multiple elements in the designs, including sustainability, storage, cost, and visual impact, and the group was ultimately drawn to a blend of the Street Smart and PV Delight schemes.
included added storage space and bathrooms closer to the kitchen/dining room. In addition, the Common House designs raised questions about the location and design of the guest rooms, the size and location of the laundry room, and the location of the library/meeting room. The two designs also offered different options for the overall shape of the building and how much it should extend and enclose the village green. We left with questions to be addressed before the next workshop, and are working to provide the architects with our preferences for these designs so they can prepare for our next meeting together.
In the November darkness, two dozen members and friends gathered at Arcadia Common House for the gifts of community — companionship, excellent food, and drinks galore. Candles lit up the tables and late-fall flowers brightened the room. Succulent dishes and kind conversation warmed our bodies and hearts. Favorite foods from Fickle Creek Farm turkey to several types of squash, potatoes, stuffing, veggies, and a splendid outpouring of desserts delighted our senses and filled us with good things. 
Marsha, John, Maria Teresa, Margret, Jeffry, Michael and Hope. Ben Rickard and Noah Ranells from Fickle Creek Farm joined us for a late dinner around the festive campfire. The conversations, stories and singing carried us into the late hours. Countless stars twinkled in the overhead darkness.
Major accomplishments for day included:
inter rye) on the garden beds
used for summer irrigation
Special thanks to:
commendations to Geri and Rita for avid gardening and trail clearing
delicious maitake soup!
We finished the evening with a rousing rendition of a Halloween round (slightly adjusted he
re in honor of our namesake):
In early September, Hart’s Mill members also met together to make a host of specific decisions around Site Plan, Common House Design, and Home Design, and we passed along our preferences to the architects. So, by mid-October, we were very excited to see what the architects had come up with.
October 1, I attended a workshop on Ecovillages at Pickard’s Mountain Eco-Institute. The workshop was led by two energetic, young facilitators. Cynthia and Nick are active in GEN, the Global Ecovillage Network, and Cynthia is on GEN’s international board.
aving short-term, affordable housing in the community; creating education and internship programs; providing entrepreneurship opportunities and infrastructure that welcomes young people, including community businesses with jobs designated to support a few young people financially; and hosting National/International ecovillage events and gatherings at Hart’s Mill. I look forward to working with Hart’s Millers in making many of these ideas manifest in our community.
began the good work of closing down the summer garden. As more folks arrived, work switched to the main project of the morning: clearing brush and trees from the dam. Thanks to Margret, Donna, Lindsey, Tom, Steven, Ben, and Anthony, we cleared virtually the “whole dam thing”. Hope took other visitors, LaTandra and her daughter, Marilyn, for a good trail walk and tour. Well done, everyone!
