We should have our own land, part I | Squat the Planet

We should have our own land, part I

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Kim Chee

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Like the title says....that's the idea. There are other things like funding, ownership, which piece of ground our heads might rest upon and how to put funds safely away with 100% transparency...all of which will need to be addressed. Obviously, there is much more to this thought than what is listed above. If you have ideas, tips, friendly advice or otherwise, kindly share.

If you have talents or skills which you think might be particularly useful, share them:)

If interest warrants it, I'm looking forward to part II.

**feel free to add awesome tags:)
 

EphemeralStick

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Well as we've learned Detroit is a completely possible option.

https://squattheplanet.com/threads/wanted-good-squatters-for-detroit.25393/

There are many ways of going about this as well as a multitude of options for what it we could accomplish. For instance, do we have a home base in a rural area or urban? What kind of climate do we want to live in?
Personally I would enjoy living in a warehouse setting in an urban environment. It would offer a lot of space for various projects, we could build a fortress like structure on the inside with various rooms that serve separate purposes. Having a large roof will also provide a lot of options for greenhouses, open gardens, solar panels, water collectors, and an assortment of other options!

It being in an City will also make it easier for practically anyone to get to and as long as it's a bit off the beaten path, like in an industrial area, we could have the privacy to be as loud and mischievous as we want! The hard part would be on deciding on a city. Obvious Detroit is a good option except for the harsh winter.

Winter will make it harder to do outdoor activities such as gardening and keeping animals. I've thought about doing a project similar to this on my own once I have the funds but having an StP Warehouse would be so much cooler.

What are some other ideas?
 

kaichulita

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Hm, I wouldn't want to live in a big city, but not too far from it either...
 
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Kim Chee

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Well as we've learned Detroit is a completely possible option.

I have a favorite place in mind, but it is more expensive. The weather is nice year round, blah blah.

It is expensive to get there though.

I do remember seeing properties in Detroit going dirt cheap to owner/occupants.

I'd be willing to temporarily disregard the place(s) I have in mind for a place which seems to be much more economically feasible.

Do you have any current info on these cheap properties in Detroit?

The option I was thibking about would take about $20k+ but could be oh so sweet.
 

Durp

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Like I been sayin, I already got 23 acres in an un zoned un restricted area. I hold the ownership and pay the taxes. I would love to set up an artist homestead collective, but mainly I find a bunch of lip flapping and no one actually willing to help with the hard manual labor of getting things off the ground.
 

Durp

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This is the one I've been eyeing, it's less than 10k, the building is 6,000 square feet but the lot size is 70,000. Put up some fencing, build some structures and it could be pretty awesome!

http://www.loopnet.com/Listing/19423980/15630-Woodrow-Wilson-Highland-Park-MI/

It has over $12k in back taxes the owner will be responsible for. Looks like $1 million to get it back up to code, and then you will still have to deal with zoning regulations. You want unzoned and unrestricted land deed.
 

EphemeralStick

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It has over $12k in back taxes the owner will be responsible for. Looks like $1 million to get it back up to code, and then you will still have to deal with zoning regulations. You want unzoned and unrestricted land deed.

Fiddlesticks! Back to the drawing board then.

What kind of area is your property in?
 
K

Kim Chee

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This is the one I've been eyeing, it's less than 10k, the building is 6,000 square feet but the lot size is 70,000. Put up some fencing, build some structures and it could be pretty awesome!

http://www.loopnet.com/Listing/19423980/15630-Woodrow-Wilson-Highland-Park-MI/

Says $12k in open taxes, I'm guessing that this must be paid along with the purchase price.

Like I been sayin, I already got 23 acres in an un zoned un restricted area. I hold the ownership and pay the taxes. I would love to set up an artist homestead collective, but mainly I find a bunch of lip flapping and no one actually willing to help with the hard manual labor of getting things off the ground.

More lip flapping:

If you already own the land you sure will have a hard time getting people to help you with the hard manual labor even if you are paying them. Are you paying them? Are you offering up this land so we can stop looking for a place to call our own?

Exactly what are you offering...or are you simply referring to another thread?
 

Durp

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Rural. Its considered semi arrid but sits dirrectly above an aquifer. Also it is at 4500 ft above sea level so it has nice mild temps year round. Hardly peaked 90 all summer and hardly gets below freezing in winter. 8 miles from a small town, 45 min drive from home depot or other big bix stores. Right off of I 80
 

Durp

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I've been trying to get a collective together, otherwise I will just park a trailer or school bus on it and start building myself once I get board of sailing around the puget sound. Everyone I have talked to irl, bails before they even come out. I waited out there for over a week for some kids to show up to be ditched without even the decency of a quick phone call to inform me they weren't going to make it.
 

milkhauler

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Rural. Its considered semi arrid but sits dirrectly above an aquifer. Also it is at 4500 ft above sea level so it has nice mild temps year round. Hardly peaked 90 all summer and hardly gets below freezing in winter. 8 miles from a small town, 45 min drive from home depot or other big bix stores. Right off of I 80
Elko County Nv? Were nearly neighbour's. I have 40 acres near Montello. [emoji12]
 
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MirandaLeigh

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My one issue with these sort of things is it quickly turns into some kinda freaky 'family' situation.
Most of my inquiries in past projects like this have given off a very cult-like and VERY law heavy feel.

But if we can find a balance between rules and freedom, community and one-true-father-orgy-cult craziness....then I have funds I'm willing to put into this and experience farming...also not a dislike of hard labour.
 
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highwayman made a post about a person he had known from something sometime back and gave me the persons contact info, after speaking with him on the phone a dozen or so times he started eh sound extremly sketch. at this point i was planning on moving there with my at the time girlfriend and spending the winter on his land, im really glad i got to half know this person before delving into the middle of nowhere maine to live on a strangers land for free. i really like the idea, its just hard to figure out who you can actually trust or rely on to contribute when it really comes down to it.
 

OstrichJockey

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I've been trying to get a collective together, otherwise I will just park a trailer or school bus on it and start building myself once I get board of sailing around the puget sound. Everyone I have talked to irl, bails before they even come out. I waited out there for over a week for some kids to show up to be ditched without even the decency of a quick phone call to inform me they weren't going to make it.

What would the "hard manual labor" entail? I'm always game to be a part of cool projects. I'm a carpenter but I'm willing to do whatever-the-fuck to get it off the ground. Let me know.

My one issue with these sort of things is it quickly turns into some kinda freaky 'family' situation.
Most of my inquiries in past projects like this have given off a very cult-like and VERY law heavy feel.

But if we can find a balance between rules and freedom, community and one-true-father-orgy-cult craziness....then I have funds I'm willing to put into this and experience farming...also not a dislike of hard labour.

Also, this exactly.
 

Odin

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Just gonna throw out an idea...
Instead of land how about a coalition of boats/platforms to create a sea-stead.
Even if it was say a central platform with "satellite" vessels docking and going as they please.
This way everyone would have they're own "home" but you could have a central anchor for community projects like aquaculture, power generation perhaps, community space and hydroponics/sea gardening.
Developing the central "anchor" would be tricky. I dunno if you could find a structure at sea like an abandoned oil platform or if the center could be a large vessel of some-sort. Say a few houseboats set up in an isolated Cove somewhere.

...probably this is a more difficult and expensive idea but has appeal.

Also... if it is gonna be land how about a group of people Expatiate to another country with cheaper land and less restrictions?

Whatever the case gotta have clear guidelines to peoples rights in participation. I would not mind joining someones project and putting in Hard work... but if after a bit... there would be no clear understanding of my place and opportunities then I would make my peace and move on.

This is where the sea-steading deff has appeal... more autonomous control per the individual.
 

WanderLost Radical

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I would be so down to eventually throw a k or 2 at a collective I could help getoff the ground and stay at, plus I'm a carpenter. The problem is that I'm canadian. So I won't invest money in time in a US property I can't live in full-time.

But if I get a chance, I could stop give a hand if I happen to be nearby
 
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Durp

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I'm not looking for anyones money. I envision creating like an artist collective of travelers where people can come help out a bit and hang out for a few months before heading off to travel. The hardest work is at the beginning, and that would be organizing a food source, building some small earthbag living structures, ect. Once the the structures are up it would be more chill like making crafts to sell for projects, growing food, picking up food, just lending a hand to keep things comfortable. I would love to have and organize a place to host different classes and talks, and of course a safe place to create art.
 
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